The decision to declassify information on the 2007 Israeli strike on a Syrian nuclear reactor led to a media frenzy on Wednesday from dawn to dusk.
The Israel Defense Forces, especially its pilots and navigators, should get the tip of the hat, as should the political echelon that took the decision to bomb the reactor and turn it into a monument for yet another futile effort to target Israel.
We all knew that Israel was behind the attack from day one. You don't need to have a deep grasp of history to realize that only the Jews can defend themselves and that no other nation would be willing to take a risk on their behalf.
But the timing of the decision to declassify the details raises many questions. It's not clear if good judgment was exercised by those who decided it was time to have a brouhaha that would have every media outlet gushing over this successful operation. The timing was doubtlessly meant to coincide with the release of former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's new book, not long after he had been released from prison. In light of this, perhaps the codename of the operation should have been "Outside the Cell" rather than "Outside the Box."
The way these details have been released is tantamount to unnecessary hubris. Even if it was indeed time to release the details of the operation and publicly admit Israel was behind it, there was no point in disclosing the intricate details of the planning process, the way the Mossad works, the behind-the-scenes view of U.S.-Israeli coordination efforts or the various deliberations and decision-making processes.
This public undressing is damaging and contributes nothing to Israel's defense, especially in light of Israel's ongoing efforts to counter Iran's nuclearization.
Those officials who believe the release could help boost deterrence vis-à-vis Iran could not be more wrong. In fact, it can have the exact opposite effect, because those who talk don't shoot and those who shoot don't need to talk. The left-wing media has always been good at treating its darlings with kid gloves. Led by Hadashot evening news pundit Amnon Abramovich, the leftist outlets have done all they could to promote and elevate those who represent their hopes.
Olmert, a convicted felon, is one of those figures. Watching the news on Wednesday, one could think Olmert was the greatest prime minister since David Ben-Gurion, with unmatched courage and determination.
Abramovich pulled all the stops on Wednesday in besmirching and belittling Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. According to the pundit, had the incumbent prime minister been in power in 2007, he would have preferred to deliver a speech before the U.S. Congress than strike the reactor.
This nonsense only underscores the disconnect between the general public and the Bolshevik mainstream media. Well-known media pundits have, for political reasons, done all they could to undermine then-Defense Minister Ehud Barak, portraying him as someone who was too scared to make a decision compared to Olmert's heroism.
If we are in the business of assigning credit for the attack, perhaps MK Amir Peretz should get some, having had the unfortunate luck of being booted from the Defense Ministry just months before the attack. While we are at it, let's not forget the role of late Shas spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef who blessed our troops via then party chairman Eli Yishai (we should obviously all join his new party now), and also credit the Western Wall rabbi.
The fight for credit on Wednesday made us realize that the Mossad believed the IDF Intelligence Directorate failed to do its job, but the latter believes that the Mossad doesn't know how to properly eavesdrop on others. Thanks, but no thanks. We really have no use for this tit-for-tat.
It is sad to see that despite Israel celebrating its 70th anniversary this year, there are some in the judiciary, media and politics who have yet to internalize that the public doesn't have to know everything. Sometimes silence is indeed golden.
