Israelis seem quite certain that their military chief of staff, Dan Halutz, has a thing or two to learn about managing a war — but, according to media reports, it turns out he knows how to manage his stocks during a war:

As the country’s political and military echelons met urgently to discuss the possible declaration of war, Halutz went at 12:00 P.M. to sell an investment portfolio, the Ma’ariv newspaper reported on Tuesday.In response to the report, Halutz confirmed to Ma’ariv that he sold the portfolio on that date and at that time, but denied it had anything to do with the possibility of an imminent war. The IDF chief said he sold the portfolio because of recent losses he took prior to July 12.

“It was my portfolio of shares, on which I had lost NIS 25,000,” Halutz told Maariv. “It is true that I sold the portfolio on July 12, 2006, but it is impossible to link that to the war. At the time I did not expect or think that there would be a war.”

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Halutz described the Ma’ariv article exposing the affair as “malicious and tendentious — I don’t intend to be dragged down to such a low level and blemish my integrity. I am a citizen too and have my own economic affairs. This has stained [my reputation] for no reason and is unworthy of any further comment.”

It’s hard to imagine how Halutz manages to hang on to his job — either he was dumping stock in the middle of a war or he was completely clueless to the fact that a war was taking place.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount