Jounieh 19 July 2006
Damage caused by Israeli missile attack on Beirut’s port that killed two people, July 17 2006. (/Peter Speetjens)
Wondering who the terrorist is… by Tanya Nasr
I am a 20 year old film student from Lebanon. I am a Christian Lebanese living in Jounieh, a city in central Lebanon. We have been under Israeli attack since last Wednesday, 12 July, 2006, following the capture of two Israeli soldiers for the purpose of exchanging them for 6 Lebanese prisoners who have been in Israeli prisons for 25 years.
Where do I start? Do I talk about the monstrosity of Israel? Or even worse, of the American support of the ugly war and their refusal of any discussion of a ceasefire?
Well, why should “Condi” care? It’s not her children who are being massacred while trying to flee away from the chaotic Israeli fire! Anyhow, Bush considers that Syria should press Hizbullah to “stop this shit” (as a mic picked up for Bush during a lunch at the G8 summit). Yes Mr. President, a whole nation being brought to the ground over its peoples’ heads is “shit”, hitting the Red Cross cars who are trying to save what is left of the people under the rubble is “shit”. Hitting the Civil Defense outpost and tearing more than 20 civilians into pieces and injuring more than 50 is “shit”.
They say “we” are the terrorists. Is terrorism defending one’s land and trying to get back one’s own prisoners? Regardless of Hizbullah’s strategies, beliefs and aims, whether we agree with them or not, by international law, a resistance group has a right to capture people for the purpose of exchanging prisoners with the enemy. I ask a simple question: whether Hizbullah is eligible or not, whether they are right or not, is the capture of two prisoners a sufficient excuse to start a full-fledged war against another country and kill hundreds of civilians and destroy all its infrastructure?
The American government says it is Israel’s right to defend itself. Yes. But does Israel defend itself by massacring whole families by hitting their homes and burying them under the rubble of their houses? Does it defend itself by bombarding vehicles that are carrying tens of refugees, most of whom are children, who were trying to run away? These people were running away from the horrible attacks after Israel itself asked them to evacuate saying it wanted to hit their town…they hit these towns, and blew their people into pieces. Could this get any more monstrous? And they say we are terrorists!
Writing about the horrendous things that Israel is doing with the blessing of the United States is a neverending task Maybe things were meant to happen this way, but what hurts most is being under this severe attack, and seeing my people and my beloved country falling into pieces while the international media portrays Israel as the victim and us as the murderers. Furthermore, Israel’s minister of foreign affairs states that they have killed more than 300 terrorists in Lebanon. Are newborns, children, mothers and the elderly…terrorists??
Tanya Nasr is living in Jounieh, Lebanon.
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