Often, when a reasonable person decides to lie, he blushes, mumbles and sweats. When a professional liar lies, he’s at his best — confident, fluent and successful in creating, to anyone who doesn’t know him, a believable impression. “The IDF spokesman’s deception” Sept. 1 was, no doubt, the first instance. He told a bald lie, then mumbled, then denied, and within a short time had to admit to the failure of a maneuver to outwit Hezbollah. But the episode doesn't start and end with the IDF spokesman’s unit; it has very problematic ramifications for Israel’s conduct when it comes to its integrity. This isn’t someone’s youthful folly but certain damage. 

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah announced his intention to seek revenge for the IDF’s actions in Lebanon and its killing of his militiamen. Nasrallah, like many mafia dons worldwide, has the reputation of someone who stands by his word. After the recent escalation on the northern border, Nasrallah made clear what the nature of his revenge would be, and the IDF prepared as the IDF knows to prepare. But this time someone in the IDF got the idea to “deceive” the enemy.

The well-known cycle of these escalation rounds always plays the same: Hezbollah wants blood, and the IDF makes an effort so that he doesn’t see blood, but then Hezbollah wants to continue to take revenge. So this time, the IDF thought it would be best to create a false show of injured soldiers (perhaps even more than just injured), who would be placed at such angles that would allow Hezbollah men to watch them. IDF helicopters would come to evacuate them, they would be placed on stretchers, transferred to the Rambam Hospital in Haifa, the IDF spokesman would announce that our forces were injured, Nasrallah could say he managed to attack soldiers and then leave us alone. So simple . . .

Everything went as planned. Almost. Hezbollah fired a few anti-tank Kornet missiles toward an IDF post and military vehicles, near the Avivim village, which had a long history of withstanding Katyusha rocket fire until we withdrew from the security zone in South Lebanon 19 years ago. The IDF responded by firing about 100 shells toward Marun a-Ras. The soldiers painted with blood coloring to simulate injuries were brought to the planned spot; the helicopters got there on time. The IDF spokesman reported some injuries and didn’t elaborate, but noted that the hospital received the injured. Hezbollah celebrated, announced Israeli casualties, and even added an especially strange statement identifying with Ethiopian Israelis’ just struggle for equality: It announced that it had not shot at an Israeli soldier because he was Ethiopian.