Israel Lebanon: what our media won't tell us.

[tedzbear]

July 21, 2006

A perilous excursion into the distant past, starting seven whole weeks ago

Hezbollah, Hamas and Israel: Everything You Need To Know

By ALEXANDER COCKBURN

As the tv networks give unlimited airtime to Israel’s apologists, the message rolls out that no nation, least of all Israel, can permit bombardment or armed incursion across its borders without retaliation.

The guiding rule in this tsunami of drivel is that the viewers should be denied the slightest access to any historical context, or indeed to anything that happened prior to June 28, which was when the capture of an Israeli soldier and the killing of two others by Hamas hit the headlines, followed soon thereafter by an attack by a unit of Hezbollah’s fighters.

Memory is supposed to stop in its tracks at June 28, 2006.

Let’s go on a brief excursion into pre-history. I’m talking about June 20, 2006, when Israeli aircraft fired at least one missile at a car in an attempted extrajudicial assassination attempt on a road between Jabalya and Gaza City. The missile missed the car. Instead it killed three Palestinian children and wounded 15.

Back we go again to June 13, 2006. Israeli aircraft fired missiles at a van in another attempted extrajudicial assassination. The successive barrages killed nine innocent Palestinians.

Now we’re really in the dark ages, reaching far, far back to June 9, 2006, when Israel shelled a beach in Beit Lahiya killing 8 civilians and injuring 32.

That’s just a brief trip down Memory Lane, and we trip over the bodies of twenty dead and forty-seven wounded, all of them Palestinians, most of them women and children.

for rest of article go to:

http://www.counterpunch.org

[still_one]

1. counterpunch, no bias or agenda there, NOT

[rman]

8. Nothing wrong with having an agenda,

and nothing wrong with being biased - as long as both are known and balanced by other media. It's not a secret that there plenty of bias towards the other end - even though those media (the MSM) don't admit to having an agenda.

[sandnsea]

2. 176 rockets fired from Gaza

What the left won't admit. I cannot for the life of me figure out why.

June 21 2006

"..the United Nations had recorded 176 rockets fired by Palestinian militants from Gaza towards Israeli territory, he continued. Some of those had hit Israeli towns and cities, injuring five civilians and damaging private property and Government buildings, including a school. For the first time in well over a year, Hamas had claimed responsibility for rockets launched at Israel."

http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/KHII-6QZ2VL?OpenDocument

[MariaS]

3. What does that have to do

with the killing of Lebanese citizens and the destruction of their infrastructure?

[sandnsea]

5. Ask the OP

He's the one that brought up the Gaza bombings in his post.

[Name removed]

4. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

6. Looks like more tit-for-tat senseless violence to me

of the kind most on DU deplore and causing casualties on both sides that most DUers lament:

From the article to which you provide a link:

During the month-long reporting period, Israel had stepped up its policy of targeted killings of militants and shelling of areas in Gaza, and its ground troops had entered the Gaza Strip for the first time since Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza, killing five Palestinians. He added that, on 9 June, an explosion on a beach in Gaza, at the time of an Israeli operation involving the firing of sea- and land-based weapons in the immediate area, had killed seven civilians, all members of the same family. The Palestinian Authority held Israel responsible for the killings, but an investigation by the Israeli Defence Force had subsequently concluded that Israeli military fire had not been responsible. A prominent human rights organization, Human Rights Watch, had disputed that finding, however, and the Israeli investigation into the cause of the explosion was continuing.

Underscoring the need for Israel to cease targeted killings, Mr. Gambari said that the Secretary-General believed that Israeli actions should be proportionate and in accordance with international humanitarian law.

Also during the reporting period, the United Nations had recorded 176 rockets fired by Palestinian militants from Gaza towards Israeli territory, he continued. Some of those had hit Israeli towns and cities, injuring five civilians and damaging private property and Government buildings, including a school. For the first time in well over a year, Hamas had claimed responsibility for rockets launched at Israel. Hamas appeared not to have continued those operations in recent days, and there had been statements indicating preparedness to resume the ceasefire. However, other militants continued to fire rockets at Israel on a daily basis.

