Interior Minister and leader of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party Eli Yishai said this week that the Israeli army failed during the Second Lebanon War in 2006 because its soldiers did not pray enough, Channel 10 news reported Tuesday. His remarks outraged secular Israelis and some bereaved families of soldiers who fell during the 34-day war against Hezbollah. On Wednesday, Yishai apologized to the families of the fallen. In a statement, Yishai said the families' sacrifice "was a holy thing" for Israel. Yishai added that his comments had been taken out of context, even though they were recorded. "There are people here who remember the Six-Day War [in 1967]. I was very young in those days," Yishai said. "During the Six-Day War, all the Arab countries went to war against Israel, every Jewish soldier had hundreds, if not thousands, against him. For every tank, there were hundreds of tanks, for each plane there were hundreds of planes ... We were the weakest army in the Middle East, we had no chance of winning, but suddenly everyone fled and Israel won. During the Second Lebanon War, we were the strongest army in the Middle East, unlike the Six-Day War. No Egypt, no Syria, no Lebanon, no Iraq, Yemen, Libya or Lebanon -- just 2,000 Hezbollah fighters." The difference between the two wars, Yishai said, was that "during the Six-Day War each and every Jew who went to battle raised his eyes to the Creator. But in the Second Lebanon War we said, 'By my strength and the might of my hand,' [meaning that the army would protects Israelis], and then God said to us, 'Let's see the results of, By my strength and the might of my hand.'" Yishai said there was a great lesson to be learned. "When all Arab countries are confronting the Jewish people, what will save them is Torah scholars, those who lead people to do mitzvot [good deeds], and those who bring non-observant people back into the religious fold," he said. Yishai's comments sparked outrage on Wednesday among secular Jews and the families of soldiers who fell during the Second Lebanon War. "Faith rules-" bereaved mother Leora Hasson asked in an interview on Army Radio Wednesday. "I'd like to see yeshiva students defend the country. [Praying] is not what drives a sane army." Hasson's son, Guy, was killed in the Second Lebanon War. His mother told Army Radio that Yishai hit a nerve with his comments. "Minister Yishai is disparaging my son, and I am embarrassed that these are our leaders. No one got up and told him to be quiet. This man was part of the secret Forum of Seven [ministers] who led our sons into war. Eli Yishai, my son's blood is on your hands, and now you are settling accounts about his behavior-" Hasson also directed her comments at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying, "Where is the prime minister? After Yishai's remarks came out, he should have immediately said that it doesn't matter if it's an election year, a minister who humiliates IDF soldiers will not sit in my government."
Yishai, who served as a cabinet member during the 2006 war, made his remarks during a celebration organized by Shas Rabbi Reuven Elbaz, said by Channel 10 to be working to bring secular and observant Israelis closer together.
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