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Reserve Soldiers Speak Out

Last update - 07:51 18/08/2006
Reservists: Officers stopped us from attending anti-war protest
By Nir Hasson, Haaretz Correspondent

Some 160 infantry reserve soldiers are accusing their commanders of preventing them from participating in a demonstration against the war in Lebanon, which they called a "debacle." The soldiers said they had been used as "sitting ducks."

"I've been in the army and reserves for 26 years and what happened this time was not merely a fiasco, it was a complete debacle. We felt like tin soldiers in a game of Olmert and Peretz's assistants and spin masters," said Avi, a soldier in the brigade.

At noon Thursday 160 brigade soldiers signed a request to take part in the demonstration that would call on the resignation of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Amir Peretz. However, their release was put off until Friday, preventing them from reaching the protest.

The only hope that Israel has at this time is that the reserve soldiers that were called into this stupid war are going to keep the feet of the politicians and their lap dog in the IDF Halutz under fire so that the cowards in the opposition in the Knesset will be forced to do something to bring Olmert down.

But just causing the fall of Olmert is not enough for the very leaders in the Knesset that sit in opposition have sat in former ruling governments that have allowed the IDF to fall into such a state of neglect.

Reserve soldiers that have not received training for 5-6 years are suddenly called up and forced into combat after only firing one or two magazines of ammo, though their rifles less than 60 bullets.

By contrast the unit where I was in charge of the training used to fire hundreds of rounds of ammo each week in training.