[Name removed]

9. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[lonestarnot]

7. Better just go back to Abraham and Sarah and Hagar.

[slaveplanet]

10. Cockburn left out this juicy tidbit

from june 15th...



Middle East

Times Online June 15, 2006

Lebanon exposes deadly Israeli spy ring
From Nicholas Blanford of The Times in Beirut

Lebanese authorities have broken up an apparent Israeli spy ring whose members have claimed responsibility for a string of killings of leading Hezbollah and Palestinian militants since 1999.

The spies’ confessions, reported extensively in the Lebanese media, provide a rare glimpse into the clandestine battle between the Israeli Mossad intelligence agency and the Hezbollah organisation and its militant Palestinian allies.

In a bizarre twist, Hussein Khattab, a Palestinian member of the spy ring, who is still at large, is the brother of Sheikh Jamal Khattab, an Islamic cleric who has allegedly recruited Arab fighters for al-Qaeda in Iraq.

The Israeli network was discovered after the killing last month of two Islamic Jihad officials, the brothers Nidal and Mahmoud Majzoub, in a car bomb blast in Sidon, Lebanon. Lebanese intelligence officers last week arrested Mahmoud Rafeh, 59, a retired policeman from the Lebanese town of Hasbaya, his wife and two children, and discovered bomb-making materials, code machines and other espionage equipment in his home.

more... http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,251-2227831,00.html

Rafeh confessed around the 30th of May, and Hezbollah stepped up the rocket fire two days later, pretty silly of them, uncovering a Mossad assassination cell that uses Druze & Palestinian proxies with Al Queda ties is a silly reason to shoot rockets and all.

[lonestarnot]

11. Interesting.

[MADem]

12. Yeah, but tell the rest of the story--a possible FALSE FLAG plant???

Some of the group’s Lebanese opponents suspect that the discovery of the Israeli network is a Hezbollah fabrication.

Referring to the murder last year of the former Prime Minister of Lebanon, Walid Jumblatt, leader of Lebanon’s Druze and an outspoken critic of Hezbollah, told The Times: "We are expected to believe that this big spy ring was uncovered two weeks after the killing of the Majzoub brothers, yet Rafik Hariri died in February 2005 and we still don’t know who killed him."

The United Nations Security Council is poised to grant a year-long extension to a UN commission investigating Mr Hariri’s murder, and to expand its inquiry into 14 other recent killings and bombings, which many Lebanese blame on neighbouring Syria.

So, the Lebanese Inspector Clouseau's got lucky, and though they can't find the Syrian proxies Iranian agents unknown perpetrators who murdered their government's leader last year, they, with the greatest of ease, stumbled upon a guy who would puke his guts out admitting so swiftly that he worked for Mossad?

Sure, right-o!!!

[slaveplanet]

17. notice how the Times

alludes to some shadowy UNNAMED supposed Lebanese opponents, who have no proof of their claims but rather SUSPECT the Hezbollah is just making it all up?


You can call that proof if you wish...I have another term for it when the MSM
inserts crap like that.


meanwhile the DRUZE proxy didn't just spill his guts all of a sudden.

He also produced evidence, PHYSICAL evidence, including evedince dealing with Mossad code, that they showed on Al Minar TV, which I'm sure the Israelis are none too happy about, as it will mean more work...or they could just bomb the TV stations and invade.


on another note-

What about the briefcase bombs he transported for the Mossad?
couldn't briefcase bombs be used for false flag?

