Olmert Defies Calls for His Resignation

JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Olmert faced an onslaught of calls for his resignation and the first cracks in his coalition yesterday following a government commission's harsh criticism of his handling of Israel's war last summer in Lebanon. Mr. Olmert defiantly declared he would not quit after the panel's report was released Monday, despite the inquiry's conclusion he showed flawed judgment in ordering and directing the attack on Hezbollah guerrillas.

Mr. Olmert was only months in the job when the war broke out after Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon killed three soldiers and captured two others in a July 12 cross-border raid.

Between 1,035 and 1,191 Lebanese civilians and combatants were killed in the fighting, as were 119 Israeli soldiers and 39 civilians, according to official figures from the two sides.