Publications

In July 2006, after three failed kidnapping attempts, Hizbollah succeeded in kidnapping two Israeli soldiers and killing eight others. This successful operation by the Lebanese organization came on the heels of the kidnapping of the soldier Gilad Shalit by the Palestinians near the Gaza Strip border. These provocations, together with the IDF’s withdrawal from Lebanon in May 2000, lent the necessary legitimacy to the IDF’s response, which developed into the Second Lebanon War.

The following essay probes the role of Military Intelligence, one of the elements that had a substantive influence on the war, beginning with the situation assessment as it was presented to the cabinet, including the prime minister, prior to the kidnapping in July 2006.