lebanon-israel conflict

Cluster bombs

It's been reported that a cluster bomb in Southern Lebanon has killed a Hezbollah militant, more than a year after the UN brokered ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel. I read with interest that 30 others, all civilians, have also been killed since the end of the war. Israel is known to have dropped 4 million cluster bombs in the waning days of the 33 day battle, knowing very well their potential killing power for a long time to come.

Now, I'm interested to know, does the explosion of these cluster bombs count as a violation to the agreement of a ceasefire? I can't see how that's unlike Hezbollah firing Katyushas into northern Israel, killing soliders and civilians. But no, that would be terrorism and the pretext for Israel to "retaliate and defend itself" with tonnes and tonnes more of explosives, wouldn't it?

And all the while the international community wants Hezbollah to "behave" and not re-strengthen its military capabilities. Laughable.

"But it's our land"

A topic that often arises in middle east conflict discussions is the claim by Jews that Israel is their god given right. That, over hundreds of years, their motherland was stolen from them and now justice is done by them repossessing it.

Although I truly reject the Jews' right to reclaim their land, this is an interesting point of discussion. When can you say "this land was stolen from us, we have to get it back"? This is definitely a grey area, but I think if you study the historical record and analyse the facts, you can come to an educated and reasonable conclusion. In my opinion, no, the Zionists had no moral right to expel hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to create Israel, even if Palestine used to be their land hundreds of years ago. This is ludicrous - no matter what the Balfour Declaration says.

Land has been invaded and stolen from the beginning of time. To fight for land taken from one's ancestors hundreds of years ago is just silly. Take Australia as an example. Would any Australian accept an uprising from the Aboriginals, the early founders of Australia, whereby they'd kill civilians and demolish houses in the name of regaining control of their land? Of course not. So why should the Palestinians accept it?

In the case of Israel and Palestine, I believe that the Palestinians are morally right in continuously fighting for their country. Israel was initiated in 1948, only around 60 years ago, and the Palestinians are still being driven out of their homes today, even in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. There are elderly who still have memories of their homes back then - how can they accept such a tragedy in their lifetime? As long as land is increasingly being stolen from the Palestinians, by voilent force, the Palestinians are in the right, in my opinion, to use any means of force to resist the occupation. It is their legal right.

If you can't beat them, join them?

Throughout Lebanon's 33-day war with Israel in 2006, many in Lebanon scolded Hezbollah for "dragging" Lebanon into such a massive and bloody conflict. Those who did so generally took the view that Israel is a superpower that can inflict great damage, and taking any sort of offensive action against the Jewish state is pure folly because of the consequences. That really got me thinking......does that mean that the Lebanese, in this case Hezbollah, should cower in the face of injustice and tyranny rather than resist?

In the first week of the war when Israel increased its military offensive, many Lebanese wished for Hezbollah to return the Israeli soldiers and be done with the conflict. In other words, throw in the towel. They criticized Hezbollah for instigating an unnecessary war at a time when Lebanon's economy was on an upturn. I am interested to know what the reaction would have been had Israel succumbed to Hezbollah, negotiated from the start, and released the prisoners demanded by Nasrallah. Had the kidnapping of the soldiers lead to a peaceful exchange of prisoners, would there have been an uproar against Hezbollah? I don't think so. Why? Because Lebanon's economy and tourism would not have been affected and generally people would have got on with life as usual. So I think that it's not a matter of morals or justice, really. People want to live well, even if that means accepting gross injustice. And you know what, I totally understand that. Who doesn't want to live well? Who doesn't want a comfortable life and a beautiful house and a luxury car? I totally understand that and I respect it. But I must say that I respect more the people who stand up to injustice - Hezbollah. Even though Hezbollah had every moral right, in my opinion, to kidnap those soldiers, people turned against them because of the consequences, not the action. I think it's very important that people understand that.

Rather than fight in the name of justice, I think the anti-Hezbollah people in Lebanon have decided to cave in to a more powerful nation and appease its interests and the interests of its friends, starting with the US. That's what separates Hezbollah supporters and the pro-government Lebanese supporters. Hezbollah is willing to lose material wealth, even their own lives for the sake of what is right - others are not.

Hypocrisy

The Haaretz ran a story a couple days ago titled "UN Security Council to Hezbollah: Free IDF troops now, without conditions". I laughed at the absolute hypocrisy of this statement.

You know, if Israel was generally a law abiding, innocent state, then I think what the UN said would be fine. Yes, release the prisoners without conditions - I would agree with that. But how can the UN issue such a demand on Hezbollah only when at the same time Israel holds Lebanese prisoners (captured while resisting illegal Israeli occupation) and detains thousands of Palestinians without trial - including women and children? It is hypocrisy, pure and simple, and it's a disgrace to the integrity of the UN.

Bush telling others not to meddle in Lebanon?

President Bush has indirectly warned Syria not to meddle in Lebanon's affairs. That's a big statement from a man who has not only meddled in Lebanon but almost every country in the middle east. Let's analyse why Bush cares so much about the Lebanese people.

During Hezbollah's 33 day war with Israel, when progress seemed to be going as planned, Condoleeza Rice announced a proposal for a "new middle east". Meaning of course a middle east that would further bow to the US and Israel, willingly pass over control of natural resources and not bother Israel despite all its crimes against humanity. In short that's what Rice meant, but thankfully the resolve and resistance of Hezbollah squashed that idea to death. Now to have a country like Syria exerting pressure in Lebanon such that a government emerges who does not side with the US is clearly a detriment to the Bush cause. Hence Bush's warning, "don't meddle in Lebanon", or in other words, "don't get in the way of our plans".

From a big picture perspective, I think Syria needs to stamp its authority for the sake of its own security in the region. The Syrian administration knows that a pro-US government in Lebanon can only be a serious problem for them. To have a neighbour with such a strategic geographical position who sides with your enemy is simply not acceptable. The US has repeatedly, albeit indirectly, warned Syria of a possible invasion in the near future. Bashar El-Assad won't sit and wait to be killed off - of course he will do what he needs to do for his existence and for the sake of his country.

$30bn worth of arms - Israel wants peace?

The US has guaranteed $30bn worth of military aid to Israel over the next 10 years, a 25% increase to the previous $2.4bn a year. Yet, Israel claims that it wants peace.

As the Syrian foreign minister Walid al-Moallem stated, anynone who wants to be a middle east peacemaker doesn't initiate an arms race in the region. In all its voilent years, Israel has learnt nothing. Instead of advanced weapons serving to protect the Israelis, the use of these weapons are feulling the swamp of hatred of Israel in the Arab world. It is a fact that Israel has used these weapons, and continues to do so, to murder civilians and demolish Palestinian homes in order to expand its illegal settlements and assassinate prominent Palestinian leaders who oppose its terrorist regime. The human rights historical record is extensive on this.

In the case of Lebanon, Israel needs to return the Lebanese prisoners it has in its dungeons, completely withdraw from Lebanon (the Shebba Farms area is still occupied even after Israel's "complete withdrawal" from Lebanon in 2000), and avoid voilating Lebanese air space. Only then will Israel find peace with Hezbollah. Until that happens, nothing will result in peace. We have to remember the old saying - no justice, no peace. The $30bn worth of arms will only make things worse.