Rafeh has confessed to transporting bombs across Lebanon since the Spring of 2005. It is unclear so far what has happened to (or what was done with) these bombs:

Security sources quoted by As-Safir newspaper Thursday said Rafeh confessed to transporting explosives across Lebanon in briefcases since early 2005, but were unable to determine the end result of the explosives as Rafeh was allegedly tied to more than one Israeli network.
(Murr gives army full credit for cracking terror network, The Daily Star, June 16, 2006)

Al-Manar provides a more detailed account:

Investigations with Lebanese Mossad agent, Mahmoud Rafea continued, and revealed that Rafea had since the Spring of 2005, delivered bombs in black suitcases, to several locations in Beirut, its eastern suburbs, Mount Lebanon and the South. Meanwhile, security forces are still after Palestinian Mossad agent, Hussein Khattab, who is now suspected of leading a Mossad network of his own.
...
Rafea admitted he had delivered, since the Spring of 2005, bombs in black suitcases to different locations, in eastern Beirut, Mount Lebanon, South Lebanon. Security Forces however did not yet determine how these bombs were used.
...
Apparently the operations of Rafea and his network intersected with the operations of other Israeli Mossad networks. Security Forces are focusing on this new information, while seeking to capture Rafea's partners, on top of which is Palestinian Mossad agent, Hussein Khattab.

According to reports, Khattab might be leading a Mossad network of his own, that carried out a series of assassinations and bombings, other than those committed by Rafea's network.

According to Assafir daily, the Israelis might have unclosed Rafea and Khattab's networks to each other, to carry out the assassination of Jihad Ahmad Jibril, of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command in 2002. Previous Israeli assassination attempts failed to harm Jibril, and therefore efforts of more than one network had to be combined to kill the man.

(Lebanese authorities still searching for the rest of Mossad network, Al-Manar, June 15, 2006)

[MADem]

18. Well, Al Manar makes Faux look fair--that's Hizb'Allah's station

All their news favors Hiz'b'Allah, the Shi'a politicians, and of course, their heroes, the Ayatullahs and political leadership in Iran.

I mean, really, what do you expect to get from them?? Oh, this was all bullshit, you see...we made it up to raise some hell, don't you know! Of course not.

Who knows the truth of that business, but it isn't key to this conflict anyway. It's just noise; a drum they beat to try to get people to talk about something other than the fact that THEY provoked what is happening now in Lebanon.

Mossad has operatives all over the place, you used to not be able to go down Koroush Kabir Street in Teheran without bumping into them, Russkies, and a host of other nationals, all pretending to be something else. It was like the UN of people who said they were in country for one reason, but were really there for another. And they weren't fooling one another, either.


And odds are good, this guy was not a spy, he was at best, an INFORMANT.

Every nation has spies, and that isn't a good enough reason to invade. Ya just change the code.
Getting rocketed incessantly after having yet another bunch of servicemembers murdered and kidnapped, though, is a reason to invade.

Oh, and on edit: they NAMED the guy. Go read the article upthread again--it wasn't shadowy Lebanese opponents, it was a Druze politician named Walid Jumblatt. He's quite well known in Lebanon.

[slaveplanet]

19. yes

I should have read it from the link, your underline made me miss the comma, when it was really there to emphasize the key passage.

I saw this and didn't realise they were referring to Hariri
the murder last year of the former Prime Minister of Lebanon, Walid Jumblatt

The mossad proxy is also a Druze, so I could see why Jumblatt would want to sow the seeds of doubt.

/And odds are good, this guy was not a spy, he was at best, an INFORMANT/

but they're not talking about any old spies, they're talking about proxy assassination teams, and they have confessions and evidence. I don't believe that Al manar and the Lebanese army goes around making these kind of serious charges on a weekly basis...heck, even the pres/PM of Lebanon wanted these charges addressed in the UN, but they were apparently blocked by the US and France.

Other than that I'm well aware that Al Manar is hezbollah TV, but the title of this thread is "things that the US media won't tell you" and the thrust of it, is the recent events leading to the present hostilities, charges and countercharges are important, & I agree that there are spies all over the middle east.

