Behind the war…
Even though the Israeli army stepped up its withdrawal from the region and handed over some of its positions to the advancing Lebanese army, ambiguity remains in the air. The Lebanese are not saying anything about Hezbollah’s disarmament, while Israel’s pullout plan is also vague. Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said completion of the Israeli pullout depended on the presence of both the Lebanese army and an international force. Meanwhile Hezbollah has said that it will continue to fight Israel so long as the Israeli forces are on Lebanese soil. But it seems this ceasefire is still holding generally despite some Israeli-Hezbollah skirmishes in its early days.
Although US President George Bush has claimed that the month-long Lebanon crisis had ended with Hezbollah’s defeat, the facts on the ground indicate otherwise. The Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was obliged to admit “shortcomings” in the month-old operation in Lebanon. His admission was made in a fiery Knesset session, which came in the face of devastating poll figures showing a majority of the Israeli public believes none or only a very small part of the goals of the war had been achieved.
Even though the Lebanese side has come out with the most casualties and severe devastation, Hezbollah has come through with flying colours. Such strong resistance in the face of one of the most powerful armies of the world, equipped with the most advanced technology, is definitely something to be proud of and has rightly led Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah to declare a “historic victory” over Israel. This war is surely proving to be a political disaster for Olmert as well as brewing trouble for the Israeli military. Many inside Israel are of the opinion that Olmert should resign or be sacked, while significant changes should be made in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).
Not only has there been severe criticism of Olmert’s political manoeuvres and his war cabinet’s glaringly visible failure, this war has uncovered reports of a much more vicious plan. The veteran investigative journalist Seymour Hersh writes in the current issue of the New Yorker magazine that the US gave Israel the green light to attack Lebanon as it was the Bush administration’s desire to reduce the threat of possible Hezbollah retaliation against Israel should the US launch a military strike against Iran. From day one the Bush administration has blamed Iran and Syria for this war, even though they had nothing to do with it. President Bush still continues to blow the “Iran-Syria” trumpet even after the ceasefire. If the US, which has denied Hersh’s analysis, has any plans to attack Iran, it had better think again. It is abundantly clear that when the supposedly invincible Israeli army could not do too much harm to a small guerrilla force like Hezbollah, to think that a large, trained army like that of Iran would be easily defeated is nothing but wishful thinking.
This war has also exposed Israel’s soft underbelly vis-à-vis manpower. As the trend of out-migration these days is starting to overtake immigration to Israel, the threat of attrition looms large for the Israeli army. This defeat has proved that for Israel the only way to survive is to realise that it must halt its expansionist agenda and make peace with the Palestinians and surrounding Arab states, while the US needs to stop supporting Israeli aggression. Otherwise the Middle Eastern region would be in constant turmoil, and Israel and the US would face growing resistance.
Although US President George Bush has claimed that the month-long Lebanon crisis had ended with Hezbollah’s defeat, the facts on the ground indicate otherwise. The Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was obliged to admit “shortcomings” in the month-old operation in Lebanon. His admission was made in a fiery Knesset session, which came in the face of devastating poll figures showing a majority of the Israeli public believes none or only a very small part of the goals of the war had been achieved.
Even though the Lebanese side has come out with the most casualties and severe devastation, Hezbollah has come through with flying colours. Such strong resistance in the face of one of the most powerful armies of the world, equipped with the most advanced technology, is definitely something to be proud of and has rightly led Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah to declare a “historic victory” over Israel. This war is surely proving to be a political disaster for Olmert as well as brewing trouble for the Israeli military. Many inside Israel are of the opinion that Olmert should resign or be sacked, while significant changes should be made in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).
Not only has there been severe criticism of Olmert’s political manoeuvres and his war cabinet’s glaringly visible failure, this war has uncovered reports of a much more vicious plan. The veteran investigative journalist Seymour Hersh writes in the current issue of the New Yorker magazine that the US gave Israel the green light to attack Lebanon as it was the Bush administration’s desire to reduce the threat of possible Hezbollah retaliation against Israel should the US launch a military strike against Iran. From day one the Bush administration has blamed Iran and Syria for this war, even though they had nothing to do with it. President Bush still continues to blow the “Iran-Syria” trumpet even after the ceasefire. If the US, which has denied Hersh’s analysis, has any plans to attack Iran, it had better think again. It is abundantly clear that when the supposedly invincible Israeli army could not do too much harm to a small guerrilla force like Hezbollah, to think that a large, trained army like that of Iran would be easily defeated is nothing but wishful thinking.
This war has also exposed Israel’s soft underbelly vis-à-vis manpower. As the trend of out-migration these days is starting to overtake immigration to Israel, the threat of attrition looms large for the Israeli army. This defeat has proved that for Israel the only way to survive is to realise that it must halt its expansionist agenda and make peace with the Palestinians and surrounding Arab states, while the US needs to stop supporting Israeli aggression. Otherwise the Middle Eastern region would be in constant turmoil, and Israel and the US would face growing resistance.
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