Israeli soldiers perform a combat exercise specifically for the media in mock structures resembling Arab villages at a military base near the southern village of Tzeelim January 22, 2007. A retired general with years of experience fighting Lebanon's Hezbollah guerrillas has been chosen as the new chief of Israel's armed forces, Israeli media reported on Monday. Gaby Ashkenazy, 52, an infantry commander and currently director of the Defence Ministry, will replace Lieutenant-General Dan Halutz who quit last week over his failure to crush Hezbollah in the July-August war, they said.