George Irani discusses the impotence of the United States and Israel before the growing threat of a more powerful Iran, Syria, Hezbollah, and Hamas. In Irani‘s opinion, Iran and Syria have set out to prove their power by urging Hezbollah into open war with Israel. As the cycle of vengeance, violence, and misunderstanding continues, Iran‘s power grows, and the Israeli–US alliance finds itself incapable of handling its war against what it calls the Axis of Evil. A difficult time lies ahead for the Middle East.
George Emile Irani is the Lebanese-born director of the Africa and Middle East Program of the Toledo International Center for Peace in Madrid. He is the author of “The Papacy and the Middle East: The Role of the Holy See in the Arab-Israeli Conflict”.
IT HAS BEEN SEVERAL DAYS SINCE THE HEZBOLLAH ATTACK IN NORTHERN ISRAEL killed eight and took two soldiers hostage, and already Israel has begun to act. The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) responded almost immediately by staging an invasion of Lebanon with ground troops in order to encumber Hezbollah’s capacity to strike Israeli cities.
Hezbollah (the Party of God) was created as a result of the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon. Led by Ariel Sharon, this invasion, dubbed Operation Peace for the Galilee, had three aims: to destroy the PLO’s infrastructure in Lebanon, to kick out all Syrian troops, and to install a democratic regime favorable to Israel.
The operation ended with the successful routing of the PLO out of Lebanon. Yet, Syria remained firmly rooted, and Lebanon had by no means turned friendly to Israel.
HELP FROM IRAN AND SYRIA
Since its creation in 1982 Hezbollah has grown from a small cell of fundamentalists, into a powerful political and military organization bent on fighting the Israeli occupation of the security zone in Southern Lebanon.
At the end of the Lebanese Civil War in 1989, Hezbollah won over 12 seats in the Lebanese parliament with the support and maneuvering of Iran and Syria, thus beginning its political presence.
Since then they have continued to gain power, acting in the interest of Iran and Syria rather than defending the rights of their own people.
They have also refused to disarm, claiming that they must keep their militia in order to fight the danger of Israeli occupation of the Shebaa Farms on the Lebanese border with Syria. Hezbollah’s militia is almost twice as powerful as the actual army of Lebanon, making it hard to tell who is in control of the country: the Lebanese, or the Syrians and Iranians.
NASRALLAH´S VOW
Hezbollah named their attack on Northern Israel and the kidnapping of the two Israeli soldiers Operation Al Waad al Saadek, which in Arabic means Operation Kept Promise.
The name comes from the vow of Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, Secretary General of Hezbollah, made almost a year ago following the incomplete swap of prisoners between Israel and Hezbollah.
Nasrallah swore to kidnap Israeli soldiers and force the release of the remaining Lebanese prisoners, and years later it seems that he has kept his promise, hence the name, which is in itself reveals the role that memory plays in continuing vengeance conflicts in the Middle East.
NEOCON FAILURE
The Bush Administration is on the defensive in the Middle East. The fight against the Axis of Evil (the favorite slogan of Neocons in Washington) has proved impossible. Although Saddam Hussein was captured, no weapons of mass destruction have yet been discovered, and the current civil war in Iraq has caused countless deaths and thrown the country into chaos.
North Korea has also left the United States powerless. With the support of the Chinese, Kim Jong Il continues to develop nuclear weapons regardless of US pleas for negotiation.
A DIFFICULT TIME AHEAD
Iran is currently in a very powerful position. It has great influence over the Shiites of Iraq and could play a pivotal role in bringing peace to the region.
By starting this new war with Israel, both Iran and Syria seem to have set out on a mission to prove that they too are powerful nations not to be taken lightly.
Hamas and Hezbollah are doing the same, making a statement in their war that they should be allowed to decide their own fates, rather than submit themselves to domination by greater powers. The tragedy is that innocent people have to die in order for these organizations to make their voices heard.
Both Olmert and Nasrallah have misread each other’s intentions. It is going to be a long and hot summer in the Levant.
Published by:
barakat mahmoud
date: 28 | 07 | 2006
time: 8:39 am
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when war starts rational thinking and ideas disappear.Israel started a widescale war against lebanonon both these states are members of UN . usually somebody interfers at once to stop war and start negotiations. but in this particular case us is preventing a stop of fire resolution -for the first time in history.
in order to solve any probled we should go to the real causes of that problem.
every thing started with hizbollah capturing two israelli soldiers to be able to exchnge them for the numerous thousands of arabs captured in israel assuming that they are dangerous .As a result isra troops lauch a wide scale war on civilians-a very cou7rageous war inde3ed -against housewifes children and old citizens in addition to electricity stations bridges houses….i.e.every thing moving or stationary in lebanon for more than two weeks now. us sec of foreign affairs says that by this a new middle east is under creation this is again a faulty statement .you cant change regions by killing people destroying the infrastructure this will evidently lead to more hatred and more violence Israelli gov should go reasonble and go to the table long ago covered with dust to discuss how to initiate peace in the region instead of how to impose the rize new middle east in the region by killing using techniques that have been used two hundred years ago against red indianspan
it is clear that this would be the best solution for the mutual attacks taking place in the region for two weeks or more .
Published by:
Jazz
date: 01 | 08 | 2006
time: 1:37 pm
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I come in peace, but think about this. Israel is the country of jews and it was given to them for all the bad things that happened to them during WW2.
But why give them land in mid east (taking it from people who couldn’t even defend) instead of giving them the land of the people who actually hurt them?
I am very much against the war but i think it’s Israel and it’s allies who are terrorists in that area – poor people just want the land back, so i must say i understand them completely.
Published by:
Arad (an Israeli)
date: 06 | 08 | 2006
time: 5:06 pm
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In reply to Jazz, commenter number 2:
You say you come in peace. How can we talk peace and reach a fair solution, when you don’t even know the basic facts of the matter?
Let me enlighten you:
Jews have been living in Israel constantly for the past 3500 years, and have always considered it their homeland, even when living in exile.
Arabs have been living here for about 1400 years. It was once part of the Arab empire.
For four hundred years, from the beginning of the 16th century to the beginning of the 20th century, the holy land was under the rule of the Turks. In late 19th century, as a result of the rise of nationalist thinking and the crumbling of the Turkish empire, the Jews and Arabs living here started to think about national freedom, and began fighting over the land.
In 1917, the holy land was occupied by the British, and it was already decided that it would eventually be divided between Jews and Arabs. In 1947, the UN finally reached a decision on how the land should be divided. WWII had nothing to do with it, except for making everyone understand that the decision should be made in a hurry.
The Jews accepted the UN’s decision. The Palestinians didn’t. A war commenced, during which our land was invaded by the armies of Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Iraq and Lebanon, who came to the aid of the Palestinians. Israel stood alone against all of them, drove them back, and took part of the land that was supposed to be Palestine. Other parts were taken by Jordan and Egypt. And so the Palestinian lost their homeland.
So, nobody “took land” from the Palestinians and “gave” it to the Jews. The land was rightfully divided between two nations who both had a claim to it, but one nation refused to accept the division, and brought calamity upon itself. And it wasn’t “taken from people who couldn’t even defend themselves”, but won after a bloody battle against the entire Arab nation, in which Israel lost 10% of its population.
Learn history first. Then we can talk about a fair solution.
Arad
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