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Peter Lyukimson, Israel. Exclusively to Vestnik Kavkaza
On Saturday, January 11th it was officially announced that the former Premier of Israel Ariel Sharon had died (1928-2014). He was one of greatest commanders of the 20th century and an outstanding state and political activist. At the same time, his figure was so ambiguous that many leading politicians of the country broke the rule of “either speak well of the deceased, or say nothing at all” .” Paying a tribute to Sharon’s achievements in the sphere of Israeli security and establishing its current political system, they recall his mistakes, especially those which were made at the end of his life.
Ariel Sharon spoke Russian fluently, as his parents were born in Russia. He didn’t like speak to Russian because he knew he had an awful accent, not Israeli, but an accent of Russian Jews of the late 19th and the early 20th century. However, he understood every Russian word and corrected translators, if they interpreted his words incorrectly. Moreover, he knew Russian military history very well; and in private conversations he many times stated that when he developed plans of fights during the six-day war, he relied on experience of Soviet commanders of the Great Patriotic War.
The achievements of Ariel Sharon were great for Israel. He fought for the independence of Israel in 1948-1949 and returned to the army in 1953 to form the first Israeli task forces – the legendary 101st division which was established to carry out revenge operations against Arab terrorists. It made him a national hero. However, in 1956 Sharon broke an order of the command and found himself in disgrace.
In 1967 Ariel Sharon, a commander of a reserve armored brigade, planned and provided occupation of the Sinai Peninsula by Israel during the six-day war.
In 1973 Sharon resigned and founded the party of Likud together with Menahem Begin. Today it is still one of the leading political forces of the Israeli society. The same year he brought victory to Israel in the yom kippur war.
During the next five years Ariel Sharon took various positions. He initiated development of the settlement movement in Judaea, Samaria, and Gaza, as well as a strike on nuclear facilities of Iraq. In 1981 Ariel Sharon was one of main initiators of signing a peacemaking treaty between Egypt and Israel.
At the same time, in 1982 the Defense Minister Sharon launched the Israeli army to Lebanon, as the result he was blamed for the retaliatory strike which Lebanese phalangists organized in Sabra and Shatila.
As the result of the massacre, Sharon was forbidden to take the position of the Defense Minister, but in 1984-1999 he continued his political activity. In 1999 Benjamin Netanyahu resigns, and Sharon becomes the leader of Likud, headed the opposition, and in 2001 was elected the Prime Minister.
Sharon was sure that achievement of an agreement on a final settlement of Israeli-Arab conflict was impossible because both sides were not ready for that. At the same time, he believed that an interim agreement which would have brought peace either to Jews or to Palestinians was possible to achieve.
Sharon came in office, when a new wave of Palestinian terrorist attacks happened; almost every week it took dozens of Israeli lives. At this moment Sharon began the operation of ‘Shield Wall’ which severely attacked all terrorist bases in Gaza, Shema, Ramalla, Jenina, and other Palestinian towns; and the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was isolated in his resident area of Mukata.
The victory over terrorism led to the growth of Sharon’s popularity; and in 2002 he became the national leader, while Likud gained 38 mandates at the elections – it had never repeated the success again.
However, at that period the police and the prosecution initiated a series of criminal cases against Ariel Sharon and his sons, accusing them of corruption and bribery. In 2004 surprisingly for Russia, the USA and other countries, Ariel Sharon presented a plan of Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza and destruction of Jewish settlements which used to be built there by Sharon’s order.
Today it is clear that the unilateral withdrawal from Gaza was a crucial mistake of Sharon. Many politicians and common citizens cannot forgive it to him even today.
Sharon said that if Israel withdrew Gaza, it would attract sympathy of the world society. However, even though there is no single Israeli citizen in Gaza, the world still believes it is an occupied territory, continues criticizing Israel heavily and demands from it providing Gaza with all necessary supplies.
In 2005 Sharon fought with all his closest supporters and clashed Likud. He established a new political party, Kadima. But he didn’t manage to use the clash in his favor: in 2006 after two blood-strokes, Sharon sank into a coma and stayed in the condition till the last days of his life.
Nevertheless, the fact that Ariel Sharon who is an old person with excessive weight and many health problems stayed in coma for 8 years is thought to a medical phenomenon by doctors. Moreover, Sharon wasn’t in an apallic state.
The last days of his life confirmed the remarkable will to live of this great person. The first message about drastic worsening of Ariel Sharon’s health appeared on January 1st. His kidneys stopped working. Everybody was sure that he had few hours to live. The police cordoned off the hospital where Sharon stayed for all these years, while journalists began to gather near it. January 2nd came, but Sharon continued to live, even though his health conditions continued to worsen.
Everybody was sure that he would die on January 3rd, and even all Israeli newspapers prepared issues about the former prime minister’s death.
But death came only on January 11th.
Many people in Israel think that it is for the best, as 8 years in coma can hardly be called a life. The religious Jewish circles believe that Sharon spent these years between death and living because Heaven couldn’t decide whether he had more achievements or sins.
