JD Vance sets a most divisive example

I don't know what exactly is in the final "deal" between the USA and Iran, something I'll try to comment on another time, but for now, vice president J.D. Vance is not improving the situation with attacks on Israel in regards to Lebanon:

The harsh criticism leveled against Israel by U.S. Vice President JD Vance has sparked angry reactions.

Republican Senator Rick Scott of Florida wrote: “Israel is our greatest ally and strongest partner in the Middle East. The evil Iranian regime wants to wipe BOTH of us off the face of the Earth. That will never happen because we will ALWAYS stand together."

“America’s unwavering support for Israel’s defense helps make the America First agenda possible, the U.S. stronger, and the world a safer place," he stressed.

Professor Jeffrey Lax of New York University, a prominent activist for the Jewish community and in the fight against antisemitism and discrimination against pro-Israel professors and students, was even sharper in his criticism.

“The most sickening part of JDVance's mid-book tour press conference? Right here, where he accuses Israel(!) of attacking civilian population centers in Beirut when every honest person on earth knows it is exactly the other way around," Lax said.

“This man CANNOT be our next president," Lax declared.

The criticism was also echoed by the “Green Prince," Mosab Hassan Yousef, who lives in the United States.

"Israel is not a client state. It is a sovereign, independent, and powerful nation. Its strength has never depended on any foreign leader, it comes from its own people. While the partnership with the United States has been valuable, Israel has never been a burden. It has delivered massive contributions to American technology, medicine, cybersecurity, and defense, far beyond what most Americans realize. At a moment when America is facing deep internal and external challenges, turning against one of its most capable and loyal allies is not just shortsighted, it is self-destructive. Those who believe they are weakening Israel by attacking it are actually weakening America’s own interests," Yousef said.

During a White House briefing yesterday (Thursday), Vance claimed that Israel was bombing Lebanon indiscriminately.

Based on what Vance has done, no, he's not fit to be the next presidential candidate. And we shouldn't buy his books either. So he obscures the Hezbollah's evils, and rails against Israel instead? Vance has really disappointed.

Update: on the subject of Iran, they've backed out of the deal signing in Switzerland, and Vance has delayed a trip there. So what's being accomplished so far when the deal may be questionable at most?

Update: the Federalist is making things worse by fudging the exact details, and makes it sound like it's wrong to destroy a terrorist organization, and as though Iran's literally right to defend said monsters:

Israel’s targeting of Hezbollah in Lebanon has been a point of tension during negotiations with Iran, sometimes breaking ceasefires and jeopardizing the openness of the Strait of Hormuz. Israel has also killed negotiators from Iran in the past in the middle of talks.

Israeli attacks in Lebanon have reportedly resulted in tense phone calls between Trump and Netanyahu, in which Trump has reportedly said his Israeli counterpart has “no f-cking judgement” during the negotiating process.

This is insulting to the intellect, and could also explain why the same news writers seem disinterested in freeing all Iranian citizens who don't want to wear outfits like the chador. This can also explain why there are certain commentators on the right, in and out of Israel, who find the way this has been handled troubling, and don't sound optimistic this'll go over well.

Hezbollah overlord obliterated

The IDF just scored a most vital victory in the war against Hezbollah in Lebanon, eliminating Hassan Nasrallah, the overlord of the terrorist organization:

On Friday afternoon, shortly before Shabbat, the IDF conducted a precise strike, eliminating Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi confirmed.

The strike took place in Hezbollah’s underground headquarters in the heart of Beirut, along with other senior officials in the terrorist organization.

Halevi stressed, "Nasrallah indiscriminately murdered Israeli civilians and aimed to end this war with the destruction of the State of Israel. We made sure that did not occur. We eliminated him, and we will continue to grow stronger."

He added, "Hezbollah has murdered innocent people worldwide, hiding his weapons under the homes of families, women and children and turning them into human shields."

"As we have shown, we will not allow such a threat to our citizens! We are determined to continue destroying the Hezbollah terrorist organization and to keep fighting. We have more missions ahead on all fronts—destroying terrorist organizations and their capabilities, returning our hostages—the mission is constantly before our eyes! As well as the safe return of the residents in the north and south to their homes.

"This week, the year comes to an end—a year where IDF commanders and soldiers fight bravely and work to put an end to the hardships of the past. The IDF stands with the bereaved families. We will continue to honor the path of the fallen.

"With the fighting spirit and resilience of the entire nation, the IDF will continue to safeguard our security!”

