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Israel, Lebanon and Hezbollah

I was recently refered to a technical blog about an article discussing the new .Net 3.0/Vista seperation and I found had trouble reading the article because of a banner at the top of the page that read "Stop Israeli agression in Lebanon!"....

Now, I'm not one of those super-pro-Israel people. Israel is a country like any other, it has pros and cons. It is in an area rich in history and in strife. And I generally try and stay away from any strong feelings one way or another about the conflict there. It's not my country, and it's a long way away. I have my own issues to worry about....

But the idea that the current conflict between Israel and Lebanon is somehow a result of Israeli agression... That flabberghasts me. Hezbollah is part of the government of Lebanon; Lebanon allows Hezbollah millita to operate from within it's borders, and Hezbollah is launching hundreds of rockets a day into Israel, killing and maiming Israelis and destroying towns. What is Israel supposed to do? Stand back and wait for Lebanon to control Hezbollah? Unlikely, no they're doing the exact same thing that any other country would do when faced with a military attack from a bordering country--they're fighting back, they're protecting their country and their citizens.

"Oh, but what about the poor civilians," you say.... "Those nasty Israeli's are killing innocent civilians!" Read this excellent article: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/08/02/EDGOBIQ05K1.DTL that places the blame for that squarely where it belongs.... Basically, when you use schools for cover, Mosques for armories, and suburbs as a base of operations you guarantee that civilians will be hurt and killed.

I agree that everything should be done to stop the conflict, but don't blame Israel for defending itself. Don't call on Israel for restraint when hundreds of rockets are launched daily. How much restraint did the US show after 9-11? I'm a peaceful person; I'm not a pro-military guy, but when a country is being actively attacked the country must respond....

-Andy
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Print | posted on Tuesday, August 08, 2006 6:32 AM

Comments on this post

# re: Israel, Lebanon and Hezbollah

Requesting Gravatar...
I totally agree with you... there's a subtle slant against Israel in the general media, and to some degree Fox News isnt without blame.

I was listening to Paula Zahn (CNN) interview the Israeli-US ambassador, and she phrased a question to the tune of "When is Israel going to stop attacking Hezbollah?" Not "When do you see the agression ending?" or "What kind of situation would enable the Israeli army to stand down?" A very subtle way of asking an accusing statement.

We can't forget that Hezbollah has been launching rockets into Israel for YEARS, not just during this conflict... The only difference now is that Hezbollah can claim that they are "defending themselves" (by attacking Israeli civilians?!) from the Israeli army.

And every time Israel has given up land to the Palistianians, they're greeted (almost literally) the very next day with mortar attacks from the newly acquired land.

The 2 soliders taken hostage was just the straw that broke the camel's back... provoking them into finally fighting back.
Left by Eric Newton on Aug 08, 2006 8:03 AM

# re: Israel, Lebanon and Hezbollah

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It is not even a subtle slant...
I think it is ridiculous how the world refuses to characterize Hezbollah, et al as terrorists.
And Hezbollah is entrenched. They have upwards of 10,000+ missiles, underground bunkers, mine fields. They ahve been preparing for this for years. Some news reports say that they are heavily armed and trained and they are fighting side by side with Iranian Republican Guard soldiers. These are not civilians or "freedom fighters". They are fighting all out war against Israel for Iran by proxy.
I say let Israel clean up.
Left by Scott Miller on Aug 08, 2006 3:01 PM

# re: Israel, Lebanon and Hezbollah

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You are so right! You couldn't have said it better...
As an Israeli I can say, thank you for presenting the true picture.
We appriciate any support, but most of all we appriciate when people understand what this is all about - it really hurts to see the media and others completely fall for the lies the Hezbollah feed them (photoshoped pictures, fake stories) and present a false picture.
Left by Moshe Eshel on Aug 08, 2006 9:29 PM

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