LEBANON: Israel bombs again as deadline nears
RAMALLAH, Palestine — The Israeli government's latest round of bombings in Lebanon has raised concern about the possibility of a major war following the expected pullout of Israel's troops from southern Lebanon in July.
Beginning May 2, the Israeli military bombed residential areas and destroyed civilian infrastructure in Lebanon. The bombs killed at least two civilians (82-year-old Almaza Muzhir and her 40-year-old daughter, Ilham Tawil) and wounded at least 14, including five children. Two power stations, one near Beirut and another near Tripoli, and a main road running through a residential area were bombed.
The mainstream media repeated Israel's usual "justification" for the bombings — that it was in retaliation for rocket attacks on Israelis living along the Lebanese border by the Lebanese resistance movement, Hizbullah. However, this is untrue.
The Hizbullah attacks followed an earlier Israeli attack on Lebanon that killed two women. Hizbullah has not fired rockets at Israel unless the Israeli military has injured or killed Lebanese civilians inside Lebanon.
The latest round of Israeli attacks are the third time in less than a year that Israel has bombed Lebanese civilians and infrastructure outside of the occupied zone (euphemistically called the "security zone" by Israel).
Israel has occupied 10% of Lebanese territory since 1978 and has refused until recently to abide by UN Security Council Resolution 425 (1978), which called for Israel's immediate and unconditional withdrawal from south Lebanon. The occupying Israeli soldiers are supported by a 2500-strong proxy force, the South Lebanese Army.
Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Barak's election pledge to withdraw from Lebanon by July has sparked a fierce debate within Israel. Many commentators have noted the futility of the more than 20-year occupation. A vocal protest movement led by mothers of Israeli soldiers serving in Lebanon has been calling for withdrawal for the last few years.
Residents in the northern Israeli settlements, near the border, have been calling for further state support to "fortify and protect" their villages. A large number of Lebanese citizens cross the border each day to work as cheap labour in these settlements.
The Arab countries see a withdrawal by Israel as a prelude to large-scale military action against neighbouring countries, in particular Syria. The Syrian army maintains a presence in Lebanon but Israeli attacks have avoided harming it for fear of retaliation against the more than 1000 Israeli soldiers in the occupied zone. The Syrian territory of the Golan Heights is also occupied by Israel and a unilateral Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon is seen as reducing pressure on Israel to withdraw from the Golan.
One possible scenario is that the Israeli withdrawal will be neither complete nor immediate. An inevitable response by Hizbullah could lead to Israeli military attacks on Syria's 25,000-strong army inside Syrian territory.
It is in Israel's interest to weaken the Syrian regime, which is one of the few countries resisting the reorganisation of the Middle East under Israeli dominance. With its troops out of Lebanon, Israel would be given a free hand to utilise its extensive military technology, the most advanced in the Middle East and largely supplied by the US.
Israel's policy towards Syria and Lebanon also should be seen against the backdrop of the continuing conflict between the US and Europe over which imperialist bloc will achieve hegemony in the Middle East region. Since the 1960s, Israel has been closely supported by the US. Israel has faithfully supported US policy interests in the Middle East, North Africa and globally. US dominance of the Middle East has largely rested on its close ties with Israel, Jordan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Since the early 1990s, the European bloc has attempted to enter the Middle Eastern market and forge links with Israeli companies. Israel has signed free trade agreements with Europe and has observer status at the European Union. In the last month, the European Union helped Israel join the Western European and Others Group at the United Nations despite its repeated violations of UN resolutions.
However, the US retains its dominant relationship with Israel, particularly as dramatic privatisations and economic liberalisation take place. Over the last 10 years, Israel's economy has shifted from being dominated by state-owned companies to being controlled by a handful of privately owned firms in alliance with foreign capital.
The high-tech sector is now a critical part of the Israeli economy and Israel is a major target for US venture capital seeking high technology start-up companies. The total number of US venture capitalists who have invested in Israel is equivalent to the combined number that have invested in Britain and South-East Asia.
Lebanon and Syria enter this picture due to a number of factors. The Lebanese economy has the potential to rival that of Israel if given the opportunity to rebuild after decades of war. Both Lebanon and Syria retain close links with Europe and it is likely that capital from Europe, especially France, would soon dominate their economies. European companies would also be the major beneficiaries if US sanctions on Iraq were lifted.
This is further evidence that the US and Israel are not interested in leaving Syria and Lebanon alone and intact. As it has been for decades, it will be the people of Lebanon that will pay the bloody price.
BY AHMED NIMER