One of the IDF's spokesmen told CNN it's disturbing how the USA government under Joe Biden/Kamala Harris called for ceasefires when Israel began taking defensive action:

On Saturday’s “CNN This Morning,” IDF Spokesman Maj. Doron Spielman responded to frustration from the White House with Israel over ceasefires by stating that “for an entire year, Hezbollah has been firing rockets, over 9,000 rockets, missiles, and killer drones and no one talked about a ceasefire. Now that Israel’s actually taking the assertion to try to protect its civilians, we’re calling for a ceasefire.” And stated that “the world, instead of demanding [that Israel have] a ceasefire, should be demanding that Hezbollah pull out.” [...]

Spielman answered, “I can tell you, Jim, that the last year has been the greatest challenge in Israel’s history. We are threatened by seven different fronts, the Houthis in Yemen, Hezbollah in the north, Hamas in Gaza, and that’s just to name a few. This is the hour that Israel will look back and the world will look back and say, who stands by Israel in this hour? And the U.S., I’m not a politician, I’m here on behalf of the Army, has been the greatest friend and has supported Israel and understands our objectives. Regarding a ceasefire, for an entire year, Hezbollah has been firing rockets, over 9,000 rockets, missiles, and killer drones and no one talked about a ceasefire. Now that Israel’s actually taking the assertion to try to protect its civilians, we’re calling for a ceasefire. As we’ve said, and as the Israeli Army says, we’re open for anything as long as Israeli civilians can go back to their home[s] and Hezbollah withdraws behind the Litani. What we know is that, right now, Hezbollah, every one of those rockets and missiles is inside one of their own homes, they’re civilian homes. You’ve seen the pictures. They don’t care about Lebanese civilians. They don’t care about Israeli civilians. And the world, instead of demanding [that Israel have] a ceasefire, should be demanding that Hezbollah pull out.”

It's truly reprehensible that anybody would call for an ambiguous "ceasefire", when it's only meant to undermine efforts to defeat the evil entity that even Ronald Reagan and George Bush Sr. have to shoulder blame for allowing to take over Lebanon, all at the expense of Christians and other innocent and defenseless inhabitants of the area. I'm not letting them off the hook any more than say, Jimmy Carter, whose own damage when it comes to Iran cannot be overlooked either.

Benjamin Netanyahu approved the strike against Hezbollah from a USA hotel room:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved Friday’s airstrike on Hezbollah’s headquarters in Beirut, Lebanon, from his hotel room in New York City prior to his speech to the United Nations General Assembly.

The Prime Minister’s Office released a photograph that it said showed Netanyahu approving the massive airstrike.

The massive attack targeted Hezbollah’s underground headquarters in the Dahiyeh neighborhood of Beirut.

Netanyahu apparently delivered his address knowing that the attack was under way. He cut short a press conference after the speech when a military aide whispered in his ear.

The UN is a disgrace, as he also pointed out. It's long overdue to get rid of Hezbollah as much as Hamas, and the PLO must also go. Mahmoud Abbas is one of the worst bigots around, and he alone makes clear what's wrong with them as well.

Complete failure of intel has responsibility for leading to this situation

Lilach Shoval looks at the issue of how Israeli intelligence services failed to see this tragedy of the Hamas assault coming:

The Simchat Torah attack is the 2023 version of the 1973 Yom Kippur war. The complete surprise – the governing paradigm, the collapse of the lines of defense – is very reminiscent of what happened here exactly 50 years ago.

In a well-synchronized and orchestrated move, Hamas managed to surprise even the best and brightest in Israeli intelligence and completely toppled the Gaza Division's doctrine, which relied in recent years on the security barrier that gave a false sense of security.

A similar scenario, involving infiltration, kidnapping, and a killing spree carried out under the auspices of massive rocket fire, has been discussed in recent years by the top brass in the IDF, only in regard to the northern border, after Hassan Nasrallah publicly announced in that he intends to "conquer the Galilee" – that is, to cross the border, enter residential towns and villages and kidnap civilians and soldiers. But no one expected that the evil would start from the south, and without any intelligence warning.

Ten hours after the start of the events – these are several of the difficult questions that someone will be forced to give answers at the investigative committees that will be established when the disaster is over.

Q: Where was the intelligence?

This is the first question that cries out to the sky. Just like 50 years ago, even if the intelligence had real signs of such an operation, these were not converted into actionable intelligence, and this complacency blew up in our faces with a colossal intelligence failure.

