Ministers to inquiry: Olmert to blame for late Lebanon war push

[bemildred]

Meretz MK Zahava Gal-On, making public on Monday the testimony of cabinet ministers to the Winograd Commission, which is investigating the conduct of the Second Lebanon War, said the ministers clearly placed the onus on Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for the decision to order a ground offensive during the final 48 hours of the conflict.

Gal-On called on the prime minister to resign. The ground offensive resulted in large numbers of Israel Defense Forces casualties, and the decision to order the move at the close of hostilities has been seen as one of the primary failings of Israel's conduct of the war.

The full report of the panel is to be released on January 30. Olmert has gone on record as stating that he would stay in office regardless of the report's findings. Defense Minister Ehud Barak, leader of the Labor Party, the main coalition partner of Olmert's ruling Kadima, has declined to state if he will make good on past pledges to take the party out of the government when the report is released.

According to Gal-On, whose petition to the High Court of Justice allowed the testimony to be made public, all of the ministers testified that they opposed the decision or were unaware of it, and all clearly fixed responsibility for the offensive on the prime minister.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/946786.html

[oberliner]

1. I'm somewhat surprised Olmert is still PM at this point

It's amazing that his government has held together considering how unpopular he is.

[bemildred]

2. I have not been able to explain it to myself satisfactorily.

It seems possible that the lack of attractive alternatives is part of it. It is hard to reconcile the idea that he is a sharp political infighter with his failures in the policy realm.

It does suggest a dangerous lack of accountability in government, a problem we have here in the US too.