By JPOST.COM STAFFhirsch, gal 298 idf(photo credit: IDF)
"There was a big gap between the public mood and what was happening in reality (during the war in Lebanon). Many days will pass before a fair account of the war is presented," said outgoing Galilee Division Commander Gal Hirsch on Tuesday during a ceremony in the North at which he was replaced by Brig.-Gen. Yossi Bachar.
Hirsch, whose division conducted much of the fighting during this summer's war in Lebanon, resigned from the IDF after a military probe blamed him for the kidnapping of two reservists on July 12.
"We did not succeed in all our operations, there is a lot to learn and to teach but we took to our missions and delivered heavy blows to the enemy," said Hirsch.
For a Jerusalem Online video of events click here
Bachar said that he was taking on a "heavy responsibility" and that he intended to do everything in his power" to secure the northern border.
OC Northern Command Gadi Eizencott said that the war in Lebanon would be dealt in "historical perspective" and that it was too early to judge what its contribution was to the strategic position of the State of Israel.
"One thing is clear," he said. "Already the reality along the northern border is different. The Hizbullah posts are no longer deployed and Hisrch's initiatives had a part in that."
Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen Dan Halutz said he would decide in the coming weeks whether Hirsch would be allowed to remain in the IDF.
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