In the last few weeks, and even in the last few days, senior army officials have been heard talking about the fact that Hamas is not interested in escalating its relations with Israel and emphasized that the fact that thousands of workers enter Israel every day restrains the organization's leaders that are controlling Gaza, which wants to ensure the welfare of its residents.

Even though Hamas carried out a live drill of a crisis on the fence in the last two weeks, the intelligence assessment did not change. As part of that exercise, Hamas sent hundreds of rioters to violent demonstrations, similar to the violent Friday protests held in the months before the COVID-19 pandemic. A few days ago, and after several pinpointed signal attacks, the IDF believed that the problem had been solved when the minister of defense gave the order to continue permitting the entrance of workers into Israeli territory.

Not only that but according to a military assessment of the situation, the IDF, the strongest army in the Middle East, which prides itself on good intelligence in our region and perhaps in the entire world, reduced its forces in the Gaza Strip in recent months and transferred them to Judea and Samaria in order to deal with the wave of murderous terrorism. And when the intelligence did not give any warning, even not a hint, the IDF top brass did not train the troops, did not order the deployment of Iron Domes, and this most serious incident caught most of the senior IDF commanders at home.

Like in the Yom Kippur War, the entire political and security leadership is accountable for the failure. The dire result is that even hours after the start of the attack, which erupted at 6:30 AM, there were still besieged towns, terrorists barricading themselves in houses, and a significant number of civilians and soldiers who had been kidnapped and taken into Gaza.

There's more to ponder, but for now, this is very grave, right down to how the army themselves don't seem to have been present at the Gaza perimeter, or seen the enemy approaching it. A really responsible intel service would've recognized and even made publicly clear that letting down our guard anywhere and everywhere could lead to such a situation. Instead, they downplayed the seriousness of the issue. Those responsible will have to resign and apologize. The IDF may have cleared all towns of vermin. But this fiasco is going to have a terrible after-effect for years to come.

The Hezbollah in Lebanon is just as dangerous as Hamas

Rick Moran reminds everyone that Hezbollah's bound to willing and ready to attack Israel, just like the Hamas did this weekend:

The Hamas invasion of Israel is the most significant military action against the Jewish state ever carried out by a terrorist group. The planning for this attack must have begun months ago in Tehran where the bulk of the funds used to arm and train fighters for the attack originated.

Anyone who refers to Hamas as “freedom fighters” should have their head examined. The terrorists kidnapped dozens of civilians — infants, old people, women — and are holding them somewhere in Gaza. As the IDF looks to turn back the terrorists who have invaded seven different areas in the South of Israel, they must contend with the eventuality of a Hezbollah attack in the North.

Already, Israel has exchanged artillery fire with Hezbollah, and the terrorist’s masters in Tehran have given fulsome praise to Hamas for the attack.

Might Hezbollah join Hamas and hit Israel in the North while the IDF is occupied in the South?

Sarit Zehavi, the founder of the Alma Center, which is a research center in Israel dedicated to understanding their national security situation, told the Washington Examiner that there’s a chance Hezbollah could soon attack Israel with the country’s attention focused on the south.

“It’s just a matter of decision for Hezbollah, whether it wants to join in or not. I believe this decision was not made yet, and that’s why we’re not there yet, but maybe we’re not that far from this place,” she said.“Here in Israel, we are preparing for the scenario of war also from the north because we understand it was within the interest of Iran and Hezbollah to escalate the Israeli-Lebanese border. We see what is happening in the south as a part of a bigger plan to attack Israel and weaken the state of Israel from multiple fronts, and I guess this is what the Iranians now are trying to create.”

Iran’s motives are clear. They want to disrupt the movement toward peace between Israel and their Arab neighbors, begun by Donald Trump. Tehran sees peace — quite rightly — as a massive loss of influence for Iran.

Obviously, they want to destroy chances of peace with Saudi Arabia (though lest we forget, even today, the House of Saud can still be very shady), along with quite possibly other such countries. But that's still nothing compared to the hostage crisis caused by the kidnappings of Israelis by Hamas that's now causing a serious issue. We must hope that won't deter the government from taking serious ground action in Gaza.

Update: Melanie Phillips addressed the crisis, and she makes some vital points:

How could this possibly have happened? Clearly, there has been a massive Israeli intelligence failure. It’s hard not to see a connection with the enormous anti-government protests over the past nine months, which saw Israelis trying to undermine the economy and even refusing to do army reservists’ duty.

