Yes, No,.. Maybe, Better Do it Right
Army chief: We're ready to expand Gaza activityLt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi tells hundreds of senior IDF officers 'army is prepared to expand its activity in accordance with the (government's) decisions.' Southern Command chief: Gaza will soon reach boiling point
Hanan Greenberg
Published: 02.11.08, 21:52 / Israel News"The army is prepared to expand its activity in accordance with the (government's) decisions," IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi said Monday.
On the heels of the harsh criticism cast against the conduct of the military's top brass during the Second Lebanon War in the Winograd Comission's final report, a determined Ashkenazi told hundreds of senior officers holding the ranked of colonel or higher that "2008 will be filled with security-related challenges, and the army must be ready to face them".
Referring to the Winograd report's conclusion that the army's most fundamental values had been compromised during the 2006 campaign, the army chief told the officers "I have complete faith in you and in the IDF's ability to meet the challenges.
"Only we can defend the home and country," he added."
Southern Command Chief Major General Yoav Galant, who also addressed the conference, said Gaza would soon reach its boiling point. Officers who heard his speech said they believed Galant was in favor of launching a large-scale operation in the Strip.
Will Olmert learn from his mistakes in the Second Lebanon War and just turn the generals loose to command the IDF and do the job they were trained to do.
If the answer is yes, then by all means the time has come to enter Gaza in a big way.
If on the other hand Olmert learned nothing from his last attempt at war, Israel would be better off doing nothing.
A mismanaged Gaza campaign would once again make Isral look weak and ineffective and we can't loose any more of our deterrent factor.
