A dear friend sent this e-mail to me earlier today. This war needs to stop now!
Raja habibi,
I miss you a lot and sometimes I sit and think how I missed a fabulous summer with you....
They have been bombing Saida’s Palestinian camp (which is close to my parents) and the situation is not promising at all. They can not get out because of several reasons, mainly because of my father’s condition. He is still too weak to move around and too stubborn to leave.The children had their first fright night this morning when they bombed the camp. Electricity hours are getting less and less, and it is difficult in the evenings when the mosquitoes are around and not able to use insecticide plates (because of lack of electricity).
My sleeping pattern has gone wacky and I have mild depression. A combination of: job -related insecure future; being locked in my friend’s apartment (away from Beirut), transportation is too hard for all because there is little fuel; unable to work and get around (as a result); the war itself (concerns about family's life and father’s well being); seeing what is going on in other towns and areas of Lebanon which is really really sad and sickening....
what can I say?! God is placing us and testing us in another war like situation but this time the responsibilities have shifted in my family.
...
13 comments:
The Internet has created alot of spectators. and more of us are feeling connected to the people we communicate with. I have done alot of reading since I started commenting on Iraqi blogs 9 months ago. My viewpoint hasn't changed but my appreciation for the complexity has. We watch and in turn create alot of words. There is a certain level of...addiction? I'm not sure. I do think about all the prayers that monks and priests and people have said over the years and centuries..It would seem that all those words and the time spent praying for peace would have changed this world into a paradise by now...if only words were sufficient...if only words were sufficient. It is so much easier to type these words than to actually do something. The next stage won't happen unless we do something, together, that unites people, to change conditions offline.
To Tears From Lebanon
Here is another video of Galloway which I like better:
http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?p=george+Galloway&toggle=1&ei=UTF-8&qp_p=george+galloway&b=11&oid=98272a1add147692&rurl=www.ifilm.com&qp_p=george+galloway
Also here is another jewel from the mouth of Mr. Galloway:
“I’m no friend of the Syrian regime, but Syrian troops in Lebanon maintain stability and protect the country from Israel. Lebanon is an Arab country with a border with the Zionist state and that is a very dangerous place.”
–George Galloway, defending Syria’s occupation of Lebanon less than five months before it ended (The Lebanon Daily Star, 12/7/04)
It seems to me like Mr. Galloway completely forgot about the mass graves found outside the Beirut headquarters of Syrian intelligence. I remember that day clearly and how the first word that came to my mind was not 'stability'
Also in the past 6 years the border was very quite. No Israeli troops, no Syrian troops... but unfortunately as we see now, Hezbollah troops.
The fact is that Hezbollah is sacrificing Lebanon for Syria's ambitions and George Galloway could not care less. Is this the man you support? cause if so we are in deep @#$%...
Also I do not need some pumpous English man that ate from Saddam's hands while Shi'a were being shot in the streets to come and express my thoughts. I can do that very well on my own and I am sure that you can too.
To Tears for Lebanon
Yes, I suppose you are right. How would we communicate without 'Gorgious George'? ;)
Speaking of Gorgious George, I invite everybody to watch me and Tears for Lebanon's videos of George and vote on the better wardrobe
I think I will also turn in now in hope of waking up to better news...
p.s.
I agree with you Tears for Lebanon, this is a much more fun form of conversation. We may not always agree but it does not mean we cannot have a few laughs... I will also look forward to our next conversation
Salam, Shalom, Peace
Tears,
That Galloway piece is an abortion of an interview. He starts with Shebaa Farms (which the UN determined was Lebanese, after the Lebanese government and Israel both agreed to have the UN's ruling be binding). He then compares the US selling arms to Israel (a state) to Iran providing arms to Hezbollah (a non-state militia loathed by more than half of Lebanon and using it's arsenal to de facto usurp the decision making authority of an elected government), repeats the canard about 1000s of Lebanese prisoners in Israeli jails (though Hezbollah has repeatedly announced that its goal is one particular prisoner, the murderer of a four year old girl prior to any Israeli invasion of Lebanon) and - after going on and on about how Hezbollah is a Lebanese resistance movement - starts spouting off about Hezbollah fighting for the Palestinians.
In short, to anyone who doesn't already believe every word he's saying, it's a fairly transparent propaganda piece from an extremist loon. Hell, his position is that the original Hezbollah attack was justified - from what I've seen on various blogs and reports, not even most Lebanese go that far.
Chris,
"Indeed it is surprising how Hezb. is standing its ground against Israel. That alone gives you an idea as to what extent they were preparing for this war or for another. Otherwise, why all this training and weapons for?..