Such a paralysing internal battle may have taken official eyes off the security ball. What’s undeniable is that the ferocity and length of these internal convulsions sent a signal that Israel was weakened. Many Israelis have been wondering over these past difficult months just when Israel’s mortal enemies would seize this opportunity to take advantage of this weakness. Now we have the dreadful answer.

And this barbarism has been paid for by the US and EU. What did they think all the money they were channelling into Gaza for “humanitarian” purposes would actually be used for? Now we have the answer.

What did the Biden administration think would be the result of appeasing, grovelling to and funding Iran, the paymasters of Hamas and Hezbollah? Now it has its answer.

America, the EU and Britain have consistently undermined Israel’s attempt to defend itself against attack. For the past century, the west has incentivised exterminatory Palestinian Arab terror against Israel by rewarding it with the promise of statehood — which the Palestinians always made plain they wanted only as a staging post towards Israel’s destruction — and punishing Israel for objecting to this existential threat.

The whole notion army reservists would refuse service over petty issues like judicial reform certainly damaged morale, and from a local perspective, also has to shoulder blame. Why, those would-be reservists should be fired by the army and not welcome to serve ever again, if that's their way of thinking.

Update 2: more news on the issue of kidnap victims.

Update 3: here's information on how the IDF smashed targets in Gaza. There's extra information here too.

BRITAIN WILL HOST HEZBOLLAH SPOKESMAN

Absurd Britannia continues its spectacle of the same, as they legitimize the Hezbollah:

(IsraelNN.com) British officials granted senior Hizbullah member Ibrahim Moussawi a visa to visit the country on Thursday. The visa will allow Moussawi to lecture at a conference on political Islam. Moussawi plans to speak at the University of London on March 25.

The British government granted Moussawi a permit to visit Britain in 2008 as well. During that visit he appeared at events sponsored by the British group Stop the War.

Moussawi, who has been quoted as calling Jews “a lesion of the forehead of history” and justifying attacks on Israeli civilians, insists that he is not an anti-Semite. “I'm a bridge-builder and I've always been an advocate of dialog and discussion,” he claimed in response to criticism of an earlier visit.

If you're planning on taking a trip to England for tourism, cancel it immediately! The less money given to them, the better, as they'll likely exploit even that for funding these disgusting people who even have the gall to deny where they really stand.

DISGRACEFUL SIGHT

Today, the Israeli government handed back Samir Kuntar and 4 other Hezbollah terrorists, and what for? Two bodies in coffins (via Hot Air Headlines).

Shortly after convicted murderer Samir Kuntar and four Hizbullah POWs arrived in Lebanon late Wednesday afternoon, Hizbullah transferred to Israel a coffin carrying the remains of a number of IDF soldiers who were killed during the Second Lebanon War.

The five Lebanese terrorists and the IDF remains passed across the border only after the IDF positively identified the bodies of Regev and Goldwasser.

As one of the commentors on Hot Air says, it's quite likely that the two soldiers who tragically died were dead just shortly after capture. It was of course courtesy of Olmert's blundering that all this happened.

I think Israel really needs to employ a death sentence for terrorists just like the US has one to use on some of the worst murderers in history. Because Kuntar should have been executed long ago for his crimes.

WEST NEEDS TO WAKE UP TO REALITY OF LEBANON

Barry Rubin talks about why the Hezbollah's conquest of Beirut in Lebanon should be serving as a wake-up call for the West.

AMIR PERETZ BLAMES PREDECESSORS FOR WAR'S FAILURE

Because he was cited as being part of the problem in the Winograd report, Amir Peretz has now given a press conference in which he says that his predecessors in the defense ministry are responsible for the failure of the 2nd Lebanon war:

Peretz stated that his predecessors should have been held accountable for much of the failings revealed in the war, pointing the finger particularly at former Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz and former Defense Minister and current Labor Chairman Ehud Barak.

"There are tough questions regarding the six years prior to the war. This needs to be investigated further. Mofaz remained silent and did not alert about the failings (during his term in office). I have paid a heavy political price for years of failed policy.

"These questions should be presented to those who stated that the IDF needs to be a small and clever army, and thus jumpstarted the dynamics that led us to this catastrophe; and to those who decided that Israel could withdraw from Lebanon without an agreement, while abandoning our Christian allies and creating a vacuum that drew Hizbullah in."

Well, I'm glad he's pointing out that his two predecessors also have blame to shoulder. Because even Mofaz and Barak cannot be allowed to escape blame for their own negligence.

