Israel may have created a fertile ground for Hezbullah, but it is a crop carefully tended by Iran. Iran trained, Iran equipped to the tune of $250 million a year they say - that's a LOT of moolah for a relatively small force.
They have said $100M; they have said $250M. They don't know, they're making it up, it's gossip.
Hezbollah is a multi-functioned group. They're terrorists and social workers. They have their Hezbollah construction company that goes house to house and fixes doors and windows. They have their hospitals that treat people. They shell out money for Shia families that can't afford to send their children to school. How did that $100M or $250M get distributed in that multi-function group.
When the Shia come back Hezbollah will be there, rebuilding, restocking the hospitals, getting the schools up and running and re-arming.
To just say "Israel created them" is a weird statement, in fact. But I've often noticed that people on the left side of the fence talk as if ONLY the US and Israel could ever actually DO anything, as if Iran and Syria and Al Qaeda didn't make their own decisions too.
I'm not sure why. Hezbollah came into existence because of the Israeli occupation. The historical record reflects that regardless of whether you're reading a right-handed history book or a left-handed one. Whether Iran or Syria funded or continues to fund Hezbollah doesn't affect how Hezbollah came into existance. It's also true that Hezbollah makes their own decisions. Iran doesn't own Hezbollah, nor does Syria. Everyone makes their own decisions. As part of a political process we like to think if we speak out about our foreign policy we might have an impact [Fools that we are.]. We have no illusions that saying Iran is bad, very bad will have any impact on Iran.
I'm sick and tired of the US supporting tyrants because it's been convenient to do so. If you want to put me in your little box of the "liberal left" because supporting Augusto Pinocet disgusts me, then put me in the damn box if it makes you feel better. I've said that Saudi Arabia is probably the worst country in the mid-east when it comes to human rights, human traficking, public beheading...and a whole bunch of other things including training their little brats to kill infidels [which includes you and me]. They are a tier 3 country and entitled to be sanctioned under US law. But Bush gave them an exemption. It pisses me off, so put me in your little "liberal left" box. The label doesn't bother me.
But if they had executed a blitzkrieg succesfully, Nasrallah would be dead along with most of his officers, and most of the military fortifications and rockets would definitely be destroyed. They could have done that.
Blitzkrieg is conventional war. This is asymetric war. The IDF couldn't even shut down the Hezbollah radio station. Hezbollah has a trained full time army of 3-5,000 and another estimated 50,000 reserves [probably a puffed up number]. How many did the IDF get? Not even a dent. Artillery barages going day and night and they couldn't dent Hezbollah. In an asymmetric war, you have to fight and win on their terms. Hand to hand combat in houses, villages, alleys, hills and tunnels. A battlefield well known to Hezbollah and in their favor. The multiplier factor of Israeli military superiority is lost.
Are the Israelis willing to accept a war on Hezbollah's terms with the commensurate casualites? Not today.
jttmab |
