Inevitably, in Israel, the army is not immune from criticism, though it usually only comes when the fighting is over. This was written back during the first 72-hour cease fire:
“It’s a King Kong of an army — big and cumbersome; every move unintentionally knocks down a house, bridge or UN school in Gaza” according to an analysis in Haaretz, and it continues….
“Instead of managing the war wisely, with commando units operating behind enemy lines, ruses, ambushes and traps as in the old days, the IDF now unloads one-ton bombs on buildings in an effort to hit the command headquarters below. But the commanders in the tunnels survive without a scratch. And of course the building collapses, burying civilians.
“It’s also hard to understand how the army went into Gaza with antique armored personnel carriers when IDF warehouses have excellent newer models, and why it takes two weeks to figure out that it doesn’t make sense to put staging areas within range of mortar shells, costing many lives in the process…
“This happens because the top brass employs all its skills and strategies to lobby for a budget. It’s constantly demanding more money and is always short of funds, even if by every measure it has a huge budget — bigger than that of all the surrounding Arab countries.”
Unfortunately the rest of the piece is behind a firewall, but the conclusion is that the IDF needs more commandoes, stealth, and finesse instead of these King Kong tactics. If they ever expect to whip Hamas, that is, without laying waste to Gaza in the process.
Ynet columnist Michael Bar-Zohar agrees, saying, the IDF has lost its creativity.
Via Haaretz & Ynet News.
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