IN ISRAEL, EVEN POLITICIANS HAVE TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY

Shortly before the Winograd report was published, Michael Oren in the Wall Street Journal has something to say in relation:

The war began on July 12, 2006, when Hezbollah gunmen ambushed an Israeli border patrol, killing eight and kidnapping two. Mr. Olmert's response, a large-scale campaign intended to crush Hezbollah and secure the soldiers' release, was supported by most Israelis until serious mismanagement of the war surfaced. While receiving inadequate or faulty equipment -- my rifle literally fell apart in my hands -- Israeli forces were denied permission to invade Southern Lebanon and neutralize the katyusha rockets that were pummeling Israeli cities. Instead, Israeli jets bombed the Lebanese routes through which Syria resupplied Hezbollah and destroyed the organization's Beirut headquarters.

These attacks obliterated much of Hezbollah's infrastructure and killed a fourth of its fighters, but they also laid waste to a large part of Lebanon, killing civilians and squandering Israel's initial international backing. Hundreds of rockets, meanwhile, continued to smash into northern Israel, displacing a half-million civilians. Only on Aug. 13, after a month of fighting and with a U.N. ceasefire already approved, did the government authorize a ground offensive into Lebanon. The operation achieved nothing, either militarily or diplomatically, and cost the lives of 33 Israeli troops.

In another country, perhaps, such blunders might result in the resignation of senior officers but not necessarily elected officials. In Israel, though, no one is above blame. Accountability for decision making is a tenet of the Zionist ethos on which the Jewish state is based and, unlike most nations, Israel has a citizens' army in which the great majority -- politicians included -- serve. Most uniquely, Israel confronts daily security dangers and long-term threats to its existence. Israelis can neither condone nor afford a prime minister who passes the buck to their army or shirks the onus of defense. The person who sends us into battle cannot escape responsibility for our fate.

And that person is mainly Ehud Olmert.

IRAN WILL NOW GET "RED NOTICES" ON 1994 BOMBING IN ARGENTINA

Iran backs Hezbollah, which committed the bombing. Now, they're about to get a notice on the case in which 85 people were murdered in Buenos Aires in 1994 (via Hot Air):

Iran’s top diplomat says the U.S. and Israel are pressuring Interpol to put five Iranians and one Lebanese on its most wanted list next week for the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center that killed 85 people.

But the lead prosecutor in Argentina’s worst terror attack says the case is not political. Prosecutors say they have enough evidence for Interpol’s 186-member general assembly to approve “red notices” for the six suspects during a meeting that opens Monday in Marrakech, Morocco.

There have been no convictions 13 years after an explosives-laden van leveled the seven-story Jewish community center in Buenos Aires.

Argentine prosecutors allege Iranian officials orchestrated the bombing and entrusted the Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah to carry it out.

It's been 13 years since then, and the time has come already to confront Iran about this. I do not expect them to hand over the culprits in the case any more than you do, but it does make a very solid case for imposing sanctions upon Iran and isolating them.

LETTER BY RON ARAD

The AFP reports that the Hezbollah handed over a letter by Ron Arad:

JERUSALEM (AFP) - Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah has given Israel a letter written by an air force navigator who has been missing for more than 20 years, an Israeli newspaper reported on Monday.

Written by Ron Arad to his wife in 1986 shortly after he was captured in Lebanon during the civil war, the letter was handed over to Israel as part of a prisoner and body swap with Hezbollah last week.

His wife Tami confirmed the letter was from her husband by the handwriting and the intimate endearments they used for each other, Israel's top-selling Yediot Aharonot newspaper reported.

Arad has been missing since he ejected from an fighter-bomber in 1986 during Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war. He was captured by another Shiite movement, Amal, headed by Nabih Berri who is now speaker of the Lebanese parliament.

Israel refuses to declare Arad officially dead. In January 2006, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah said he was probably dead although he had no proof.

That Berri should be declared an international criminal for his part in Arad's abduction. And he may be one who knows of Arad's exact whereabouts too.

HEZBOLLAH ALLY, IRANIAN PROXY MAHDI ARMY PRESENTS MAJOR PROBLEM FOR POST-SURGE SCENARIOS

Danger Room has a roundup of the post surge scenarios that are available to the Coalition. One major problem:

Garton Ash believes that "capacity to intervene" will diminish as Basra increasingly comes under the sway of extremist elements. AlterNet concurs: "Should British forces decide to venture back, they will inevitably face a den of Mahdi Army fighters," according to their analysis: The militia is said to number 17,000 in Basra alone and is divided into 40 company-size military units, according to a senior Iraqi security official. ... They control multiple units in the 14,500-strong police force, and hold sway in hospitals, the education board, the university, ports and oil terminals, and the oil products and electricity distribution companies.

