Israel/Lebanon Escalation Continues

Via Bloomberg:

July 15 (Bloomberg) -- Israeli warplanes struck Lebanon for a fourth day, reportedly killing at least 26 people, hours after Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah declared war with Israel and an Israeli navy gunboat was hit off Beirut.

Israeli air strikes hit a van and a taxi, as well as power stations, gas stations and bridges, Lebanese police said. The Israeli army said targets included a second attack on Hezbollah's headquarters in southern Beirut and bridges on Lebanon's border with Syria.

A Lebanese police official said at least 84 people had been killed and 218 wounded in Israeli air strikes since July 12 in violence sparked by the kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah, a Shiite fundamentalist group. Thirteen Israelis have died, including nine soldiers, according to the Israeli army.

What irks me is the sheer one sided nature of the coverage given to deaths in the conflict. At the time of this articles update 13 Israelis, of them 4 civilians have been killed. Yet the attention to the Israeli's killed has taken more importance than the deaths of Lebanese civilians. Where is the attention to the innocent civilian deaths in Lebanon, who are just as innocent as the Israeli civilians. Since when has innocent meant something different due to the nature of the location of ones birth, or because one happens to share the same birth-nation as the Hezbollah killers who provoked the Israeli onslaught? Think about these figures: 84 people have been killed and 218 wounded in Lebanon while 13 Israelis have been killed. Innocent Arabs, it seems, are only worth a fraction of innocent Israeli's.

Hezbollah's militia continues to operate in southern Lebanon, near the border with Israel, almost two years after the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution asking for the disbanding and disarmament of the force and for Lebanon to extend its control over the entire country.

The Shiite Muslim group combines military elements with political influence: almost a fifth of Lebanon's legislature is made up of lawmakers from Hezbollah.

Israel is attacking the Lebanese government ostensibly so it will reign in Hezbollah, but the Lebanese government is weak; it has neither the military force of arms or resources to actually take on Hezbollah, which is precisely why it is the de facto government in the south. The US, while praising the Cedar Revolution has done little else to bolster the Lebanese government or its military might, or its ability to provide services that the state is supposed to provide for the people but is now being provided by Hezbollah. And Israel, by attacking and holding the Lebanese government responsible for Hezbolla's actions runs the very serious risk of further weakening or fully destabilize the government.

Hezbollah attacked Israel so strike at Hezbollah (and it has), do not punish ALL Lebanon.

PS: Since I have begun writing I have learned that now Israel has further escalated the conflict and begun strikes in central Beirut. The act itself is widely seen as an escalation. Its still early though, I will be very worried if the violence spreads into Syria and/or Iran.

UPDATE: (3:09 PM) Im seeing news reports that say that Israeli casualties from the rocket attacks has gone up to around 30. I don't have updated causlty figures for the Lebanese in the wake of the bombings in central Beirut. I will update from time to time.