Guardian: Hizbullah: We are defending our sovereignty

[muriel_volestrangler]

An oped piece in The Guardian by a senior Hizbullah member; a companion piece to one by an Isralei cabinet member. Posted for information, with no comment by me.

For nearly two weeks Israel has been waging a war of terror and aggression against Lebanon. Its stated justification is the capture by the Islamic Resistance (Hizbullah) of two Israeli soldiers with the aim of exchanging them for Lebanese prisoners. The war has already resulted in the killing of around 400 and wounding of more than 1,000 Lebanese. Most are civilians (a third children), crushed in their homes or ripped to pieces in their cars by Israeli bombs and missiles.

In reality, the Israeli escalation is less about the two soldiers and more about its determination to disarm the Lebanese resistance. According to the US, Israel and some other western states, this would implement UN security council resolution 1559, which led to the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon last year.

Most Lebanese, however, do not regard the resistance forces of Hizbullah as militias, as referred to in the UN resolution, let alone any kind of terrorist organisation. Our resistance accomplished a major national mission by forcing Israeli troops to withdraw from most Lebanese territory in 2000 after 22 years of occupation. Since then there has been intense national debate about how Lebanon can defend itself in future once the resistance has achieved the liberation of the remaining occupied Lebanese land (the Shaba'a farms area) and the release of Lebanese detainees.

The Lebanese people's support for the resistance was demonstrated by the fact that Hizbullah and its allies won more seats in the 2005 elections, following the Syrian withdrawal, than when Syrian troops were still in the country. That is why Israel is now targeting civilians.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1827966,00.html

[Name removed]

1. Deleted message

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[louis-t]

2. 10 posts, I question your loyalty, but I agree

Hizbullah is not a "sovereign" anything except a militia. I doubt they are all Lebanese.

[Igel]

3. It is interesting that

the Guardian seems to consider a Knesset member and a high-ranking Hezbollah official as cognate.

Perhaps Lebanon needs to be split up.

However, much of the Hezbollite's verbiage is interesting. A stable, regional system that provides freedom and democracy. Uh-huh.

[umtalal]

4. better than being under Usraeli occupation!!!! nt