Ehud Barak denies Alzheimer rumors
Former defense minister jokes that some people might ‘like me to forget all sorts of things,’ attacks former chief of staff Ashkenazi
Former prime minister and defense minister Ehud Barak on Friday denied recent rumors that he was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, telling Channel 1 News that “there’s nothing [to it].”
“At first I thought it would die on its own – the story, not the patient,” he joked. “Then I began being surrounded by empathy which was very pleasant. Perhaps there are some people who would like me to forget all sorts of things.”
Barak also spoke of the ongoing investigation into the conduct of former IDF chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi – who police have recently recommended stand trial for breach of trust and for delivering classified information to journalists during his time as army chief — as well as other senior military staff.
“It’s sad to see the behavior to which the former chief of staff resorted,” Barak said, “and the depth of his actions on the verge of criminal activity aimed at achieving goals improper in a democracy.”
Barak had a very rocky relationship with Ashkenazi during his time as defense minister. In January 2013, Israel’s comptroller issued a scathing report stemming from a state investigation into Ashkenazi’s relationship with Barak between that delayed over 150 senior IDF appointments, impacted the process by which Ashkenazi’s successor was chosen, and preoccupied both the chief of staff’s office and that of the defense minister for well over a year — a period that included Israel’s Operation Cast Lead assault on Hamas in Gaza and the escalating effort to grapple with Iran’s nuclear program.
The crux of the dispute revolved around a mid-2010 attempt by former officer Boaz Harpaz to influence the appointment of the successor to Lt. Gen. Ashkenazi.
As chief of the General Staff from February 2007 to February 2011, Ashkenazi was found by the report to have acted in “a manner unworthy” of a senior officer in his collaboration with family friend Harpaz, who sought to besmirch Barak. In September police recommended indicting Ashkenazi with breach of trust and giving classified information to reporters, though he was cleared of any involvement in forging a document leaked to the press by Harpaz, which defamed a candidate to succeed Ashkenazi.
Police also said they found enough evidence to indict former Israel Defense Forces spokesman Avi Benayahu; Ashkenazi’s personal aide, Col. (res.) Erez Weiner; former officer Harpaz; and cabinet secretary Avichai Mandelblit, who served as the military prosecutor when the so-called Harpaz affair came to light.
State prosecutors have not yet decided whether to accept the recommendations and indict the people in question.
“The main thing is that such a group acted in an unprecedented manner in the annals of the IDF in an attempt to subvert lawful processes under the responsibility of their superiors – the defense minister and the government,” Barak said Friday. “I expect the attorney general to use all means at his disposal so that this is investigated to the fullest.”
