MSNBC: Israel has crossed into Lebanon with ground forces

[jsamuel]

watching MSNBC, what used to be known as "Live and Direct"

"small number of troops" - "targeting Hezbollah targets near border"

[Erika]

1. Another illegal occupation

paid for by U.S. taxpayers.

[mom cat]

14. This is a crime against humanity.

[Voltaire99]

17. When will the Democratic Party oppose this aggression?

Never? Later than never?

[Nutmegger]

2. This is sick. [nt]

[Nutmegger]

3. Kick

because more people need to read this.

[Selatius]

4. If Israel goes full-bore into South Lebanon, it's going to be 1982 again.

It'll get bloody and violent quickly.

[MADem]

5. Well, they were there for almost twenty years, and they do NOT want

to reoccupy. I feel sorry for them.

The worthless UNIFIL guys must have hurried away or something. You have to ask yourself, where were they when Hizb'Allah was setting up their rocket launchers?

[Selatius]

12. It appears their goal was to merely monitor Israeli withdrawal from Lebano

It wasn't established with the explicit goal of disarming any particular group within Lebanon, especially Hezbollah. That was supposed to be up to the Lebanese government, from what I understand, but the Lebanese government has been and continues to be very fragile. They likely don't have the force necessary to quickly put down Hezbollah without potentially provoking a second Lebanese civil war, and they likely never did post-Taif Agreement. Outside help was needed in disarming Hezbollah, but none was given. Nobody helped Lebanon after the Cedar Revolution even though many hailed it as a step forward.

Many words of support and praise to Lebanon, little in the form of action.

[MADem]

15. Certainly, I understand that their role was as observers...but damn

You see a bunch of bastards setting up rocket launchers all over the southern border, and well, ya might want to pipe up. They didn't have the forces or equipment to do anything but sound the alarm.

Unless of course, they've been hanging out smoking the hubble bubble in a local cafe and couldn't be bothered...one of those "great duty" jobs so long as nothing is actually going on, that becomes hell on earth otherwise (peacekeeping in the Sinai is like that!).

I agree that the Lebanese government got a shitload of "here's how you SHOULD do it" and damn little help in actually doing it. There was a problem with political will there; the government was afraid of hooking up with the wrong players (not that any were leaping up to help) so they sat back and hoped for the best. They should have been a bit more proactive, but hey, live and learn, I guess.

Whatever bunch ends up back in the old border buffer zone, here's hoping they have their wits about them and the force structure and authority to crack down on this sort of horseshit. And that they plan on staying there for the very long haul.

[JackNewtown]

6. Good, as long as they focus on Hezbollah nt

[Quixote1818]

11. I agree 100%

Everyone on here is worried about civilian casualties. This will lower the number dramatically and they can pinpoint the direct threats.

[JackNewtown]

13. Good point nt

[Dancing_Dave]

7. The 1982 catastrophe all over again!

Never foreget HEZBOLLAH IS A RESISTANCE ORGANIZATION WHICH FORMED WHEN ISRAEL WAS OCCUPPYING LEBANON IN THE 1980's!

They have every bit as much moral right to exist as the French Resistance against the Nazi Occupation in World War II!

Don't just stupidly echo the false propaganda of our current Bush Regime! You only make yourself sound like another insane Nazi when you do!

[Spider Jerusalem]

8. Except that Israel was no longer occupying Lebanon (as of 2000).

and I don't seem to recall the French Resistance firing mortars from Strasbourg into Germany, or conducting raids across the border, AFTER THE WAR ENDED.

Hezbollah is no resistance group; they are a criminal organisation of terrorist fanatics, who ought to be put down--and it seems their own government lacks the will or ability to do so.

[Dancing_Dave]

9. Actually, Israel continues to occupy some of Lebanon

Just a small agricultural area, but it is important to Lebanon, which has to struggle to feed itself at times like this.

Also, Israel, never released many of the prisoners of war it captured while occupying Lebanon. The recent Hezbollah capture of a few Israeli soldiers was aimed at negotiating a prisoner trade to get some of those Lebanese back.

The Israeli war against Lebanon never really ended, it simmered down for a while when Israeli citizens no longer wanted to bear the costs of continued occupation of resisting Lebanese territory...but it was never properly concluded, the Lebanese POWs were never returned, and Israel held onto enough of Lebanon to keep a low level conflict going all along. And the Israeli government is who recently decided to re-escelate the conflict...probably because they were trying to deflect public attention from their own economic failings at home. Quite a few Israeli citizens have recently moved to New York, despite all the billions of dollars of U.S. military support, Israel has become a failing state. They've got enough nukes to destroy human life in the Middle East, but young people there increasingly feel it is a land that cannot offer them a future.

[Sensitivity]

10. What's new? Israel occupies parts of Lebanon, Syria and Most West Bank

in open rejection of international law.

The whole framing of Israels actions by western media is typically false.

[High Plains]

16. And Israeli invaders are already dying. At least two so far.

Tough luck.