[MADem]

20. Oh, sure they do. It's Tony Snow and Brit Hume in turbans.

It's not a question of sowing seeds of doubt, you need to look at Walid Jumblatt's history. He was the rare Druze who supported the Syrians when he felt they were trying to do some good, to some extent. But then, they took it too damn far, and he started griping. He allied himself with Hariri, and next thing you know, Hariri is DEAD. And Walid wants answers, and he thinks both Syria AND the Hizb'Allah have them.

And Walid is familiar with assassination. His DADDY got it, and his daddy was the founder of the Progressive Socialist Party, which Walid is running now--and there is PLENTY of suspicion that Syria had a hand in his daddy's death, too. IF I were Walid, I'd wear lotsa body armor and always travel with heavy bodyguard coverage.

And Hizb'Allah is grinning like they were good friends with the cat who ate the canary. If I had to make a choice today regarding who to believe in this equation, I'd have to go with Walid the Lefty Liberal, not Hiz'bAllah the crazy opressive fundamentalists.

[slaveplanet]

21. but you see

/If I had to make a choice today regarding who to believe in this equation,/

It's not what you believe, It's what Hezbollah believes that causes them to launch the attacks, and they clearly believe they've uncovered a ring. It all plays into the the whole situation.

Why not let them put their cards on the table and bring forth the evidence at a world platform, why is the US and France accused of blocking that from happening?

The USA and France protect Mossad
Lebanon is to be held to bring up for discussion attempted assassinations by the Israeli secret service before the UN
Jürgen Cain Külbel
http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=http://www.jungewelt.de/2006/07-14/014.php&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dmeir%2Bdagan%2Bjunge%2Bwelt%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DG

[MADem]

22. No, they may not believe that at all, but they may find it to be useful

propaganda. One must do what one must to keep the sheep motivated, especially when their heroes have caused shit to be rained down on their heads.

And any bringing the matter up before a tribunal would be the province of the GOVERNMENT OF LEBANON--not Hizb'Allah's militia.

The Hizb'Allah militia, much as they would like to be, are NOT the government of Lebanon. They aren't even the ARMY of Lebanon. They have no legal standing in the nation whatsoever. They are an illegal fighting force that should have been disbanded when Israel withdraw several years ago. They continue their operations in violation of stated agreements between the nations of Lebanon and Israel.

Their interference is killing people. They've plenty of blood on their hands.

And if Lebanon, the state, has a problem with an alledged Mossad agent, that's Lebanon's business--not the business of an Iranian-Syrian proxy army.

That translation, btw, is really unreadable.

[slaveplanet]

24. It was the Defense minister

that was discussing it. This was the Lebanese Army's gig, not Hezbollahs.

Defense Minister Elias Murr emphatically denied Hizbullah's assistance in this week's cracking of a terrorist network linked to Israel's Mossad spy agency, saying army intelligence had uncovered the Moufajaat Fajr (Dawn Surprises) cell single-handedly. Murr left no room for doubt when speaking to reporters following a meeting.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=73246

Are the Defense minister; the Lebanese State department; minister of foreign affairs Fawzi Salloukh; President Émile Lahoud; and Lebanese Army Intelligence just putting out propaganda without evidence?


The German article is a bad translation, But the statement by Feltman threatening military aid and about the
double standard is pretty damning. It wasn't Hezbollah taking this to the UN.

I've doctored it slightly to make it more understandable.

The Lebanese State Department confirmed on Tuesday that those, which spoke with Lebanese officials, in order to induce the political guidance in Beirut to dissuade(break of desiring) was US Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman . Feltman had already intervened, the affair could impair the American-Lebanese relations and the military aid for Lebanon. In the State Department "one regrets this policy of the double standards operated by western powers". In particular the USA and France

[MADem]

25. You should know, though, that the whole Murr family is quite the piece of

work. They feud like mad, they make Dynasty look like happy families. They don't work for "the Lebanon" you see, they work for themselves. They have close ties with Syria, they make DIEBOLD look like amateur pikers, and they are corrupt as all hell. They make the goddamn Corleone family look like altruists. Read this, it will make you DISCOUNT any member of the Murr family as a reliable source for ANYTHING: http://www.meib.org/articles/0306_ld.htm