Although it is very stupid for Israel to target lebanese infrastructure and some civilian areas. We all think that they were like a loose canon hiting everywhere like savages.
Now he hear they want to step up their operations. Well, if they want to go at it let them fight it out in the jnoub soldier to soldier.
harsh words i know, but what else can i say when survival(as Israel says) meet fanatism (Hezb. trade mark). Thats the cocktail loli..a deadly one."
I agree completely (and have said so on my blog, weeks ago [/shameless plug]). Now reports are coming out that Israeli generals are questioning the strategy of relying on air strikes and not going in harder on the ground (which would have cost more Israeli lives but less civillian lives, and would likely have been more effective in preventing losses).
My theory - Israel very much wanted to avoid the psychological and PR problems of a massive ground invasion of Lebanon, so it took to the skies. In doing so, it created another massive PR problem and still ended up needing to go in on the ground. A particularly tragic irony, if the success of Hezbollah last time around in implanting in the Israeli psyche a deep desire not to reoccupy Lebanon was a key motivating factor in the possibly unecessary destruction of Lebanon by air this time around.
To all of you actually in the middle of this - you're in my prayers, Israeli and lebanese both. Stay safe (I know, for me, you'll try ;)
israeli news flash on tv this morning
repeated mentions of HA agreeing to lebanon's propoosal.. but why isnt the government saying what it thinks? why is it just saying that its "interesting"? where is the "peace now" movement who helped drive us to peace with egypt? is everyone blinded by the explosions? we have an opportunity here.. it cant be wasted!!
my government lost 15 of kids last night.. i dont care that 18 is the age of majority.. how can they serve these kids on an alter?
rockets can be replaced.. this is the science of rockets.. its not rocket science.. these kids cannot.. and the people killed in our counter attacks or pre-emptive attacks.. or whatever the heck we call them.. they're gone forever..
i have stopped following the casualties and deaths.. 1 person here 2 people there.. then you're told 10 were hit in a go.. and you know they mean killed but they dont want to shock you.. 1 here or 2 there almost becomes tolerable.. until you finish your day and somone breaks the myth you've fallen for of single digits..
i hate the fact that these deaths are too frequent to be followed.. i hate the fact that these people cant even be honoured.. so many names.. so many faces..
18 is a vital age.. an age of adventure and excitement.. all these excited people lost.. how are we letting this happen.. where are we going?
i know many people think this is the only way.. in israel and outside as well..
but this is the salt of our county and its being carelessly sprinkled on blood..
news reports are increasingly quoting israelis that are saying "there is more than one solution".. we love our kids and we love our soldiers.. and we strengthen and hug them through the nightmare that they are going through.. but there is more than one solution..
wishing peace on us without delay.. my heart goes out to everyone that is suffering because of this violence wherever you are..
lirun
telaviv
www.emspeace.blogspot.com
sherri
the focus of the pilots was not the failed israeli intelligence.. their focus was pacificism and their inability to live with the fact of having been in a war..
defectors are jailed in any country.. its not like they our outcast of society and violently dragged away to a dungeon..
forever boggled by your inability to see any moral flaw with the HA..
you discredit yourself continuously.. sounding more like something between hillside song church mixed with saatchi and saatchi as a joint campaign of propaganda for HA..
wishing peace to us all..
lirun
telaviv
www.emspeace.blogspot.com
blame is not a gesture of peace - its retrospective waste of time and energy
by the way.. the "old testament" - as you call it - is our torah.. we have not cherry picked the "christian bible"..
however.. after we finished compiling the 5 books of the torah (again what you refer to as the "old testament") we proceeded to write several other series of books..
im not religious - so if anyone is please take a balanced approach at correcting me if i am wrong - but jewish tradition includes an art of war.. we are not supposed to harm women and children.. we are not supposed to uproot fields and we are not supposed to loot people over whom we prevail at war..
however.. unlike the manner in which some other religions are practiced.. judaism is largely a self modernising and reflective path.. the concept of "if you see someone coming to kill you - dont kill them first" is an old jewish maxim..
our traditions are complex and if you were to listen to what the rabbis have to say these days about the war you will note that they split.. rabbis are not holy men.. they are merely learned.. and they too are at liberty to apply their political interpretation..
therefore for me as a secular jewish person - i look at my personal sense of morality.. in the context of my history and tradition and in the broader context of my regional issues and i form a view..
but lets hear it from you sherri
if you were us and you saw a rocket launcher on a civilian building knowing good and well that it would be used to launch a rocket at you in the next few hours.. would you bomb it? would you send a force of engineers to dismantle it with screw drivers and welders? just for them to be slaughtered and lynched? what would you do.. i dont need your answer in a comment - because any rational person would seek to remove a deadly threat..
