Leading article: A disastrous war and a weakened leader

Share
+More
Related Topics

The Winograd Commission into the 2006 Lebanon war has already drawn blood in the form of the departure of the Israeli Defence minister and Chief-of-Staff who were in office at the time of the operation. But Winograd looks unlikely to force the resignation of the man many Israelis hold responsible above all others for the debacle: Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

The commission's final report, released yesterday, condemns the handling of the contentious ground invasion launched in the final days of the conflict, but says the decision was based on an "honest assessment" of Israeli interests. Mr Olmert's aides were no doubt breathing a sigh of relief yesterday.

Credit must be given to the Israeli government for establishing the Winograd Commission. It is worth remembering that we in Britain are still waiting for an independent inquiry into our participation in the invasion of Iraq. But the plain fact remains that the 2006 Lebanon war was a disaster from the start.

Its cost in blood was grave. More than 1,000 Lebanese were killed, most of them civilians, and about 160 Israelis. And thousands of lethal cluster munitions were left behind in southern Lebanon as a result of the bombardment. The operation also failed utterly in its strategic objective of eliminating the threat posed by the Shia Muslim guerrilla force, Hizbollah. Indeed, the invasion had the effect of strengthening the political influence of its leader, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah.

Perhaps the most significant domestic legacy of the war was the damage inflicted on the Israeli psyche. One of the most technologically advanced military forces in the world was unable to deal a knock-out blow to guerrilla fighters armed with low-tech missiles. It was a far cry from the 1967 war in which Israel routed the combined armies of Egypt, Jordan and Syria in just six days. The political situation in Israel remains fragile after this report. The Labor leader Ehud Barak could yet bow to pressure from within his party to withdraw from Mr Olmert's coalition and bring down the government. But elections would only boost the hardline Likud party. Polls show that its leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, would take power if new elections were held. This would be fatal to the government's peace talks with Fatah, which are supported by Labor.

No lethal blow was delivered by yesterday's report, but with its powerful condemnation of "grave failings" it cannot but weaken Mr Olmert, who also remains dogged by allegations of corruption.

There are also serious doubts about whether the Prime Minister is strong enough to negotiate a viable agreement with the Fatah wing of the Palestinian leadership. Mr Olmert may cling to office, but a weak Israeli Prime Minister offers little hope of serious progress towards peace in the region.

The New Suffragettes

Buy the new Independent eBook - £1.99 A celebration of those who risk their lives for women's rights, a century after Emily Wilding Davison's death.

kobo Amazon Kindle

React Now

iJobs Job Widget
iJobs General

Lighting Design Engineer

£33000 - £35000 Per Annum: The Green Recruitment Company: The Green Recruitmen...

Are you a Primary School Teacher in the Clacton area?

£110 - £135 per day: Randstad Education Chelmsford: Teaching opportunites in t...

September teaching roles - Primary

£21000 - £32000 per annum: Randstad Education Chelmsford: Primary Teaching opp...

Primary Teaching vacancies, starting in September - Southend

£21000 - £32000 per annum: Randstad Education Chelmsford: Primary School teach...

Day In a Page

Read Next
Possible new measures include greater use of online filters  

The Government has got itself in a fine muddle over internet censorship

James Vincent
 

Those most ill tend not to be the ones complaining about the NHS

Dr Ben Daniels
'To farm I have to rape the countryside. It’s got to be wrong': The true effect of the badger cull

The true effect of the badger cull

'To farm I have to rape the countryside. It’s got to be wrong'
Theatre review: Daniel Radcliffe gives an admirably honest performance in Michael Grandage's The Cripple of Inishmaan

First night: The Cripple of Inishmaan

Daniel Radcliffe gives an admirably honest performance in Michael Grandage's comedy
Girls Guides drop religious reference but pledge to self and the Queen

Guides drop religious reference but pledge to self and the Queen

After 103 years, organisation changes oath to welcome 'all girls, of all faiths, and none'
Steve Tongue: Joe Kinnear was one of the boys and a breath of fresh air... 21 years ago

Steve Tongue

Joe Kinnear was one of the boys and a breath of fresh air... 21 years ago
Chris Froome: Free from 'pain in neck' after Bradley Wiggins' exit

Chris Froome: Free from 'pain in neck' after Wiggins' exit

Sky's lead rider says he is in fantastic form for the Tour and happy pecking order debate is over
Hannah England: I've got the right times – now to focus on the chess

Hannah England: Keeping Track

I've got the right times – now to focus on the chess
Beards, brawn and body art

Beards, brawn and body art

Meet London’s new batch of male models
Scandi-geeks descend on Nordicana for fan-convention

Scandi-geeks descend on Nordicana for fan-convention

British love of shows such as The Bridge, Borgen and The Killing shows no sign of fading
Behind the rhetoric what is really being done to combat desertification?

The Great Green Wall of Africa,

Behind the rhetoric what is really being done to combat desertification?
Laughter Inc: the cheering growth of the chuckle industry

Laughter Inc

The cheering growth of the chuckle industry
The bad science scandal: how fact-fabrication is damaging UK's global name for research

The bad science scandal

How fact-fabrication is damaging UK's global name for research
To the manor born: The female aristocrats battling to inherit the title

Female aristocrats battle to inherit the title

A passionate protest is gathering pace among the women of Britain's aristocracy, who believe that men should no longer automatically inherit the family pile and title.
Love struck: Photographs of JFK's visit to Berlin 50 years ago reveal a nation instantly smitten

In pictures: JFK's visit to Berlin in 1963

Photographer Ulrich Mack accompanied Kennedy on the entire trip. The results are an astonishing record of a watershed moment.
Eat shoots and leaves: Mark Hix gets creative with fresh peas, mangetouts and sugar snaps

Mark Hix gets creative with English peas

English peas and their offsprings, such as mangetouts and sugar snaps, are great tossed into a salad, says our chef.
Ceviche with a smile: Chef Martin Morales has turned South America's elegant cuisine into one of London's hottest food trends

Chef Martin Morales: Ceviche with a smile

Morales has turned South America's elegant cuisine into one of London's hottest food trends