A senior officer at the middle of an ongoing feud within the Israel Police was not invited to a Rosh Hashana toast honoring a long list of officers spanning the ranks and generations of the force, The Jerusalem Post has learned. Cmdr. Uri Bar-Lev, the Southern District chief who was put on a 30-day leave of absence this month after he refused to take a two-year study leave, will not be in attendance Thursday, as the country's top cops gather at an undisclosed police facility to wish one another Happy New Year. Bar-Lev made headlines when he refused Insp.-Gen. David Cohen's order to take two years off for studies. The 49-year-old already has degrees in political science and engineering. He said a return to the university would be a waste of taxpayers' money, and that he preferred to stay in the field. The crime rate in Bar-Lev's district has dropped 50 percent since he took control of the Southern Command in 2005. Although Cohen and Bar-Lev's relationship has often been strained, the current feud was sparked by a reshuffling by Cohen of police brass that is expected to go into effect in May or June. The shake-up has been marked by Cohen's desire to help old friends such as Cmdr. Shai Amihai, head of the Human Resources Division, a police source said earlier this month.
