Just as all of Lebanon has been reduced to a pile of rubble, HezbAllah fighters continue to pound northern Israel with Katyushas. A dramatic update though, Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad al Sanyura just made a public statement accepting to send the Army to the border (Israel’s initial and continuing demand throughout the raids – pay special attention to the bolded words) and called for immediate cessation of air raids and a ceasefire through the UN. This was (of course) categorically rejected by Israel, which said it will continue to pound Lebanon. Make no mistake, this is not about the 2 soldiers, I repeat this is NOT about the 2 soldiers, nor is it about HezbAllah. It is NOT even about HezbAllah. This is part of the Bush administration’s Greater Middle East Initiative, and this explains the “strange” U.S/British silence that many people I have been talking to have observed. In fact HezbAllah has just scored high (positive) points in the eyes of the Lebanese. The official position/decision cannot have been taken without the consent of HezbAllah. This is a very smart strategy and proved to be an effective one. HezbAllah of course assessed the situation very well, it knew that Israel’s intentions/objectives were completely different – it knew it from day 1, hence the moderated (yes) response that didn’t go beyond the Nahariya-Tiberias line. So what we have here, is complete Lebanese unity and unanimity on what to do next, and that is: to stand beside HezbAllah and fight together against the Israeli enemy. What does this mean? This is in fact a first. The army and HezbAllah have never really worked in conjunction. Political differences and HezbAllah’s secret functional base have always hindered such a thing. But now it is different. Now Lebanon wages a war of honour and survival. All day we have been watching raid after raid, I just saw scenes on TV of charred bodies of children. Things you will never ever ever see on CNN or any other western media. Not in this lifetime. The war has almost reached this side. We are being pounded, our army is under heavy fire. The building shook a while ago. The port of Junieh was targeted and it was – if I am not mistaken – supposed to be used to evacuate French and American citizens. Israel has lost its mind. It has become crazed. It has unleashed its terror, and we don’t know what’s going to come next. At the rate this is going I don’t even rule out a nuclear strike. I really seriously do not rule it out (let me be wrong, please!). I said the ports were going to be struck, no one believed me. Everyone laughed! They said, what is the point, Israel already has imposed a naval siege. The point is, and I don’t think anyone in this stupid ignorant world can deny it anymore, Israel’s intention from day 1 was not the recovery of the kidnapped soldiers, nor deterrance (what deterrance?), nor the elimination of HezbAllah. As I said HezbAllah is still operating freely in the south. HezbAllah has been low-key since this afternoon, its plans are kept secret, there are no rash threats aired on their TV station, Al-Manar. The Lebanese are united. We can never have a civil war. That is our only consolation tonight. Refugees are flooding to safer (??) areas and people across different sects have opened their doors and homes to these people. Tonight will be anything but quiet. The booms are getting closer and closer by the minute. I might sound redundant but I am not sure what more to say. Really.
One thing is for sure, the coming hours will either show Israelis the difference between moderation and extremism/terrorism, or it will be the end of us Lebanese.
I am not religious, but God help us. God help us.
Blogging the Middle East 
Israel has become the new Reich.
What was once seen as a immoral atrocity in Hitler’s Germany, starts again as Israel takes up the where Adolph left off…but this time the Arabs and muslims are the Jews.
Wouldn’t be suprised, if they start building ovens.
Hello, I know things are rough at the moment but would you be willing to do an interview with U.S. radio tomorrow? Send me your contact info to shawnwasson@clearchannel.com
Till we meet again dearest comrade, totally miss you
Always heads up and focus on our goals
Hasta La Victoria Siempre
/me hugs my anarchist Friend
MFL
Ahh!! My Marxist friend!!!!!!
I miss you too! I do! Hopefully we’ll meet up soon!
Victory for the revolution! Anarchist revolution of course! 😛
I will pray for you. And I will add your message to the top of my blog. It’s the best I can do—wish I could do more.
I do not support Bush’s silence on this issue. The leaders of my country though are far gone, as you probably know. The sane do not reign in America. And so I am afraid that your only hope is a defunct U.N. (defunct because that was part of the Bush admin’s plan). I know that isn’t much so your next hope is Hezbollah’s strength and resolve in this situation. I’ll do my best to convince people Hezbollah is not a terrorist organization but an organizing trying to defend a nation in dire need of help. I will pray that Israel stop its aggression but well, they are “in cahoots” with America for some time now so…I do not know if I should waste time praying for that.
I’m not religious too but God Bless the Lebanese. Pray for Peace. And I pray that you survive this terrible atrocity being committed against the Lebanese people.
Thank you so much for keeping us informed. I am passing your blog around to everyone I know so we can know what is really happening, not the sanitized news. Best wishes and prayers for you and your family’s safety.
I was intrigued by this sentence but didn’t feel you finished yr thought (not surprising considering what you’re going through):
You reference the Bush Administration’s “Greater Middle East” initiative above. I presume the two ideas are linked for you. Could you explain this a little further perhaps in a post or in an e mail to me. In other words, what IS Israel’s real intention if it isn’t the things you mention? I think it’s an intriguing idea but I wanted to read a bit more in order to understand yr thinking better.
Israel’s real intention is to create a new order in the Middle East. Of course, Lebanon being the weak state that it is, it is always the easiest and therefore first target. Syria might not be as capable of damaging Israel as HezbAllah is, but Syria’s position regionally is much stronger. It has the backing of Iran, and of course Turkey will never allow the fighting to come to its borders. Bush’s GMEI is of course about development policies in the Middle East, which would (allegedly) turn the region into a more democratic one, and thus (the Americans expect), more pro-American. When I said GMEI I did not mean this is the implementation of the GMEI per se, because the GMEI is meant to be implemented (at least in word!) purely peacefully rather than forcefully, through education and awareness. But, this is merely the military implementation of the GMEI. What I mean is, there is an intention to forcefully change the sympathies of people, as if bombing them to pieces is akin to educating them about democracy.
Also people here are of the idea that the Israelis are avenging the forceful withdrawal (that’s what it was, no matter what anyone else says) from Lebanon in 2000. Not to mention, that Lebanon presents an economic and touristic hub that would challenge the economic hegemony of Israel in the Middle East.
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Anarchristian: I just wrote a post using your theory as a taking off point. I went in a completely diff. direction than you did, but both our ideas may be right. My theory is that as far as Bush is concerned the reason we may not want the war to end right now is that we may see Lebanon & Israel’s invasion as a proxy war with Iran. This might be the first skirmish of a much more intense & direct confrontation bet. the U.S. & Iran at some future (perhaps not too distant) date.
Of course this would make poor Lebanon an innocent victim of the machinations of bigger powers who don’t give a damn about your country other than as a guinea pig for their ghoulish geopolitical military strategems.
Scary stuff if true. It’s mere conjecture on my part. But stranger things have happened (the Iraq war, for one).
Yes, what you say about proxy war might also be true. Of course Lebanon has always been the battleground for proxy wars (though of course, the Lebanese have also been involved).
I don’t know what to think beyond this. It’s all too complicated.
Anyway, things are only getting worse.
But I just wanted to add that I appreciate your offer to cross-post, but things are a bit too hectic here.
Thanks for linking to me and helping others see this side of the conflict.
I would go a step further with your “theories” and say that it is part of the Bush administration’s Global Initiative, that is, world wide prosperity and freedom. This is no secret and has long been the agenda of the US.
Another obvious truth is Israel is supported by the US and thus its proxy. Hezbollah & Hamas are the proxies of those that support them covertly, Iran, Syria, and everyone else that has hatred in their heart for Israel.
I don’t know why people continue to interject their own introspective conspiracy theories when things are so obvious.