Ashkenazi has told newsmen that he holds Dayan personally responsible for the military failures in the early days of the Yom Kippur War in his capacity of Defense Minister. He displayed several signs. One. apparently addressed to Premier Golda Meir, read: “Grandma, a failing Defense Minister and 3000 dead grandchildren.” Another read, “If no one is responsible, there is no responsibility.”
SOLDIERS SIGN PETITIONS
Ashkenazi’s petition demanded ministerial responsibility for deeds and failures “as a primary principle in a democratic society.” Among the hundreds who have signed the petition so far are soldiers on leave from the Golan Heights and the west bank of the Suez Canal. Many shook his hand and said, “We are with you.” One unidentified officer handed Ashkenazi a note saying, “To Capt. Motti, with all respect.”
Most ministers entering and leaving the Premier’s Office yesterday ignored the demonstrators. One of them, Minister of Commerce Gen. Haim Barlev, the former Army Chief of Staff, was seen to hesitate a moment before going on his way. People shouted to him. “Come sign, don’t be afraid.”
Ashkenazi said he would keep up his vigil around a campfire tonight and then resume it next Sunday. He said he would go on a hunger strike and hoped that many others would join him. Ashkenazi said he has offered to testify before the judicial committee investigating the Yom Kippur War but so far has not been invited. He said he planned the anti-Dayan demonstrations even while the battle was raging around his outpost last Oct.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
