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Letter from Beirut: Return to the Dark Ages

Renee Codsi Beirut 14 July 2006


July 14th, Evening update — Well the entire Daahiye is debilitated…they have been bombing all day long…the Israeli birds and sea vultures are no longer limited to nocturnal activity. They completely obliterated the roads even more than before south and east…now they are beginning with the north… The airport building itself was also hit whereas before it was limited to the runways… they fixed the take off runway earlier on Thursday and 5 planes took off loaded with passengers before the Israeli planes hit it again and obliterated the airport building itself. 

What they want is the head of the resistance movement

Talal Salman 14 July 2006


It’s war again. As in the past, it’s an Israeli war in terms of the men and material; a joint Israeli-American war in terms of its declared and implied political aims. We must prepare for a long, bitter, and costly confrontation because the first aim of the war is to change the rules of the game radically in Lebanon, for starters, then in its neighbor Palestine, then in the rogue state Syria and rebellious Iran. Nothing but an excuse is the claim that this is a response to the successful capture by Hizballah fighters of two Israeli soldiers (with the aim of securing the release of Lebanese prisoners who have languished in Israeli jails for decades). 

UN officials urge end to 'disproportionate' attacks, release of seized soldiers

14 July 2006


United Nations humanitarian officials today urged Israel, the Palestinians and Lebanese Hizbollah militants to refrain from disproportionate responses in the current renewed fighting, avoid attacking civilians, end rocket attacks and release immediately all kidnapped people. “We fear a downward spiral to a totally uncontrollable situation,” UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland told reporters in Geneva, where he attended an international meeting on the social, economic, humanitarian needs of civilians in Gaza, describing that area as “a social crisis is becoming a humanitarian crisis.” 

Security Council calls on all sides in Middle East to cooperate with UN team

14 July 2006


Following a Security Council meeting today to discuss the escalating crisis in the Middle East, its President called on all “concerned sides and parties” to fully cooperate with a high-level United Nations team – which includes Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s Special Political Adviser – that has been sent to the region. “The Security Council welcomes the Secretary-General’s decision to dispatch to the Middle East a senior-level team,” the 15-member body said in a statement to the press read out by its President for July, Ambassador Jean-Marc de la Sablière of France. “The Security Council calls on all concerned states and parties to extend their full cooperation to the team.” 

War of destruction in Lebanon: Friday afternoon

14 July 2006


BEIRUT: Israel destroyed the home and office of Hezbollah’s leader Friday and tightened its seal on Lebanon, blasting its air and road links to the outside world to punish the guerrilla group-and with it, the country-for the capture of two Israeli soldiers. Hezbollah’s Sheik Hassan Nasrallah and his family were safe after missiles demolished the two buildings in Beirut’s crowded southern neighborhoods, Hezbollah said. But the strike underlined Israel’s determination to take the fight direct to Hezbollah’s leadership as Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert vowed the massive campaign would continue until the guerrillas were neutralized. 

A reality check: The three real issues between Israel and Lebanon

14 July 2006


There are real issues between Lebanon and Israel that should have been settled with the help of the United States long ago. Israel failed to keep her promise to make available maps of the 140,000 mines she left behind in Lebanon. Three small sectors of land overlooking the Litani River were retained by Israel and were the cause of complaints from the government of Prime Minister Fuad Siniora, not just Hezbollah. The three Lebanese prisoners that were moved by Israel, contrary to the Geneva Convention prohibition against an occupying power transporting prisoners into its own territory, should have been returned long ago. 

Eyewitness emails: Hizbullah hits Israeli warship

Leena Odeh Beirut 14 July 2006


When I last sent you an email, Hizbullah just hit an Israeli ship, right next to us; we can see it from the dorm. We saw it burn and sink from here on TV and we can see the other boats surround us more. Everybody was panicking and running and I just shut my computer and gathered my things as we could see the ship sinking. My dorm is right next to the sea. Although the American University of Beirut (AUB) is pretty safe, right now the fighting is in Beirut, not the south anymore. So now israel is going to hit residential areas in Beirut. 

What Does Israel Want?

Ilan Pappe 14 July 2006


I have been teaching in the Israeli universities for 25 years. Several of my students were high ranking officers in the army. I could see their growing frustration since the outbreak of the first Intifada in 1987. They detested this kind of confrontation, called euphemistically by the gurus of the American discipline of International Relations: ‘low intensity conflict’. It was too low to their taste. Even when the army used tanks and F-16s, it was a far cry from the war games the officers played in the Israeli Matkal – headquarters – and for which they bought, with American tax payer money – the most sophisticated and updated weaponry existing in the market. 

When will Israel learn? (2/2)

Rifat Odeh Kassis Palestine 14 July 2006


In this crazy game, one is not sure whether it is better or worse that the main two political players behind this invasion are insecure amateurs. Neither Israeli Prime Minister Olmert nor his Defense Minister Peretz have any experience in warfare, which is very seldom for Israel, used to being ruled by experienced military generals who have proved themselves in the handful of wars that Israel has fought. Beside their obvious inadequate military background, both leaders are politically confused to boot. Their political discourse is weak and contradictory and they face severe criticism from their opponents, friends and allies alike for their poor performance in handling the current crisis. 

The report from Dahiyeh: The shelling is getting worse

Maymanah Farhat New York City 14 July 2006


The shelling in Lebanon has gotten worse since Israel began attacking a couple of days ago. The roads, bridges and overpasses of the south have been bombed to the point where the entire area is debilitated. Villages are cut off from each other, and from main cities. The electrical plant in the south was bombed early on so hundreds of thousands of people have been without electricity during the hottest time of the year. The smallest of bridges (like the one that links our village, Arab Salim, and the main road) have been bombed.