And if Elias doesn't like someone, he has them KILLED: http://www.meib.org/articles/0307_l3.htm

The incident caused a national uproar, with opposition figures calling for an impartial investigation and the resignation of Elias Murr. Even Syrian President Bashar Assad was said to have been outraged by the assault ("absolutely unacceptable," he was quoted as saying by former Lebanese Prime Minister Omar Karami),<1> which handed mainstream Christian opposition a huge public relations victory. Word quickly came down from Damascus that Lebanese government officials should avoid appearing to protect Michel Murr at all costs. On July 27, Parliament Speaker Berri declared that "an attack on MPs cannot be tolerated." <2> President Lahoud vowed that the perpetrators would be brought to justice, promising that "no one is exempt."<3> As if to underscore his seriousness, Lahoud canceled his weekly meeting with Michel Murr.

As for Michel Murr, he held a press conference in Btighrin on July 28 and categorically denied that his henchmen had assaulted anyone. Despite the fact that the assault took place in broad daylight in front of numerous witnesses, Murr denied that it had even taken place. "No one blocked the way to Btighrin for any MP, journalist, or member of Qornet Shehwan," he told reporters. "Those who did not continue returned back of their own free will." To the astonishment of observers, he then declared that his brother's lunch invitation was "provocative" attempt at "defying us in our own home" and that "every politician knows this could lead to trouble" (a remark that struck many as inconsistent with his claim of innocence). He subsequently acknowledged that a few shots had been fired in the air when Lahoud's entourage took a detour through his private property after encountering a traffic jam along the main road. He said that the traffic jam, which opposition figures have said was created by Murr's supporters, was due to busses and cars parked "as usual" in the village square. Reporters later said that no such vehicles were seen parked "as usual" as they traveled the press conference, but suddenly appeared afterwards (causing a major traffic jam as reporters returned to Beirut). Murr's supporters had evidently parked them there during the press conference in order to validate his explanation.<7>

Michel Murr's defiance did not sit well with either the Syrians or his allies in the Lebanese government. Two days later, he declared that he had authorized Maronite Christian Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir to sponsor a "reconciliation" with his brother (Sfeir politely replied that it is the Greek Orthodox Church that should sponsor reconciliation among its adherents).<8>

The need for "reconciliation" between the warring brothers (as opposed to an actual investigation of the incident) quickly became the catch phrase for Syria's allies in Lebanon, who are anxious to put the issue behind them. Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, whose animated criticism of the American-sponsored Israel-Palestinian peace plan regularly makes headlines in Lebanon, declared that it is the "warring Murr family" that needs a roadmap to peace.<9>

All I am saying is take ANYTHING coming out of Elias Murr's mouth with a massive grain of salt. He is a PRO-SYRIAN (read: tool of Iran, one step removed), while Jumblatt and Hariri were PRO-INDEPENDENT LEBANON. It's likely why someone tried to KILL MURR last year--rumor has it the bombers were a Syrian Kurd (no friend of the regime) and a Palestinian--odds aren't bad that THEY could have been Mossad proxies; pity they didn't do a better job--this guy is the Dick Cheney of Lebanon; Mister Make-Money-Hand-Over-Fist: http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=14002

BEIRUT - Lebanese Defence Minister Elias Murr, who survived a massive car bombing, said from his hospital bed Wednesday that he knew an attempt on his life had been planned for months. Pro-Syrian Murr said he had "information since March on a planned attempt" on his life, adding that "this information was in the hands of the state security services."...Murr, who is also the son-in-law of pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud, has been tipped for a cabinet post in the government that prime minister-designate Fuad Siniora is struggling to form following last month's election.

...Following the February killing of former prime minister Rafiq Hariri, the anti-Syrian opposition blamed all six Lebanese security services for at least failing to prevent the attack and called for the services' directors to resign.

