Washington has been firm in its support of Israel’s war against Hizb’allah, but has also pressed Israel hard to take great care to not harm or topple Lebanon’s current government.

The Bush administration argues that a lot of effort went into ejecting Syria from Lebanon and getting this democratically-elected government in place.

That may be so, but if the government of Lebanese PM Fuad Siniora is unable or unwilling to govern in an effective manner that safeguards the well-being of both Lebanon’s and Israel’s citizens, then why in the world should Israel care about preserving it? Continue reading »

Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Beri Monday demonstrated precisely why Israel’s offensive against Hizb’allah must continue unabated for the time being. Continue reading »

The international community bears no small degree of responsibility for the current fighting between Israel and Hizb’allah.

Israeli academic and sometimes government advisor Gerald Steinberg wrote this week about how in early 2000 he had participated in a meeting with European Union officials at the forefront of international pressure to get Israel out of southern Lebanon.

“In detailed talks that took place at the French ambassador’s residence in Jaffa…the Europeans assured us that once Israel retreated, Hezbollah would lose its raison d’etre as a ‘militia’ and transform itself into a political party. France and its partners would send peacekeepers to prevent terror and missile attacks against Israel, help the Lebanese army take control of the border, and disarm Hezbollah.”

When the IDF withdrew a few months later, Europe and the rest of the world heralded Israel’s capitulation as a real chance for peace, and did absolutely nothing as Hizb’allah, drunk with victory, turned it into anything but.

It took only five months for an emboldened Hizb’allah to launch its first cross-border raid, which resulted in the abduction and slaying of three IDF soldiers.

Had Europe and the world fulfilled their promises to Israel back then, the region would not be in “crisis” today.

Islam’s rejection of Israel may be the root cause of the violence, but the international community - in particular Europe and the UN - is its primary facilitator.

If the world really wants to see peace and stability in the Middle East, it needs to learn from its mistakes, shut its mouth, and let Israel take care of business.

The international community, no doubt strong armed to a certain degree by the Bush Administration, actually showed a great deal of clarity in its statement Sunday regarding the escalating situation along the Israel-Lebanon border.

Beirut has been screaming for a ceasefire for days, urging the world to impose a cessation of hostilities not on Hizb’allah, but on Israel.

But leaders of the world’s top industrialized nations (G-8) meeting in St. Petersburg told Lebanon it will have calm only AFTER aggression against the Jewish state ceases. Continue reading »

Israel’s “Palestinian” peace partners are eager to join with their Hizb’allah buddies in assaulting northern Israel, an area of the Jewish state they don’t get a chance to attack all too often.

From The Jerusalem Post:

“Many young men, including members of the Palestinian security forces, want to join the fight against Israel in Lebanon,” one PA official said. “We have thus far received hundreds of requests from people in the West Bank and Gaza Strip who have expressed their desire to join the Lebanese resistance forces.”

PLO chief Mahmoud Abbas and the Hamas regime, however, would like these fighters to stick around a while longer to help keep up the fight against Israel in Judea, Samaria and Gaza:

“The Palestinian Authority has enough problems here,” the official pointed out. “We need these men in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, where we are also under attack from Israel.”

The “Palestinians” are ready to join Hizb’allah because at this point they see the terror group giving out as good as it is getting. They see Hizb’allah as strong and courageous:

“Hizb’allah has taught Israel a good lesson and as Arabs and Muslims we are very proud of them,” a PA policeman from the Ramallah district said.

If Israel really wants the “Palestinians” to turn into true peace partners, it needs to show its strength by destroying Hizb’allah and Hamas.

News that Israel’s military offensive in Lebanon is having the desired effect:

[I]n the wake of Syria’s withdrawal of its troops from Lebanon in 2005, the disarmament of Hezbollah has emerged as one of the foremost issues in Lebanese politics. Since the fighting with Israel started Wednesday, calls for Hezbollah to relinquish its weapons have gathered urgency.

