UN Draft Resolution for Ceasefire
In panic mode, desperately decrying the catastrophe that has befallen Lebanon, the deaths of its civilians, the smashing of its civic infrastructure, its economy, Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora pleaded with the United Nations, with the United States, with the European Union, to end his country's agony. While doing so in the United States, he steadfastly refused to label Hezbollah's actions as terrorist in nature. They are Lebanese civilians, they are protectors of Lebanon. Why, one wonders, did/does he not plead with Hezbollah which has deliberately by its hostile war-mongering, targetting Israeli civilians, brought down the wrath of the Israeli Defence Forces upon Lebanon, to cease and desist? Wouldn't that be intelligent, would that not have been a worthwhile endeavour, to stop this entire war-adventure before it even began?But look, Mr. Siniora has had his pleas heeded, France and the United States, members of the permanent Security Council of the UN have finally agreed on a draft wording which would have the effect of beginning a peace process, a cessation of hostilities at the very least, and in the immediate future, a proposal certain to be accepted by Israel as a first step. Not good enough, alas. The proposal lacked what to Lebanon is seen as key wording, that Israel debark completely from Lebanon's shores. Ah, to what end? Buy more time for Hezbollah to beef up its resources and stage yet another assault on Israel?
Moreover, where the proposal calls for a return of the three abducted Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah, Lebanon insists that hundreds of Israeli-held prisoners, comprising Palestinians and Lebanese who have been imprisoned directly because of illicit activities within Israel to destabilize the country, including would-be suicide bombers, munitions experts, jihad planners and the like. How's that for a deal? We'll give you back your soldiers whom we abducted from your territory, as long as you guarantee us the return of all those nice jihadists whom we'd charged with the Islamic duty to wreak havoc upon your people.
So, obviously, although Mr. Siniora and his spokespeople deplore the deaths of innocent Lebanese civilians, wring their hands in despair over bombed-out infrastructure, the loss of tourism and business, they will hold firm. They want an immediate ceasefore, but not necessarily an immediate ceasefire. Their idea of a ceasefire is for the party which was originally put to great harm and reacted in self-defence, to have the benefit of extreme sanction for cause, and to be unceremoniously removed from their ability to retaliate and protect their country against further such attacks. Nothing like a demand to reward the efforts of a malefactor by permitting him to retain the proceeds of his criminal activities.
"Lebanon, all of Lebanon, rejects any talks or any draft resolution" that does not call for a prisoner swap between Israel and Hezbollah, an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of about 10,000 Israeli troops from southern Lebanon. "We always spoke about an immediate ceasefire," Mr. Nabi Berri, a member of the Lebanese parliament said, "we never spoke about ending military operations because this is in a way like legitimizing the the occupation."Despite that Lebanon denied that they had any hand in the provocative attacks launched by Hezbollah the government stands by its Hezbollah component which is, after all, a legitimate, elected part of their government, and with whom they work hand in glove, although admittedly not being too fond of the fall-out of Hezbollah's misadventure which has been visited upon the country. Israel could have evinced a stiff upper lip, after all, Israel could have managed not to take notice, Israel could have launched into a verbal tirade decrying the assault on its sovereignty, its people. Israel needn't have responded in such a "disproportionate" manner. Having not done so, Israel is to blame for the present conflagration. This appears to be Lebanese logic.
"Any deal at the UN must be directly between Israel and Hezbollah," intoned a Sunni owner of a sweets store. His Shia friend who had fled the fighting farther south said "We want the war to stop because if it doesn't, we will lose everything. But we cannot accept this indignity that the U.S. has put to the UN. Hezbollah will fight to the end."Clearly, the Lebanese cabinet speaks for its citizenry.
In today's news there was a report of an Israeli air attack that left 40 Lebanese dead, according to Mr. Siniora. Now that really is bad, bad news. For everyone. For Israel, for Lebanon. Forty dead civilians because of an Israeli air strike. More proof that Israel's agenda goes beyond self-protection, that it relishes gratuitous killing of innocent people. Several hours later there was a correction in the news. Evidently one person had died in that Israeli air strike. Quite a difference. Bear in mind that the original accusation of 40 dead came through loud and clear in Mr. Siniora's own recorded
voice. Later, the amendment came also in his voice, explaining that he had repeated information obtained from "a source".
This is not symptomatic of disingenuousness, but rather a tried and true strategy of sheer ingenuity. Somehow, the world will believe that Israel is willing and capable of deliberate civilian strikes, and Mr. Siniora and Hezbollah recognize that and capitalize upon it. Deliberately corrupted information is fed to the eager media salivating over the opportunity to report yet more egregious behaviour by Israel. Corrections, when they come, are sheepishly admitted if at all, don't receive the same breathless coverage and will be recalled by whom? The original claim of state-sponsored brutality will be retained by most listeners; they tend not to retrieve from memory a correcting item, placing it contextually and retaining memory of it.
As a Canadian, I am proud of my government for stating through our head of state: "This is a ceasefire that reflects the position of the government of Canada as expressed in the G8 declaration that there are conditions necessary for a ceasefire on both sides to have a lasting peace."
posted by Pieface @ Monday, August 07, 2006
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