Panel: Israel mishandled Hezbollah war

JERUSALEM, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- An Israeli government-appointed committee in Jerusalem said Wednesday last year's war with Lebanese Hezbollah fighters was necessary but wasn't a clear victory.

The 500-page review of the conflict between July 12 and Aug. 14 was conducted by retired Justice Eliyahu Winograd, who summarized the findings at a Jerusalem news conference, Haaretz reported.

"Israel embarked on a prolonged war that it initiated, which ended without a clear Israeli victory from a military standpoint," Winograd said. "A paramilitary organization withstood the strongest army in the Middle East for weeks."

He said the committee found fault with both the political and military leadership in the fighting, which killed more than 1,000 people.

"Though it was a war of our own initiative and waged in a defined territory, Israel did not use its military power wisely or effectively," Winograd said.

Israel launched the offensive after Hezbollah fighters attacked an Israeli border patrol, killing three Israeli soldiers and abducting two others, who remain missing.