Storm over debate on Israeli unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon
Lebanon, Military, 11/27/1997

A new storm broke loose in Israel after the senior officer who spoke favourably of an Israeli unilateral withdrawl from South Lebanon was none other than Major General Amiram Levine, commander of the northern district, whose command includes also the occupied strip of South Lebanon. Trying to downplay the signficance of Levine's statement, military sources in Israel said Levine did not advocate a unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon, but had only hinted that such a possibility could exist after the Israeli army deals a serious blow to the Lebanese resistance in the south, and mainly to Hizbullah.

The debate in Israel as to whether to keep its occupation forces in South Lebanon or pull them out has busied the military and the policitical echelons alike and supporters of the idea had pointed out the uselessness of Israeli army's continued occupation in South Lebanon where it does nothing other than receive blows from Hizbullah and other Lebanese resistence factions. Opponents to a one-sided withdrawal from Lebanon have claimed that the mere debate on the issue is deterimental to the moral of the Israeli soldiers serving in Lebanon and have called on all voices advocating a unilateral withdrawal to remain silent.

Some analysists in Israel said Levnine may have been advocating the possibility of a withdrawal, so as to grant additional credence to his demand that Hizbullah be dealt a serious blow by the army. Levine himself denied that he suggested a unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon. He said there are discussions of the issue in the army and that some believe in withdrawal while others call for improved methods in Lebanon. He believes that a constant aggressive initiative against the resistance and Hizbullah is needed and that the Israeli army can make do with defensive tactics. He believes that this method will eventually bring the army back into Israel.

³I did not suggest and do not propose unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon. I did not say this in any forum,² said Levine at a press conference following the publication that he recommended on two occasions, one in an evaluation held with the defense minister and in a meeting with brigade commanders, unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon. Levine explained that in these meetings he spoke of dealing a serious blow to the Hizbullah, following which a gradual withdrawal from Lebanon would be possible.

Levine explained that in the discussions held with the defense minister, he recommended an attack initiative against the Hizbullah, through many small operations. At the same time of the attacks, Levine recommended a plan of punishment and deterrence against the Hizbullah and the Lebanese government which supports the resistence groups in South Lebanon against Israel and its backed SLA militias of South Lebanon.

³The plan I proposed,² continued Levine, ³is supposed to create the dynamics which will eventually allow us to bring the Israeli army back to the international borderline. It is clear to everyone that a comprehensive agreement between Israel, Syria and Lebanon is not appearing to be close at this point, and therefore, we must not sit around and do only the things we do today.²

Levine said that in the Israeli army there are also those who raise the idea of unilateral withdrawal, ³and it is good that there are such people.² In the discussion over Lebanon, held last week at the defense minister¹s office, Levine said that the present situation in South Lebanon "where the Hizbullah is drawing blood and we just bear it, cannot go on. If you give me means and freedom to initiate and carry out a large number of aggressive actions I have been considering for a while, I can put Amal and the Hizbullah on the defensive. As a result, the number of casualties the Israeli army suffers in the security zone will drop and the SLA will also stop suffering in the Jezine enclave. But if you think that what I propose cannot be done, then the alternative is a unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon without waiting for an agreement with the Syrians or the Lebanese government."

Levine is not alone in his thinking with regard to an Israeli unilateral withdrawal. A number of senior officers in the Israeli army support this approach, including his deputy Brigadier General Shai Avital who has no doubt that Israel must withdraw unilaterally from Lebanon. Avital wrote a document on the issue and sent it to the Chief of Staff. His views, usually highly valued at the general staff headquarters, were not accepted, because they still reflected views of a minority within the Israeli army.

Israeli military sources said that in the assessment forum with the defence minister, Levine failed to give answers to what will happen in South Lebanon after Hizbullah is dealt a severe blow and the Israeli army is pulled back to the international borders. The question raised dealt with the possiblity of Hizbullah recovering from its blow in a few months time and the possiblity of it launching a new campaign of revenge against Israeli-backed SLA militias. When Levine failed to give the appropriate answers, the sources said, his views were immediately put aside and the panel preferred not to adopt any of them.

Previous Stories:
  Lebanese resistance escalate attacks against Israeli occupation   (11/26/1997)
  Lahd begs Israel not to leave him   (11/24/1997)
  To Qana with Love   (8/23/1997)

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