Will He Get It Right This Time?

Israel has announced that they'll resume fighting if Hezbollah isn't forced to disarm. My biggest question isn't whether Olmert will follow through on this threat but whether Olmert will get it right this time.
The IDF will have to resume operations in Lebanon if the expanded United Nations force being assembled does not fulfill its obligation to dismantle Hizbullah, an official in the Prime Minister's Office warned on Tuesday. Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora and Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah reportedly reached a deal allowing Hizbullah to keep its weapons but refrain from exhibiting them in public. Israeli officials called the arrangement a violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which passed over the weekend and was approved on Sunday by the cabinet.

"The resolution is clear that Hizbullah needs to be removed from the border area, embargoed and dismantled," the official said. "If the resolution is not implemented, we will have to take action to prevent the rearming of Hizbullah. I don't think backtracking will serve any useful purpose. There has to be pressure on Hizbullah to disarm or there will have to be another round."
If Hezbollah tries to re-arm, which I think is likely, then it's a Godsend to the Israelis, who screwed up their first opportunity to cripple Hezbollah. That's if they don't go at it half-heartedly like they did the first time. Based on what I've seen, I have no confidence in the current top-echelon military brass right now.

After not getting rewarded for sticking its neck out for Israel, I'd bet that the U.S. government has placed some very animated calls to Israel to let them know what's expected of them this time.
Israeli officials said the IDF would not complete its withdrawal from southern Lebanon until the international force was deployed, even if it took months, to prevent a vacuum in Lebanon that could endanger Israeli civilians. An official in the Prime Minister's Office accused Annan of having an anti-Israel agenda. "He has been one-sided," the official said. "He tried to be even-handed in a situation that was clearly asymmetrical. When one side committed crimes against humanity and engaged in genocide and the other side defended itself, he cannot treat us in the same manner."
Olmert should be thankful that Hezbollah is giving him a chance at redemption. He ought also to be thankful for Annan being a spineless moral relativist. Had Annan had a spine and a will to call evil evil, then he would've supported a meatier UNSCR, if such a thing exists.
Annan rejected charges of bias, saying, "I have been very hard on Hizbullah and condemned Hizbullah for what it has done. I have condemned Israel for what I consider excessive use of force but it doesn't mean I am taking one side."
The fact that Annan thinks that Israel used too much force after having their sovereignty attacked tells you everything you need to know. This isn't a mediation between equally guilty parties. It's a fight between a country trying to defend itself and a terrorist group doing what it does best: targeting and killing innocent civilians. By nature, any response, short of full nuclear attack, that Israel chose would be appropriate.

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Cross-posted at California Conservative

Posted Wednesday, August 16, 2006 1:06 AM

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