Lebanon war report highly critical of Olmert, Peretz

An interim report on last summer's Israel-Hezbollah conflict accused Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of mismanaging the war, and slammed Defense Minister Amir Peretz's lack of military knowledge, local popular Yedioth Ahronoth said on Sunday.

A panel led by retired judge Eliahu Winograd is due to release an interim report looking into the management of which Israel called the Second Lebanon War on Monday, but preliminary details of the report were leaked over the weekend, Yedioth Ahronoth said.

According to a report broadcast by Israel's Channel 10 on Saturday evening, Winograd committee found that Olmert failed to put into action emergency plans drawn up long before the war, in fear that it would result in heavy casualties.

Olmert resisted a ground incursion into Lebanon during the war but presented no cohesive alternative in its stead due to a lack of structured planning, the report said.

Aides to the prime minister said on Saturday that Olmert does not intend to resign following the formal release of the findings on Monday, but both Olmert and Peretz are expected to officially comment on the report.

Turning to the defense minister, the panel's report accused Peretz of failing to make up for his lack of military experience and failing to utilize the defense-oriented resources at his disposal.

Peretz, according to the committee, preferred to convene a private forum which bypassed the Defense Ministry so that in the end he was running the war with Olmert with a complete lack of the necessary knowledge.

The committee added that Peretz's decision to run the war in this manner was motivated by irrelevant personal considerations and perhaps he was negligent in accepting the post of defense minister in the first place.

The panel further said the war was grossly mismanaged and decisions were hastily made in the ensuing chaos. It faulted the entire wartime decision-making process and said it was not up to the standard of leadership necessary during an emergency situation.

In addition, former Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Dan Halutz, who resigned in January, is accused by the panel of underestimating the Katyusha rocket threat Israel faced, quashing criticism within military ranks and failing to provide the government with viable alternatives.

The 34-day conflict erupted on July 12, 2006 when Hezbollah guerrillas kidnapped two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border attack. Some 158 Israelis and 1200 Lebanese were killed during the confrontation.

Source: Xinhua