but thank you for asking.. i hope you have listened to my answer
know that i want peace
lirun
telaviv
www.emspeace.blogspot.com
oops i meant "dont WAIT BUT RATHER kill them first"
To Akiva M
Get yuo facts straight: the UN determined that the Sheba Farms are SYRIAN, not Lebanese. Today Israeli sources reported that Barak offered to close a deal with Lebanon on them provided Assad signs it off in the UN to Lebanon. Despite all the rhetoric about them being Lebanese, Assad would not sign (probably for fear Lebanon would not give it to him later)
News Addict - sorry, that was a typo; I meant to write "NOT Lebanese" (reread the post, that should be obvious :)
Sherri:
>>>The present conflict beween Israel and Hezbollah/Lebanon is not about a war on terror. It is just another chapter in the Arab Israeli conflicts that began when Israel was formed as a country in 1948. This invasion by Israel into Lebanon is the 7th invasion of its kind.<<<
ignoring the comment about numbers, saying this goes back to 1948 is pretty much right (though it of course goes long beyond that as well). Which is exactly Israel's point - this isn't about territory, it's about a consistent desire to reverse 1948 and end its existence as a nation.
>>The first step in seeing the truth here is identifying the nature of the conflict.<<
correct. Now, tell me, Sherri, why Israel should acquiesce in its destruction, or why I should support those who would like to see it wiped off the map. Or, alternatively, stop posting this bs propaganda. One or the other, Sherri - your choice.
>>>The United Nations passed multiple resolutions identifying the boundaries of Israel and there were Arab wars that followed. Land was taken and not given back, even after the United Nations Resolutions said it had to be returned.<<<
Whoops, no. The UN resolutions said land had to be returned IN EXCHANGE FOR PEACE. Very clearly not "immediately given back, no conditions." Syria has never been ready for peace with Israel, hence Israel has no obligation under the resolutions you are citing to return the Golan Heights or the Shebaa Farms to Syria. Egypt made peace and got back the Sinai. Jordan made peace and didn't want the West Bank back.
>>>. . .
What type of organization is Hezbollah? I found some interesting articles on electroniclebanon web site about this. One thing I noticed, despite numerous articles addressing Hezbollah's function and role, nowhere is it stated there primary goal is the destruction of Israel. I don't think that can be anyone's realistic goal. I think perhaps it is just rhetoric and we in the west are focusing too much on this.<<<
Sure . . . "look, I know we've said repeatedly that we'd like to kill you all, but hey, you took that seriously? Just because we've, yeah, tried in the past? Come on - can't you tell we were just joking?"
Spare me, Sherri. If Arab loons want to rant and rave about the destruction of Israel and jews everywhere, they lose the right to complain when they get taken at their word.
>>>There is also an article on that website arguing that Hezbollah does not target civilians, that the attempts were to actually target military targets.<<<
Which should tell you exactly how trustworthy that source is. What, ~100% of their rockets have missed their targets? Was Nasrallah's open statement about raining rockets on Israeli towns, including Haifa - clearly civillian, not military targets - another one of his rhetorical flourishes? Was it pure coincidence that all of Hezbollah's "misses" have conveniently fulfilled those promises to attack civillians? Did they accidentally put ball bearings in their warheads, which just coincidentally happen to be effective only against soft targets like humans but are ineffective against soldiers in armor and other military targets? (cut to: interior, Hezbollah bunker:
Hezbollah commander: Hey, Abdullah, what's this?? (he waves to a rack of warheads) Didn't I tell you to load up the rockets?
Abdullah: But I did, sir - I used the pile that was over there. (he waves to an empty spot on the ground)
Commander: Oh no! What have you done? Those were the anti-personnel warheads packed with ball bearings. You idiot - those won't even hurt the soldiers!
Abdullah: And now if we miss and accidentally hit a city, people will think we actually want to kill civillians, when really we have no such intention . . . (fade to black))
Do you honestly believe any of that? Can anyone with two functioning brain cells to rub together believe any of that?
And if you do, how do you explain Nasrallah's apology to the family of the two Israeli Arab kids he killed in Nazareth which - roughly paraphrased - went "sorry, we only meant to kill the jews"
>>>I think Hezbollah has existed within Lebanon as a group providing a real function for the country, the resistance to Israel.
