Evacuating northern settlements 'hysterical', gov. at a loss: Olmert
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The former Israeli PM says the government operates without strategic planning or preparation and without understanding the goals that need to be achieved to end the war.
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Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert takes questions from reporters after a news conference in New York, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. (AP)
The decision to evacuate settlements in northern occupied Palestine was "hysterical" and stemmed from the government's panic and loss of composure, former Israeli occupation Prime Minister Ehud Olmert pointed out.
Settlers in northern occupied Palestine along the border with Lebanon are running out of patience amid Hezbollah's intense operations against Israeli military sites in support of Gaza, which have displaced tens of thousands of Israelis from their settlements.
In an interview for the Israeli Channel 12, Olmert underlined that the Israeli government is at a loss and incapable of making decisions.
He added that the government operates without strategic planning or preparation and without understanding the goals that need to be achieved to end the war.
In a similar vein, Knesset member and reserve colonel Sharon Nir pointed out that "not only has Israel lost the North, but the residents of the North have lost their confidence in the Israeli government."
She stressed that "Israel needs to change the situation as this is a strategic failure."
On his part, former Mossad official Eshel Armony expressed doubt that "Israel" can face "a multi-front battle," referring to the war on Gaza and the potential war with Hezbollah.
He underlined that "Israel" must exhaust diplomatic solutions to avoid this scenario, as it would come with hefty costs.
Armony considered that pursuing a military solution requires "Israel" to be in a position of taking the initiative rather than responding, which is not the case, at least with Lebanon.
The former Mossad official said he does not see a situation where Israelis return to their settlements in northern occupied Palestine unless Hezbollah's elite Radwan forces are pushed back to a distance from which they cannot launch anti-tank rockets.
Touching on the Gaza front, Olmert said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not want to retrieve the captives held by the Palestine Resistance in the Strip nor reach a deal, stressing that a war against Hamas, from which the movement was able to emerge unscathed after nine months, is a war that must be stopped now.
The former Israeli premier suggested that a deal will not fall apart before July 25, when Netanyahu is set to give a speech before the US Congress, and that negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza and a prisoner exchange deal will continue.
He pointed out that Netanyahu believes that the collapse of the deal will allow him to continue this war without paying the political costs he wants to avoid, emphasizing that this must not be accepted under any circumstances.
This comes as the Israeli occupation government has so far failed to retrieve most of the captives held by the Palestinian Resistance in Gaza and its forces continue to suffer casualties as a result of the Resistance's operations.
Read more: Israeli goals in Lebanon war 'maximalist', 'unattainable'
