Israeli Res. Major General Itzhak Brik in a warning letter to Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir
Res. Major General Itzhak Brik sent a letter to Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, warning him against leading soldiers into a death trap in the Gaza Strip.
Brik said in an article published in the Israeli Maariv newspaper:
Mr. Chief of Staff, I am writing to you after reflecting on the results of Operation Gideon’s Chariots.
The operation, which I announced with the aim of defeating Hamas and freeing the hostages, ended without achieving either of these goals.
It left behind a heavy price in blood, with dozens killed, a large number seriously wounded, and many victims of psychological trauma.
After the operation failed, you said in the security cabinet, according to media reports, that ‘occupying Gaza won’t necessarily lead to the defeat of Hamas’.
You explained that the goal of Operation Gideon Chariots II was not to defeat or eliminate the militants, but rather to inflict severe damage on the terrorist infrastructure of the Gaza City Brigade.
You also warned that a complete occupation of the Strip would endanger the lives of the hostages and lead to severe depletion of the IDF’s forces, and even suggested removing the return of the hostages from the list of war objectives, saying that achieving it was almost impossible.
Although you presented this vision to the cabinet and the prime minister, they didn’t accept it and demanded that you occupy Gaza,” Brick added.
The Israeli general continued, addressing the chief of staff: “I find it difficult to understand how you can accept the task of leading our soldiers into a death trap and causing the deaths of hostages, while you yourself say that this won’t defeat Hamas.
Why don’t you consider resigning?
Can you, morally, ethically, and conscientiously, bear responsibility for the loss of at least 100 soldiers and the deaths of hostages in the tunnels?
As you mentioned in your remarks to the security cabinet.
What personal example and message are you sending to generations of fighters?
Being prepared to lead them to their deaths without winning the war is a grave disservice to the values they were raised on.
I’m not calling on you to disobey an order, but I am recommending that you resign and not lead our army into a situation you yourself described as a ‘death trap’.
Such an act will never be forgiven and will severely damage the morale of the fighters in combat.
The government will, in the end, blame you and walk away with its hands clean.
You and Netanyahu will leave behind a scorched earth.
Regarding the need to replace the political and senior military echelons that were part of the disaster in the Gaza Strip and in the conduct of the war, I call on you and your senior colleagues, as well as the political echelon, to take responsibility and submit your resignations.
Experienced reserve officers who served in periods when the army was performing better must be appointed to senior positions.
They will train young officers for three years—young men who grew up in chaos and lost their ability to build an army and establish a proper organizational culture—and then they will pass the torch to them.
