Military Intelligence second in command against the head of the Directorate
Brig. Gen. Eli Ben-Meir, who retired from the army due to disagreements with his commander, Maj. Gen. Hertzi Halevi, attacked on Facebook: 'The roof of the house is leaking, I failed to correct it.'
In the post, Ben Meir wrote, ""Today, after almost 30 years of service in the Intelligence Corps, I am discharged. The Corps was my second home… until almost the very end, when I felt the roof was leaking, I failed to correct it and decided to leave."
Ben Meir served as the National Appraiser, the number two position in the Military Intelligence Directorate, and one of the most central and important positions in the IDF. In the past, he served as the US intelligence attaché and chief intelligence officer until he was appointed head of the research division in the summer of 2015.
Shortly after the appointment, however, there were reportedly serious differences of opinion between him and the head of Military Intelligence, Maj. Gen. Hertzi Halevi, on professional issues regarding the core of intelligence activity, including allocation of resources for various tasks.
Halevi and Ben Meir met several times in an attempt to bridge the gaps, and even Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot tried to intervene and prevent the crisis and the resignation of the esteemed officer; when an officer in such a central position chooses to hang up his boots and storm off, it is often considered a difficult blow to both his direct commander, Halevi, and to the chief of staff.
Despite the Intelligence Directorate's attempts to broadcast business as usual, Ben Meir's resignation rattled the organization and undermined the position of its leader, who since then has been trying to stabilize the system, but has come under criticism for choosing to promote officers from special units instead of research officers and "traditional" intelligence personnel.
(Translated and edited by N. Elias)
