So it looks like attempts to bring Israel and Hezbollah to a cease-fire have failed. Not that that really suprises me. Neither side seems particularly reasonable in their approach. I mean: over 350 civilians dead versus two kidnapped soldiers.
CNN notes that "One source involved in the talks said everyone but the United States wanted to press ahead with an immediate cease-fire, but Rice argued that taking that approach would leave Hezbollah in place and still armed with its rockets."
But honestly? Even if Israel eliminates Hezbollah as a threat and destroys Lebanon entirely, don't they think that the refuges--small children, most of them--aren't going to scatter to surrounding countries and grow up embittered and angry that their entire lives have been destroyed? All they're really doing is creating another generation of people who have every fucking right to hate the western world.Not that I think Hezbollah's approach is in any way justifiable.
Still. Things seem to be deteriorating even more.
Because of course the UN is still pissed that four of their envoys were killed. Israel keeps saying it was an accident but I don't think anybody really believes that. The BBC reports this morning that an initial UN report says "UN peacekeepers in south Lebanon contacted Israeli troops 10 times before an Israeli bomb killed four of them."
posted by Minerva Jane at
9:45 AM
2 Comments:
In answer to your question, a) It's hard for Americans to back down, even when/if they need to and b) Since when did the American government care what the rest of the world thinks? It seems sometimes like the U.N. is only there for our convenience, and when we (Americans) don't agree with it, then we can just ignore it. It's very frustrating, and this situation is certainly not the first time that this attitude has been a problem. That said, I'm not sure how I feel about the U.N.'s stand vs. the U.S.'s stand.
A few days ago The Independent (a UK quality paper) had a remarkable front page. A sea of flags to the left of the page represented the countries that have called the an immediate ceasefire; the other half of the page was blank except for the flags of the USA, Britain and Israel -- the only three countries that still support Israel's approach.
And of course, I agree with you: as much as the Lebanese people might blame Hezbollah for "starting" this by kidnapping the two Israeli soldiers, the incredibly disproportionate response by the Israeli military overshadows will be the only thing remembered by future generations. I have no doubt that far from making Israel's borders safer, this approach will only destabilize the region further.
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home