This is an AP photo of General Kaplinsky.He is the man on the left.
Posted on 08/08/2006 4:14:45 PM PDT by garbageseeker
Jerusalem - Israel named a new top commander for its Lebanon war effort on Tuesday, effectively demoting another general after criticism of the army's handling of the four-week-old offensive.
The military said in a statement that Major General Moshe Kaplinsky, a veteran of previous Lebanon campaigns, was named "to co-ordinate the Israeli army's operations in Lebanon".
Israeli commentators saw the move as effectively pushing aside General Udi Adam, head of northern command, at a time when some Israelis are asking why the region's mightiest army has failed to halt Hezbollah rocket fire after 28 days of fighting.
Channel Two television said Kaplinsky, the deputy chief of staff and former commander in the occupied West Bank, was named because Adam had angered Prime Minister Ehud Olmert by accusing politicians of limiting the Lebanon campaign.
Some commentators voiced concern that tensions within the army could hurt Israel's war effort, and that the change in leadership may reflect frustrations within a force that has long prided itself on defeating its enemies swiftly.
Still, opinions polls have shown strong public support for the war.
Fighting erupted on July 12 when Hezbollah fighters captured two soldiers and killed eight in a cross-border raid.
Israeli warplanes retaliated by bombing targets in Lebanon and Hezbollah began raining rockets on northern Israel.
The last time an Israeli general lost a command role at the height of battle was during the 1973 Middle East war, when Israel was surprised by attacks by Syria and Egypt and suffered heavy losses, experts said.
(Excerpt) Read more at news24.com ...
sweet...
Moshe Kaplinsky
Major-General Moshe Kaplinski, born around 1958, is head of the Israel Defense Force's Central Command, whose area of responsibility includes the occupied West Bank. In August 2002, he took over for Yitzhak Eitan. As head of Central Command, Kaplinski is an ex officio member of the IDF general staff; he oversees, inter alia, area commanders for the northern and southern parts of the West Bank (referred to as Samaria and Judea, respectively).
Kaplinski is a veteran of the Golani brigade. His previous positions include:
Military secretary to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, promoted to Major General (2001-2002)
Commander of the Galilee territorial division during the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon
Commander of the Golani infantry brigade (1993-1995).
Kaplinski has a BA in economics and business management from Bar-Ilan University and an MBA from Tel Aviv University. He is a graduate of the US Army's Advanced Infantry Officers' Course.
""was named because Adam had angered Prime Minister Ehud Olmert by accusing politicians of limiting the Lebanon campaign.""
Speaking the truth often gets generals in trouble..
I agree.
Sweet? Sounds like the old general wanted Olmert to let them take care of business instead of pussy-footing around, and he cot fired.
Then maybe I'm missing something...
Hmmm..and here I was hoping the army was taking over so they'd go in and take Hizballah OUT.
Yup - I missed his comment about widening the effort...
It's not much of a secret. The english lang. Israel sites have been for days, if not weeks had been publishing that the defnese minister wanted to occupy up to the Litani, Olmert wanted to see if "diplomacy" would save him the trouble.
Understood...I'm hoping that Olmert is ready to take a deep breath and just DO IT.
Olmert likely will have to step down, or be taken down. Things must be very hot in the Knesset.
Different take on this stuation:
http://debka.com/
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1154525832393&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
"...The reason behind the decision was not immediately clear. It may be related to the planned cabinet meeting on Wednesday and the possible approval of a massive expansion of the ground operation up to the Litani River or even further north. .."
"...However, Tuesday, August 8, when Halutz saw the northern command was incapable of finishing the Bin Jubeil battle, he decided to send Gen. Kaplinsky, 49, into the breach. As former OC Central Command, Kaplinsky’s forte is the disposition of ground forces. He is a former commander of the Golani infantry brigade..."
I do not know what to make of this situation....???
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This move isn't about anyone doing anything wrong based on their ability it's just about putting the appropriate person in there for the up coming measures.
Bibi Nethanyahu
They fired him for telling them they are weak.
What I'm worried about is how this war is being micromanaged by a Minister of Defense who is little more than a labor boss. His credentials are skimpy, and he has little experience in supervising military affairs aside from running a labor union election here and there. They need to bring back General Mofaz. Sharon had enough confidence in Mofaz to have him appointed Minister of Defense.
I think Olmert almost got ousted, but in the end they changed shoes for a general who they think will do as the liberals tell him. Doubtful he will though, a Galani Brigade former commander? He will kick ass or tell Olmert to stick it. Liberals almost always try to micromanage their wars and get a lot of people killed.
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