Former military ombudsman warns IDF not prepared for war amid growing Hezbollah threats
Maj.-Gen. Yitzhak Brik, the former Israel Defense Forces ombudsman, warned on Monday that the Israeli army is not ready for a protracted war amid growing tensions along the Jewish state’s borders.
"We did not prepare for the difficult war that will be here in a few months or years," said Brik during an interview with Israel's 103FM radio.
The former IDF ombudsman argued that the Israeli military’s preparedness has been eroded over an extended period.
"Our competence has been damaged for years. The IDF is not ready for war, and this is expressed in basic things. Look what is happening to us on the northern border. The IDF is afraid to react to a tent or the removal of a camera on the fence,” Brik said.
He was referring to the Iranian-backed terror group Hezbollah recently establishing an observation post on the Israeli side of the Lebanese-Israeli border. The Jewish state has so far preferred a diplomatic solution to end the Hezbollah provocation.
Brik further warned that the IDF currently lacks long-term planning, which is vital for Israel’s security.
“The political echelon has no monitoring of what happens in the IDF, there are no discussions in the cabinet, and the National Security Council has become the prime minister's personal secretary. The chief of staff just receives a budget and does what is on his mind. Everyone does a U-turn around the other one. Billions of shekels escape while there is no long-term army building."
The question of Israel's military preparedness comes amid growing threats from Hezbollah, which increasingly views Israel as weak and indecisive.
The Israeli Defense Ministry recently predicted a difficult military confrontation with Hezbollah where up to 6,000 rockets could be launched against the Jewish state on the first day of the war. Hezbollah, which is widely considered one of the world’s most powerful terror organizations, has built a vast arsenal consisting of over 100,000 rockets which can reportedly reach any point inside Israel.
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
