Special report: Israel-Lebanon conflicts [Gallery] [Videos]

Israel, Lebanon agree on ceasefire

    JERUSALEM, Nov. 12 (Xinhua) -- An Israel Defense Forces (IDF)commander, under investigation for his performance before and during the recent war with Lebanese Hezbollah guerillas, submitted his resignation on Sunday to IDF chief of staff, local media reported.

    Commander of Galilee Division Brigadier General Gal Hirsch made the announcement Sunday morning at the start of a special General Staff meeting regarding the inquiry into Israeli soldiers'abduction in the summer which sparked the war with Hezbollah militants.

    In the resignation letter submitted to IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz, Hirsch said he has decided to leave the army because of the anguish caused to his family by recent events, noting he had acted correctly before and during the war.

    The inquiry into the incident, in which two IDF soldiers were captured and eight were killed during a Hezbollah cross-border attack in July, was held by Major General (res.) Doron Almog, who was scheduled to submit his findings to the General Staff on Sunday and later to Defense Minister Amir Peretz.

    Almog's report was expected to recommend Hirsch's dismissal due to a series of shortcomings that led to the abductions.

    In the wake of the war, there have been wide public calls for the resignations of a number of Israeli top leaders, including Halutz, Defense Minister Peretz and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

    Hirsch was the third senior military officer to leave since the war, following Northern Command Chief Major General Udi Adam and Operations Officer Colonel Boaz Cohen.