Or as we like to call them, the Hezbollah allied Mahdi army:

“We teach each other,” i.e. cross-pollination. The traffic’s not one way, either; follow that last link to refresh your memory. As far as I know, it still hasn’t been conclusively established that Sadr is Iran’s chief proxy in Iraq, although the collusion with Hezbollah and the fact (again, per the Independent) that thousands of JAM members have trained in camps in Iran indicates a high level of nuance to the relationship. Traditionally SCIRI was Iran’s arm inside the country but they seem to have drifted towards the American side in the past year, possibly as a reaction to Sadr’s coziness with the regime. Michael Totten, on the ground in Baghdad, seems pretty clear on what’s what, though: The Mahdi Army is Iran’s major proxy in Iraq. It is, in effect, the Iraqi branch of Hezbollah.

Hey, remember when the US kept the IDF on a short leash because they didn't want to destabilize Sinoria, even at the risk of not uprooting Hezbollah? Apparently - according to the oh-so-brave State Department Director Alberto Fernandez - Lebanon's government wasn't responsible for Hezbollah even though Hezbollah was part of the Lebanese government. Good to see that's working out.

[Cross-posted to Mere Rhetoric]

TAKE AWAY HEZBOLLAH'S COLLABORATORS, HUMAN SHIELDS: DISBAND UNIFIL NOW.

The IDC's GLORIA center held a joint video conference with the State Department on the domestic and international situation in Lebanon, bringing together Israeli, American, and Lebanese experts. It is extremely long but if you haven't been keeping close tabs on what's going on in Southern Lebanon - aka "the place where a war will probably be fought soon" - this is your opportunity to get caught up. Here's a teaser about one of the parts we're not including: "many jihadists and terrorists have been infiltrating Lebanon... with the supposed support of NGOs and money from the Gulf."

But we do want to make sure you catch this part:

It is now generally accepted that large-scale smuggling of arms from Syria to Hizballah has taken place since the ceasefire. A UN assessment team submitted its report to the Security Council to this effect... And UNIFIL has failed even to deploy on this border. Thus, Hizballah has been rearmed contrary to the UNIFIL mandate. There is also considerable evidence that Hizballah has largely rebuilt its military infrastructure from the damage suffered in the war, despite the presence of 8,800 UNIFIL and 12,000 Lebanese army forces ostensibly to prevent this... Regarding UNIFIL, it seems that its forces have accepted an extremely limited role, and a cynic could describe them as under the protection of Hizballah to an extent. It is not a question of them collapsing, but of them not doing anything. An Italian official told us that the UNIFIL forces were engaged in a number of laudable activities such as distributing toys to children, but when it came to Hizballah, he was very open: "We don't have the political will in Italy to have body bags come home."

And it's not just that UNIFIL provides Hezbollah and Syria with thousands of human shields. UN peacekeepers are also basically helpless their hostages. After bragging about how they were going to the Middle East to sort things out, the Europeans have gone from pretending to monitor Hezbollah's attacks on Israel to trying to stop Hezbollah from attacking UNIFIL itself. Hezbollah and Syria use the vulnerability of European peacekeepers to extract European diplomatic concessions in unrelated areas. Instead of being sacrificed for demonstrably misplaced European self-interest, Israeli security is now being sacrificed for transparently facile European self-delusion.

The Europeans have this image of themselves as tough soldiers who have come into Lebanon to finally put an end to all this Zionist warmongering nonsense. It's very important for them to hold on to the idea - crucially, ultimately important - that they are putting the Israelis in their place. But in reality the mostly French soldiers in UNIFIL are pathetically bad soldiers. They like to play-act at being tough military men in a brutal warzone, but they're so poorly trained that they don't even know what good training looks like. Since they can't admit their pathetic helplessness, they hysterically accuse Israel of lying when Israel provides evidence that Hezbollah is using UN facilities to attack Israeli civilians - mostly because UNIFIL can't do anything to stop them. They can't even stop their bases from getting overrun by Lebanese funeral processions. Or by little Lebanese kids.

Which is not to say that many UNIFIL soldiers are not also pathologically anti-Semitic. More precisely: many of them are resentful and pathetic weaklings who cope with their seething impotence in the tried and true European tradition of pseudo-sophisticated anti-Semitism.

