Twenty Israeli army reservists, and families of soldiers killed in the course of war against Lebanon marched on Monday demanding a national investigation into the war against Lebanon, and demanding the resignation of Israel’s Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, the Defence Minister, Amir Peretz and the Israeli Army Chief of staff, Dan Halutz.
The march started from the entrance of the office Israel’s Prime Minister, as the protesters called on the Israeli cabinet and the Israeli army chief of staff to resign.
In the evening the protesters settled in the Rose Garden, Israeli online daily Haaretz reported.
One of the protesters, Sgt. Maj. Lior Vilnes, told Haaretz that they plan to camp out in front of Olmert’s office and call on him, Peretz and Dan Halutz to resign.
“Olmert and Peretz should look me in the eye, and tell me that they are fir for their posts”, the protester told Haaretz.
Next Friday, several bereaved families are planning to hold another protest, and intend to march to the office of Israel’s Prime Minister, carrying a letter demanding his resignation.
Haaretz added that protests against the conduct of war are growing, and that these protest are led by several petitions circulated by army reservists who just came back from the war.
Upon Olmert’s request, Israeli Attorney General, Menachem Mazuz, will present by Thursday the Israeli government with several option on how to run the investigation of war on Lebanon.
Haaretz added that one of the petitions which was signed by hundreds of soldiers received by exposure in the Israeli pres.
The petition also questioned the motive of the war and considered it against the “values of warfare”.
The following are parts of the petition as published by Haaretz;
“The ‘cold feet’ of the decision-makers were evident everywhere".
"To us the indecisiveness expressed deep disrespect for our willingness to join the ranks and fight and made us feel as though we had been spat at, since it contradicts the principles and values of warfare upon which we were trained at the Israel Defense Forces.
"The heavy feeling that in the echelons above us there is nothing but under-preparation, insincerity, lack of foresight and inability to make rational decisions, leads to the question – were we called up for nothing?"