Oh....And HOLD ON TO YOUR WALLET if he's anywhere near you. That guy is a BUM, is all I'm saying. He's just not credible in any way, shape, or form.

Edited to add a key paragraph I failed to insert.

[oberliner]

13. Disputed Gaza Beach Claim

This claim is disputed by Israel:

"Now we’re really in the dark ages, reaching far, far back to June 9, 2006, when Israel shelled a beach in Beit Lahiya killing 8 civilians and injuring 32."

A comprehensive laboratory examination of two pieces of shrapnel retrieved from the bodies of Palestinians wounded in an explosion 12 days ago on a Gaza Strip beach, proves unequivocally that IDF artillery fire was not the cause of the blast, an internal military commission announced on Wednesday.

source: http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?ci=1150885821374&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

[Douglas Carpenter]

16. Human Rights Watch: More Evidence on Beach Killings Implicates IDF

link to full report:

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/06/15/isrlpa13570.htm

"Palestinians Agree to Independent Inquiry
(Gaza, June 15, 2006)

“The likelihood that the Ghalya family was killed by an explosive other than one of the shells fired by the IDF is remote,” said Marc Garlasco, senior military analyst at Human Rights Watch. “This new evidence highlights the urgent need for Israel to permit an independent, transparent investigation into the beach killings.”

– A digitally dated and time-stamped blood test report of a victim treated at a Palestinian hospital that admitted wounded from the June 9 killings on a Gaza beach suggests that the attack took place during the time period of an Israeli artillery attack, Human Rights Watch said today. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have denied responsibility for the killings, saying that although they fired six artillery shells onto the beach between 4:32 p.m. and 4:51 p.m., the fatal incident must have occurred after that.

Human Rights Watch first challenged this conclusion, concluding that the IDF most likely caused the killings, in a press release based on an investigation by its researchers in Gaza.

Human Rights Watch received a fax today from the office of Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas, saying that the president’s office, which is holding much of the shrapnel removed from the blast victims, would cooperate and share evidence with an independent inquiry team. "

link to full report:

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/06/15/isrlpa13570.htm

and also this related report:

Promoting Impunity The Israeli Military’s Failure to Investigate Wrongdoing link:

http://hrw.org/reports/2005/iopt0605/

[Singular73]

14. The only reasonable point of view is the UN's.

Israel has a right to defend itself.

Hezbollah is a terrorist organization.

Lebanon, the citizens, and government, had nothing to do with it, yet they are taking the punishment.

Israel does not have a blank check to do whatever it wants because 3 soldiers get kidnapped, period.

[Scoot420fla]

15. Naom Chomsky Agrees - Video

Posted before in another article, but also very relevant to this one...

http://www.truthstream.org/2006/07/iraq-afghanistan-war-on-terror-noam

Chomsky points out that Israel kidnapped two civilians from Gaza in the days BEFORE the kidnapping of their soldier.

[Emit]

23. Here's an even more detailed account of recent actions

The conflict in Gaza started on June 8 when the Israelis assassinated a Hamas military officer. Then on June 9, there was the terrible Israeli attack on a family picnicking on the Gaza beach in which eight people died. The entire Arab world watched video of a little girl running along the beach looking at the bodies of her family.

Hamas started launching rockets in response, with their home-made rockets against Israel in reaction to this violence. Never the less there were thirty more deaths on the Gaza side due to Israeli artillery. Then on the 24th of June we have Israel crossing into Gaza and taking two Palestinian prisoners, names unknown, who have never been heard from again. Finally on June 25 we have the Hamas attack and capture corporal Shalit who everyone knows from the extensive news coverage.

So there were many events, much more complex than the simple capture of prisoners, on both sides. There is also a much larger story in Lebanon. In June, in the south of Lebanon the Lebanese Army captured a Mossad operative group of Abu Rafeh who had assassinated various people in Hezbollah in 2004 and 1999. So if one is only focusing on isolated events, you might think this is all about kidnapping. But really the conflict has been building on both borders.

http://irmep.org/Defaults.asp