Globe&Mail and Jerusalem Post :
"It couldn't have happened without the capture of the Israeli soldiers, who gave their government the pretext to dismantle as much of Hezbollah's power as possible, just six years after the withdrawal from Lebanon.
"The capture of the soldiers allowed Israel to react. . . . No one expects the army's military operation to bring back the soldiers."
Civilian infrastructure has been targeted -- partly, he said, because those bridges, roads and fuel depots are used by Hezbollah, but also to "send a message to the Lebanese that they will pay a high price" for the militants' cross-border attacks.
Israel says it has not used all of its military might because it fears wider action could topple the Lebanese government. Israel has an interest in keeping the fledgling elected government, which is largely anti-Syrian, in power.
The generals had also been itching for the green light to enter Gaza with tanks, bulldozers and infantry soldiers to attack Palestinian militants and their Qassam-rocket factories, and it wasn't until three weeks ago, when militants captured an Israeli soldier in a cross-border raid, that the military got approval.
In that case, the operation also gave the Israeli government the ability to further weaken the Hamas-led Palestinian government. It detained half the cabinet and a third of the parliament, essentially crippling the government."
The new rules of self-defense :
Deliberately crippling two democratically elected governments and targeting their civilian infrastructure.
At least this means we won't have to listen to bullshit protestations of innocence as regards targeting civilians any more . Right?
3 comments:
Some irony, as if it were needed, currently Turkey is being held up by the U.S. from sending its army into northern Iraq. The Kurdish PKK has been cross border harassing and killing Turks for a long time, 37,000 dead since 1984. Turkey wants the same right of self-defense that Israel has been given, Iran agrees with Turkey, but Rice and the State Dept. say no.
This is because Israel -- as God's Chosen Messianic Vehicle, dontchaknow -- never makes mistakes and must be supported at any cost, so all the fundies get to have their Messiah's Second Coming AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
All other nations get judged by, you know -- RATIONALITY.
Do you mean this news story, Waterbaby?
More on it here half way down the page.
I think more has not been made of this due to uncertainty as to whether Hezbollah was indeed acting in support of Palestine here.
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