IDF Brigadier Ilan Harari
Photo: Gabi Menashe
IDF troops returning from Lebanon
Photo: Reuters
IDF hunting for unsung heroes
First publication: Lebanon war may have exposed military flaws but many tales of heroic acts remain untold and Defense Ministry plans to bring them to light
Looking for unsung heroes. Ynet has learnt that the Israel Defense Forces has set up a special team to hunt for stories of heroic acts carried out by soldiers during the war against Hizbullah and make them available to the public. Brigadier Ilan Harari has been appointed to head the team.
"When a commander attacks and kills a terrorist that's natural, but when a commander throws himself at a hand grenade to save his soldier, everyone in the IDF should know and recognized this," said a senior officer, adding that the army will publish all heroic actions reported by soldiers.
"When the war started, in addition to reports about soldiers being injured, we also heard some amazing stories about rescue under fire, covering soldiers who encountered trouble, and other events, which reinstated pride and the feeling that many IDF soldiers are ethical, courageous and know to forgo themselves," he said.
Cover up?
At a time when the army is under scrutiny for deficiencies reported during the war, Brigadier Harari has been assigned the task of finding positive aspects of the war."We heard about the complaints, the difficulties, the confusion, but in all that, there are plenty of heroic tales … and these should be elevated so that every division in the IDF knows what happened there," the officer said.
Officers and soldiers will be dispatched to hospitals and communities around the country to collect testimonies of heroic tales witnessed by soldiers in Lebanon.
The IDF expects a full account of heroic acts to be compiled within two months.
The officer denied claims that the project was initiated to cover up the army's shortcomings during the war. "In any situation of war it is appropriate to carry out a project of the kind," the officer said.