[Read an extended version of this post at Mere Rhetoric]

HEZBOLLAH'S NEW MUSEUM - shows no gratefulness to the USA for leashing Israel

Here's the really unseemly thing about these vicious, genocidal Islamic lunatics - total ingrates:

A menacing picture of Condoleezza Rice announces that "This war is part of birth bangs [sic] of the new middle east [sic]," while a jester-like George W. Bush assures viewers that "[o]ur nation is wasting no time in helping the people of Lebanon." Former Israeli Defense Minister Amir Peretz, in Israel's crowning moment of the war, gazes pensively through capped binoculars. "Hassan Nasrallah won't forget the name Aameer Peretz [sic]," quotes the caption under his larger- than-life portrait.

What does a misguided American administration have to do to get some love from these people?

They kept Israel leashed during the entire war - no attacks on Lebanese infrastructure being used by Hezbollah, no attacks against Hezbollah infrastructure that was connected to the government, etc. Israel couldn't get Nasrallah while he was in Beirut because Israeli attacks on Beirut were - wait for it - being strongly condemned by the State Department. And still nothing. There are some particularly zealous anti-Israel leftists who really, really wish that Hezbollah had achieved a great military victory. You know what the problem with that is? The part of history when Nasrallah was crawling to Arab leaders begging them to have the US call the IDF off.

[Read an extended version of this post at Mere Rhetoric]

RUSSIA GIVES IRAN CUTTING-EDGE ANTI-SHIP MISSILES TO GIVE TO HEZBOLLAH

We'd like to thank the State Department for keeping the IAF leashed during Lebanon II, the United Nations for stopping the war just as Israeli soldiers were getting poured across the border, and pretty much everyone else for the fantastic job they've been doing with Iran:

The recent delivery of an advanced Russian-made anti-ship missile to Iran has defense officials concerned it will be transferred to Syria and Hizbullah and used against the Israel Navy in a future conflict... Called the SSN-X-26 Yakhont, the supersonic cruise missile can be launched from the coast and hit sea-borne targets up to 300 kilometers away. The missile carries a 200-kilogram warhead and flies a meter-and-a-half above sea level... The missile homes in on its target using an advanced radar guidance system that is said to make it resistant to electronic jamming. The Yakhont is an operational and tactical missile and can be used against both a medium-sized destroyer and an aircraft carrier. It would pose a serious threat to the Israel Navy,... While officials could not confirm that the missile had reached Syria or Hizbullah, the growing assumption is that any weapons system or missile that can be taken apart and fit into a shipping container can easily be transferred.

Of course, any significant Hezbollah attack would now also send the IAF to Syria's doorstep. So at least Russia's not also pouring offensive and defensive weapons into Syria. We're not too worried. The UN was very clear that they would prevent any arms smuggling to Hezbollah, if only Israel agreed to withdraw behind the border.

[Cross-posted to Mere Rhetoric]

MEET AUGUSTUS RICHARD NORTON, HEZBOLLAH APOLOGIST

The Jerusalem Post writes a book review of Hezbollah: A Short History, written by one Augustus Richard Norton, a Boston University professor and terror apologist:

Here we go again: yet another American "scholar" who apologizes for an Islamist terrorist group that exists first and foremost to murder, maim and destroy. With Hezbollah: A Short History, Augustus Richard Norton, a Boston University professor of international relations and anthropology, has joined the ranks of dozens of US academics who inexplicably teach the kinder and gentler side of terrorists.

Norton, a former observer with the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization, states in his prologue that he seeks to provide "a more balanced and nuanced account" of Hizbullah, which he calls a "complex organization." Of course, there is little that is complex or nuanced about a group that receives an estimated $100 million a year from the radical Islamic regime in Iran to carry out violence, and has used violence as its raison d'etre dating back to the 1980s.

Indeed, Hizbullah exists to further the violent aims of Iran, to demonize and attack the US and to destroy Israel. Norton neglects to state this unequivocally and, for that reason, he should be publicly shamed.

Well this looks like a good place to start, no? Let us get him known for what he really is right over here for starters.

RELIAPUNDIT ADDS: Great Post! More HERE.

