Criticism of Lebanese Campaign

Senior Israel Defense Forces officers, together with brigade and battalion commanders in regular service, took part on Monday in an 11-hour debriefing conference on the Lebanon warchaired by Chief of Staff Dan Halutz.

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A. It's The Media's Fault

Some battalion commanders noted the gap between the sense of success that they said they experienced during the fighting and the media's presentation of events - which, they charged, focused only on complaints and failures. Their remarks were directed against the media as well as against the army's spokespeople.

B. Back-seat Drivers

Also on Monday, Channel 2 television unveiled additional sections of a document written by reserve officers who served in the Northern Command during the war. The document complained of confusion in defining missions, faulty preparation of the troops and unattainable goals.

The officers also slammed a decision by commanders of the divisions that fought in Lebanon to direct the fighting from behind the lines instead of coming to the front to see the real situation.

C. Who Me?

Despite complaints voiced by some commanders about the ground forces' level of training and preparedness, officers who took part in the meeting said later that those who spoke held back so as not to anger their superiors.

"Nobody dared go overboard, but many understand the depth of the crisis," said an officer. The officers added that people might have been concerned that they would not be promoted if they were too critical.