Liberating Lebanon: Israel's answer to a question no one asked

In Montreal yesterday, a demonstration was held with Jews and Arabs (Muslim/Christian), condemning the actions of Israel in both Gaza and now in Lebanon. This was cut short however by an Israeli advocacy group who kept up with the same aging rhetoric of ‘Israel has the right to defend itself’. I guess Bush, Mr. Harper, and this group were at the same evening gala when they announced what buzz words they were going to push this month. So far, terrorists (this means Muslim) and militants (this also means Muslim now) are the forerunners of the lot.

Jumping half way across the world to Beirut, Walid Jumblatt, a Druze leader who opposes the Hezballah, said that the groups recent raid on an Israeli outpost was an outrageous attempt to bring the country into war. Now I’m not a political analyst but it seems rather naïve to believe that if Hezballah lays down its arms, Israel is just going to walk away. More likely than not, Israel will respond with a ‘Hezballah must recognize Israel’ statement. This will be another powder keg that Israel will try to light, pitting the Druz, the Shia and the Sunnis against each other. Each group will reach for the top, and then the West will tell the country it's in need of reform. Many Lebanese are divided here. Some see Hezballah has the only defence their country has against the invasion. But there are those that believe that now with the Israeli occupation of south Lebanon over, Hezballah should stow away its weapons as called for by UN Security resolution. Following suit, the Israeli army may also begin to start following UN resolutions. And heck, maybe will also realize that George Bush won the election legit, and that the Iraqi people are free now. Sarcasm has been taken to a whole new level. Jumblatt went on to say that Syria and Iran are trying to use the current situation in Lebanon to further their own agendas. This sort of statement can only serve to stir up feeling of mistrust and paranoia, something we really don’t need right now. I guess Jumblatt will feel more safe if he lets Israel liberate Lebanon from its recovering economy, those poor people in Shatila that threaten his political career, and any chance of Lebanon controlling its own affairs.

One pieced of good news, or maybe refreshing is the right word here. A hole in the wall of the separation barrier allowed several Gazans to return to their land this week. They’ve been stranded on the wrong side and were eager to get back home. Israel is probably in a frantic about all those ‘suicide bombers’ returning, their lame reason for putting up the wall. With all the other crossings closed, this is a bridge for the Palestinians, one that the IOF can’t really destroy (this is the refreshing part). Quoting a recent Aljazeera article about the Rafah and Karni gateways, ‘Palestinians technically control the crossing, but its operations can be blocked by the Israelis.’ So much for Palestinian autonomy, Isreal can grant it and take it away without so much as batting an eye.

I wonder if all this Israeli aggression is really just a show to cover up what’s going on in other parts of the Middle East. Currently, there have been reports coming out from Iraq of severe mis-management, mis-information, mis-demeanor and mis-conduct by the US army (ie. rape, abuse, killing of women), but all this is taking a back seat to the Israeli story. They create a distraction for the world and the US is free to gallop away with all their stones of sin unturned. Seems like Israel is doing an exceptional job holding up their end of the bargain.