Repeat, and Repeat Again
The very distinct and very large presence of Palestinians in Lebanon are deliberately kept 'distinct' and distant from the rest of the legitimate, as in citizenship, population of the country. The Palestinians are held in distaste, in contempt, and were never welcomed, nor made to feel secure in the country, home to Lebanese Arabs of a secular bent, Christians, Druze, and Muslims. They have never been permitted to own land, practise professions, or live freely in the country that gave them temporary refuge in the wake of the routing by Israel of the assembled armies of the Middle East.They are viewed as a despised minority, a canker, in the greater Lebanon. An Arab League treaty agreement ensures that the 'refugee camps' housing millions of displaced Palestinians are to be autonomous, that they were not to be interfered with, entered by the Lebanese military, seen as a political entity in and of itself, a revenge-crucible to be stoked for the purpose of annihilating an upstart nation in the geography. Mass unemployment, dire living conditions, an atmosphere of unsettled and increasingly dim hope for the future has produced a population with a huge grievance.
Now, thousands of desperate Palestinians, fearful for their safety, their very lives, have fled the refugee camp, where the Islamist Fatah al-Islam located itself among the civil population, and where it fomented its violent intent in the region; its criminal pursuits to fund its activities and adherents brought it into the sight lines of the Lebanese Army and the result has been utter chaos, as Lebanese forces have been indiscriminately shelling Nahr el-Bared in an attempt to roust the terrorists.
It's a familiar story, a cadre of bitterly disaffected and violence-prone young men create their jihad-seeking guerrilla force, perhaps to the dismay of the local residents who feel incapable of criticizing their presence for fear of violent recriminatory acts against them. Likely some of the population felt supportive of the presence of the group, much as they do of Hezbollah. Now there is growing anger among the Palestinians toward the Lebanese forces for bombing the homes of the defenceless refugees.
The pattern is clear; committed jihadists establish themselves in the midst of a burgeoning civilian population, and launch their attacks from within the neighbourhoods of crowded housing. And when counter-attacks occur, they victimize the innocent civilians, men, women and children and the elderly. Now bombed-out rubble, bullet holes and shrapnel gouges, along with bodies of the dead lying sprawled in the public arena greet the eye. The desperate inhabitants of Nahr el-Bared are without food, water or power.
There is not yet an official death toll; estimates from international organizations confirm the dead between 50 and 100, with more victims buried under the rubble that is all that is now left of some neighbourhoods. Although an estimated eleven to 14 thousand managed to flee the camp, many more have been left there, the opportunity to flee diminished. Fatah al-Islam men warn that if they attempt to flee they would be shot and killed.
One Fatah al-Islam member was heard to shout at the fleeing Palestinians "Don't leave the camp, go back home, die in your homes, this is what Islam requires you to do!". A growing sense of unease and tension is gripping all of Lebanon now, with fears of a real backlash should the collective Palestinian population take up a position that might lead to a wider conflict. There are only an estimated two to three hundred insurgents after all, and their aspiration to accomplish true chaos is limited by their numbers.
Another bomb has exploded, this time in a Druze mountain resort overlooking Beirut, the third such unexplained blast in four days near the capital. The other bomb blasts occurred in Christian and Sunni areas, so all bases appear to be covered. The mystery is what is propelling these additional attacks, is there any relation to these and the upheaval taking place in Nahr el-Bared?
And how is it that some of the members of Fatah al-Islam were wearing the same uniforms as the Lebanese army? This group became visible only last year, after breaking ranks with a previous insurgent group. They've taken on some of the precepts expressed by al-Qaeda, although they deny any affiliation with that master-group of terrorists. "We started to see them last year," said one camp resident whose home was in the middle of the worst of the carnage. "They were always training and praying."
How is it that the most committed terrorists, the most pathological murderers offer a religious dimension to their delusionary hatred for others? They assume the sacred mantle of 'messengers of God', while serving the angel of death. This is the consummate school of religiously-inspired determination to serve the higher purpose of the deity they cling to.
This is the ultimate human delusion, that a Supreme Being would demand of his followers that they serve up the souls of countless innocents in service to that divine entity.
Labels: Human Fallibility, Middle East, Religion
posted by Pieface @ Thursday, May 24, 2007
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