WORLD REACTS WITH OUTRAGE AS LEBANON SHELLS PALESTINIAN REFUGEE CAMP FOR FIFTH STRAIGHT DAY

Just kidding, obviously. It's not Israel trying to defend Israeli citizens against openly stated genocidal intentions - an act known in media and diplomatic circles as "disproportionate retaliation" - so they can do whatever they want:

Fierce fighting has engulfed the Nahr al-Bared camp and its outskirts since Friday, when the army launched an offensive to drive the militants from their positions inside the camp. The army stepped up its offensive after the militants, who embrace an al-Qaida-inspired militancy and doctrine, rejected government demands to surrender and vowed to fight to the death. More than 100 people have been reported dead since the fighting first broke out May 20 between the army and Fatah al-Islam. It is the worst internal violence since the end of Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war. Fierce fighting has engulfed the Nahr al-Bared camp and its outskirts since Friday, when the army launched an offensive to drive the militants from their positions inside the camp. The army stepped up its offensive after the militants, who embrace an al-Qaida-inspired militancy and doctrine, rejected government demands to surrender and vowed to fight to the death.

The last time Israel killed 100 people without hysterical cries of massacres and UN resolutions of condemnation was... anyone? Never? 60ish years of nationhood, and Israel has never been allowed to defend itself militarily without having to devote significant time, energy, and money to defending itself diplomatically in international forums. Maybe they should ask Lebanon what the trick is. We suspect it has something to do with "not being Jewish". You know what though? The Bush administration consistently restrained Israel throughout Lebanon II because it didn't want to undermine Lebanon's political stability. Nice to see that's working out so well.

[Cross-posted to Mere Rhetoric]

HEZBOLLAH GLOATS - WE SPENT A MONTH HIDING BEHIND THE UN'S SKIRTS, SO WE WON!

Yes, we know it's annoying. But who cares - it's classic lady doth protest too much blithering. If Nasrallah's best argument is that the consequences of Lebanon II have hurt Olmert's political career, he ought to look into how the Lebanese blogosphere is reacting to Winograd:

If the Israeli prime minister is being held accountable for failing to deliver on his promises, Hizbullah took an entire nation to war without consulting its government or people, and delivered them death and destruction. Yet you don't hear of a probe or investigation into how a militia got away with destroying the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands, and how it continues to hold a country hostage. Why stop at Hizbullah? Soon, many "citizens" of this Arab world will be claiming victory over an enemy they never fought, in a battle they never won and in which they made no real sacrifices... So hurray, we have won. Israel is defeated. Strangely, their defeat will move them forward. As for our "divine victory", well, it will keep us where we are, which is at the bottom of the lowest circles of hell.

Lebanon II was bungled not because the IDF lost but because the IDF did not win fast enough. Fast enough by the standards of the international community, which demands that Israel win wars instantly. Wars fought against enemies that hide in civilian areas don't work that way. Had the IDF been allowed to go after Hezbollah's infrastructure for another month - or if they had been allowed to leverage the IAF's air superiority and to hell with Hezbollah's use of civilian areas as military staging grounds - does anyone have the slightest doubt what the result would have been? For Hezbollah to claim victory because they spent a month hiding figuratively behind the skirts of UN officials and literally behind the skirts of Lebanese women - well, it just seems a like they're trying just a bit too hard. A 10 to 1 kill ratio - to say nothing of the 1000 to 1 infrastructure ratio - does not a glorious victory make.

[Read an extended version of this post at Mere Rhetoric]

THE INBAR REPORT ON LEBANON II'S FAILURES

Rarely will we tell you that you have to read the whole thing. You have to read read the whole thing. Themes to pay extra attention to:

(1) The stamina of Israeli society under conditions of attrition, and the willingness of Israelis to sustain casualties provided that operations are genuinely necessary and making Israel safer.

(2) How badly UNIFIL screws Israel. Some previous background posts on why the new UNIFIL mandate was inadequate are here and here.

(3) How Syria continues to arm Hezbollah under the UN's nose (and, actually, under the UN's de facto protection).

(4) The importance of academic and cultural norms on Israel's warfighting capabilities:

Post-modern notions have blurred the strategic clarity of Israel's political leadership and its defense and foreign affairs establishment. The economic cost of building a strong military force may be high, but it is not an optional expense. Too often, wishful thinking supplants reality. Should Israeli officials recognize their mistakes, however, they will find much with which to restore unquestioned Israeli regional deterrence. The war demonstrated that Israel is a strong state. It has the spirit to fight. Its soldiers won each encounter with Hezbollah. The Israeli home front displayed great resilience, and Israel's economy continued to bloom. With adequate preparation, Jerusalem might attain a clear victory in the next round, which, however unfortunate, the outcome of the 2006 war makes inevitable.

Read an extended version of this post at Mere Rhetoric...