The article goes on to say that Lebanese from across their nation’s fractured political spectrum insist that Israel’s response to Hizb’allah’s aggression has been disproportionate.

Well, if the above is true, I would say Israel’s response has been just right, if not a little too weak. Additional force would turn those calls for Hizb’allah’s disarmament into action.

The fear many of us on Israel’s side share:

The worst outcome would be for the Israelis to stop after inflicting only minor damage on Hezbollah. This would subject Israel to international condemnation and increase Hezbollah’s prestige for “standing up” to Israel, while producing few benefits for either Israelis or Lebanese.

Just a little tip for those seeking democracy in the Middle East: It won’t work as long as a rogue terrorist organization, acting with impunity while a toothless government looks on, has the country by the balls.

From the Associated Press:

US President George W. Bush expressed worries the Israeli assault could cause the fall of the government, whose formation after elections last year Washington hailed as a major step for Lebanese democracy after years of Syrian control.

Israel is doing far more for Lebanese democracy than anyone is giving it credit for.

The world recognized with UN Security Council Resolution 1559 that Lebanon would not truly be free until Hizb’allah was defanged, but has failed to back up its words with action. Israel is just taking care of the dirty work, and should be applauded for doing so.

Ironically, the only ones giving Israel its dues are the Lebanese themselves (the Christian ones).

Damascus is looking to score a few propaganda points over the ongoing fighting in Lebanon and northern Israel.

Syria’s new UN ambassador, Dr. Jafar Ja’afari, told reporters in New York Friday that prior to US-backed efforts to end Syria’s occupation of Lebanon, the presence of the Syrian army resulted in far fewer attacks on northern Israel.

Lebanon’s own military, by comparison, has no chance of reining in Hizb’allah.

“They have no army. It is small, it has little control and everyone knows this.”

Washington is well aware of this fact, insisted Ja’afari, and therefore bears a certain degree of responsibility for the current crisis.

Of course, that is all a load of crap. Northern Israel suffered far fewer attacks during those years because the IDF had military control over southern Lebanon. Not because the Assad regime, which is still technically at war with Israel, was calling the shots in Beirut.

The ongoing flare-up with Hizb’allah could not have come at a better time for Israel.

Israel has a unique opportunity to deal decisively with both Hizb’allah and the Assad regime in Syria with little or no threat of military intervention by other regional powers.

Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak is highly unlikely to lead his nation into battle against Israel on behalf of Syria, as he is old, weak, and heavily beholden to American financial and military aid.

Of course, we all know that thanks to the Americans, Saddam Hussein is no longer a threat.

And with US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan sandwiching Iran, even madman Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is unlikely to attack Israel and give Washington the excuse it has sought to abruptly end his quest to pave the way for the 12th Imam.

This may be just the opportunity Israel and the US have been waiting for to eliminate two of the biggest threats to regional stability. It should not be wasted.

UN chief Kofi Annan wasted no time in “condemning without reservation” Israel’s military response to Wednesday’s Hizb’allah assault that left seven Israelis dead, eight wounded, and two as captives of the Lebanese terrorists.

While Annan did insist on the immediate release of the abducted Israelis, he notably failed to explicitly condemn the Hizb’allah raid as he had the Israeli counter-action.

Annan was unsurprisingly joined by a chorus of other world leaders urging Israel to “show restraint,” act in a “moderate and proportionate” manner, and not “seek an eye for an eye” following the unprovoked aggression against its citizens.

But they once again failed to offer a viable alternative to overwhelming Israeli force, apparently believing their own toothless demands would be heeded by Hizb’allah.

Hizb’allah is not going to release the Israelis because the world tells it to, just as it clearly is not going to disarm as the world told it to. And allowing the international community to broker another prisoner exchange between Israel and Hizb’allah will certainly encourage additional abductions.

In the absence of a viable alternative, the world would do well to let Israel pursue the one course of action that will best prevent a repeat of today’s events: the annihilation of Hizb’allah.