They were formed during a prior Israeli occupation and served as a resistance organization now for about 20 years. Hezbollah members are Lebanese Shiite Muslims and live in Shiite ares with their families. The population of shiites is 40% or more. I actually read somewhere Shiites were the majority. There is another Shiite secular group. I do not know what percentage of Shiites make up that group.<<<
And . . . the Israelis withdrew. Occupation was over. Good night, time to pack up and go home. But they're still fighting the war to reverse 1948, so that wasn't going to happen.
>>In Lebanon and Arab countries, Hezbollah is not viewed as a terrorist organization.<<
Hey, you know what? Some people in arab countries don't view al-Qaeda as a terrorist organization. They're wrong. It happens.
>>Remember, there are still some issues of land Israel holds that wa staken in prior wars.<<
Not according to disinterested UN cartographers whose decision both Israel and Lebanon agreed to abide by. Lebanon doesn't get to change their mind after the ruling goes against them. And they didn't. A lunatic militia not under Lebanese government control did. Congratulations - you've won yourselves a bloody war.
>>>The Palestinian conflict does not directly involve Lebanon. However, in the past six months or so (maybe longer), there has been an increasing level of violence and hostilities. And there appeared to be an attempt of Hamas and Hezbollah to work together, with Iran stepping forward to help Hamas financially. This was a new development. The Palestinians are Sunni Muslims.<<<
Correct. Because, as you pointed out, this isn't a war about territory. It's a war to reverse 1948. What do Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Iran and Hezbollah have in common? They've all openly declared that their goal is a world without Israel.
>>>Both Hezbollah and Hamas view themselves as Israeli Resistance groups. They both have long histories of fighting with Israel over land boundaries.<<<
So close to getting something right, then you had to include the word "boundaries".
>>>The Palestinians situation has become a humanitarian crisis itself. Under occupation, they live in very oppressed circumstances. Israel uses chemical weapons against children, kills children who throw rocks at soldiers, have targeted assassinations against Palestinians they view as enemies to Israel, bomb civilians homes frequently, severely curtail freedom of movement of the Palestinians within the Occupied Territories, and recently have been trying to deprive them of money and ahve been arresting and jailing government officials.<<<
and on and on and on. Israel uses chemical weapons? Odd, that nobody has ever managed to provide any evidence of that at all. Throwing rocks at soldiers? In the US, that's a riot; if a Palestinian does it, he's "protesting". Add in a few molotov cocktails and make one rock several hundred, and they are trying to kill the soldiers. Try to kill a soldier, he'll fire at you. It's a pretty simple equation, I'd think.
I love this quote, btw: "have targeted assassinations against Palestinians they view as enemies to Israel"
Tell me - how many Palestinian targets of such operations have not been terrorists? Is there a single recorded incident where anyone said "why was he targeted? He wasn't a hamas member."
Nope, not one.
Arresting and jailing government officials? Absolutely. Electing a terrorist doesn't give him immunity from prosecution as a terrorist. Funding? Yeah, why shouldn't Israel funnel money to Hamas (other than, you know, the fact that Hamas uses the money to attack Israel)? You're right, that's just silly.
>>Iran is a country of Shiite Muslims. Hezbollah is a Shiite Muslim group. The US gives Israel money and arms. They are both democracies.<<
and if you can't see the difference between arming a state and arming a militia that then uses those arms to usurp the decision making authority of the elected government of their home state . . . well, you're less intelligent than you seem (and sherri, if you bought the "Hezbollah isn't aiming at civillians" line that's saying a whole hell of a lot).
>>>I know that a United Nations Resolution said Hezbollah should be disarmed. But Lebanon was probably forced to agree to that and had no physical power or real willpower either to disarm Hezbollah. <<<
Doesn't really matter whether Lebanon agreed to it or not; that's the point of binding security council resolutions. In any event, have you bothered reading - let alone internalizing - the views of the many Lebanese who loathe Hezbollah and wish it had not remained as an armed militia? Or just thought about the idea of an american militia - say, the Aryan nation - armed with missile launchers? You think that would be a good thing? Be serious.
Sherri,
1)You were the one who called this a continuation of the 1948 war. The 1948 war was about Israel's right to exist as a state.
2) I don't "label" Hamas a terrorist group. They label themselves a terrorist group when they send Hamas members into discos and pizza parlors and busses and Passover Seders for the avowed purpose of killing as many Israeli civillians as possible.
So I will ask you very simply - in your opinion, is Hamas a terrorist organization?
Your answer will say volumes about you, and to be honest I have no interest in discussing anything with anyone who can answer that question "no", both because it's pointless and because there's nothing to be gained from attempting to understand the mental processes of someone who could give that answer.
PS, I note that you haven't bothered to respond to the comments re electronic lebanon.
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