Olmert wins narrow Knesset support in vote on Winograd JPost.com Staff , THE JERUSALEM POST Feb. 4, 2008

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert won narrow support in the Knesset plenum on Monday during a special session on the final Winograd report.

59 MKs approved a statement made by Olmert in response to the report, while 53 voted against and one abstained.

Addressing the plenum prior to the vote, Olmert said Winograd "forces the Israeli people and, first and foremost, its leadership to do some soul searching not only regarding the failures of the war but also concerning [weakening] basic values," adding that "national solidarity, lack of compassion and lack of proportion characterize the public discourse."

"I take full responsibility for the failures. There is no effective democracy without accountability and I accept that" Olmert said. "I'll use this responsibility to fix the flaws, implement the recommendations and jump-start the changes. I began with this the day after the war and I will continue with it [ceaselessly]."

The prime minister said the government and security establishment had no illusions over the consequences of the decision to attack Lebanon on July 12, 2006, including the suffering of the home front and the slim chances of a decisive victory over Hizbullah. He stressed, however, that the security establishment nevertheless recommended an operation disproportionate to Hizbullah's cross-border attack and capture of the two IDF reservists in order to change the status quo on the northern front.

Olmert reiterated his belief that Israel had accomplished a great deal in the war, and achieved most of the goals which it set. "The reality in the North since August 14, 2006 is an achievement for Israel. The peace and quiet, the prosperity and life without the immediate threat of terror are an achievement for Israel."

The prime minister said the report had redeemed him as well as former defense minister Amir Peretz and former Chief of the General Staff Lt.-Gen Dan Halutz of accusations that the IDF's incursion into southern Lebanon during the final 48 hours of the war was "a corrupt spin. "

"It's good that this claim was thrown out by the committee," he said.

It had not been clear in advance whether the prime minister would indeed have the majority vote.

While a rejection would have had no practical consequences, it would have nevertheless been a blow to Olmert.

Olmert's speech was disrupted several times by MKs in the crowd. At one point, a bereaved father sitting on the balcony began shouting at Olmert, forcing him to halt his speech for several minutes. "You're not my prime minister. I renounce my citizenship," the man shouted, before being escorted out of the hall at the request of Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik, and was joined by a group of bereaved parents who walked out in protest.

Olmert went on to say that his biggest critics, including opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu, were among the biggest supporters of the military campaign in Lebanon.

In a rebuttal to Olmert's speech, Netanyahu said that if the prime minister doesn't resign, then former defense minister Amir Peretz and former chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Dan Halutz should be reinstated to their former posts.

Netanyahu said the Winograd report showed that the political echelon failed in its management of the war.

"The Second Lebanon War was a failure and the ultimate responsibility for this failure lies with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert," Netanyahu said. The responsible parties, continued Netanyahu, "are the prime minister, the defense minister and the chief of staff."

Regarding Olmert's claim that he had to remain prime minister in order to fix the flaws reveled during the war, Netanyahu likened it to "giving the captain of the Titanic, if he would have survived, another ship to sail."

Turning to Olmert, Netanyahu said: "You are not showing responsibility because you are not prepared to pay any price. On the contrary - you complain when someone even suggests that you need to pay any price. You are delivering a lawyer's speech, but unfortunately not the speech of a leader.

Netanyahu said that the Winograd committee's findings beg the question of what Olmert was doing during the war. "What did you do there? You didn't decide on a strategy, you didn't present a policy. So what were you doing there."

Earlier in the session, Olmert was attacked by MKs from the left and the right for his decisions during the war and his refusal to resign in its wake.

Speaking to the Knesset earlier, MK Zehava Gal-On (Meretz) said "the peace camp is not a shelter for failed leaders," calling on Olmert to resign.

"You won your war for survival, but Israel lost...you gambled on soldiers' lives in order to achieve a semblance of victory. Mr. Prime Minister, the blood of our sons is crying out from the ground."

Critics were not limited to opposition members. MK Eitan Cabel (Labor) said: "Throughout the entire war I ran from one [TV] studio to the next to give you full backing for the decision to go to war. When the guns stopped firing, and we understood what happened - I believed we should take responsibility for what happened. What kind of example are you setting?"

MK Tzahi Hanegbi (Kadima) countered the criticism. "This war was not a success story, but at the same time the public feels that the decision to go to war was right. What is the source of the anger? That the Winograd committee did not fulfill the role the opposition intended for it? It wrote an impressive report instead of a damning one."

The Knesset has proven once again, they are the problem.

It is time for public minded people to rise up and bring the Knesset to where it should be a house for the common man of Israel.