Beilin demands gov't Declare that Israel is at war in Lebanon

[liberalpragmatist]

I guess Israel has it's own type of "not-a-real-war"-war.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/742713.html

By Yuval Yoaz, Haaretz Correspondent

Supreme Court Justice David Cheshin on Tuesday ordered Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to respond by Wednesday to a petition by MK Yossi Beilin (Meretz), which demands that the government formally declare that Israel is at war in Lebanon, as required by the Basic Law on Government. Under this law, should Israel find itself at war, the prime minister must inform the Knesset plenum and the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee as soon as possible.

The petition, filed Tuesday, argues that Israel has effectively been at war since July 12.

"The very act of declaring war has many implications, both practical and constitutional," the petition said. "For instance, certain articles of the Property Tax and Compensation Fund Law go into effect. A declaration of war also enables to file claims for war damages."

[uppityperson]

1. good. Nice to see they have these laws too.

now, to get them followed?

[Jacobin]

2. Let's see if they follow their constitution

on war powers any better than we do

[mogster]

3. This development is interesting

Thanks for posting.

Beilin is one of the key figures in the previous peace work in Israel, and has worked dilligently for cooperation and talks with the Palestinians.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yossi_Beilin
http://www.beilin.org.il/Default_en.asp

[whistle]

4. Has any nation since the end of WW II actually declared war

...against another nation they have invaded? Korea was an undeclared war. Vietnam was an undeclared war. I don't think any of the four wars Israel fought against Arab nations were ever formally declared. I may be incorrect on these points, but technically an invading force does not declare war. They just do it.

<snip>
Why Congress Has Not Declared War Since World War II
February 16, 2006: The current war on terror often raises the issue of why war has not officially been declared against the enemy. Most people don't realize that the United States has not declared war since World War II (when a number of countries, not just Japan and Germany, were so named.) And there's a reason for that, one that is rarely discussed.
<more>
http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htwin/articles/20060216.aspx

[cali]

5. Declarations of War: As quaint

as the Geneva Conventions.

[Recursion]

6. There is a Constitutional precedent for the war on terra

At least in the US. Oddly enough, it gives Congress (not the President) authority to punish pirates and other criminals of the high seas. Pirates seem like the closest thing from back then to terrorist organizations today: stateless, hard to find, and asymmetric in their warfare techniques.

It seems like our framers intended Congress to take charge of something like this (though of course the President as Commander in Chief would have a lot to say about how he implemented Congress's military directives), where the nature of the enemy doesn't make declaring war feasible.

[Igel]

7. If they declare they're at war in Lebanon--not "with

Lebanon", mind you, since they're not at war with the government there--shouldn't they also declare they're at war in Gaza? Of course, not "with" anybody.

Makes for a very strange declaration: We, a state, are at war in a location, but really don't have anybody to declare war with because of the usual understanding of war.

It does give one of those very important political-posturing opportunities.

[whistle]

8. Sounds like an IRS type loophole...total violation of international law