Are The Terror Outfits Getting Legitimacy?

If the recently concluded war between Israel and the outfit Hezbollah is anything to go by, it looks like the terror outfits are getting legitimized. By mediating between a nation state on the one hand and an independent outfit on the other which is not accountable or responsible to any international body, isn't the UN indirectly legitimizing the outfit?

The very fact that the Lebanese military was missing in action throughout the 34 day war is a proof that this fight had nothing to do with any Lebanese cause, something for which the Lebanese government stood. Otherwise how can a national military stand mute witness to another nation invading its territory, leave alone bombing its towns and cities?

It was alright for Lebanese military to fight this war because national governments can be expected to comply with the UN mandates. And if a government doesn't, it can be subjected to various sanctions and embargoes. However, an organization that does not even recognize the international community can never be reined. There is nothing official in it that can be reined in.

Has Hezbollah proved itself to be a responsible outfit that UN thought of mediating and asking for a dialogue? Can UN bring about a real truce with conditions binding an independent outfit? Ironically the UN is mediating for an outfit which has over the last two years blatantly disregarded its Security Council resolution 1559 of September 2004. Weapons, let alone war, in the hands of any such outfit can be very dangerous because they act unilaterally at their whims and fancies.

Tomorrow will the UNSC have the same approach towards Al-Qaeda, a Sunni Islamist organization. The most prominent members of the group are adherents of Salafism, a fundamentalist sect of Sunni Islam, just as Hezbollaz is a Shi’ite one. As Al-Qaeda is prominent in Afghanistan, will it be allowed to procure weapons and fight a war? Haven't they proved themselves to be a terror outfit than a responsible organization.

Whether UN puts condition on them or not, these outfits will go ahead and procure and amass weapons, but by mediating and asking for a dialogue isn’t UN legitimizing them?

Who's A Loser In A Proxy War?

Obviously, the one which is an elected government, one who is signatory to a whole lot of treaties, one who is accountable to world bodies like the U.N. and is usually the one who is reined in through any resolution, one who has a possiblity of embargo against it, one who has a lot at stake if it doesn't pay heed to the call of other nations.

Isn't an outfit which is not accountable to the international community, or to any world body or to any state, always the winner; especially when it demands an ethical, moral and (paradoxically) a diplomatically lawful treatment that the nations in the world usually offer to a legitimate state? There's nothing official in it that can be reined in. Win-Win. Eat your cake, and keep it too.

Who is Guilty of Killing Civilians, Israel or Hezbollah?

From day one of the recent war, Israeli missiles have been killing more civilians than Hezbollah's, and there's no doubt about it. But, just because Hezbollah’s attacks got less victims does not mean they are morally on a higher ground. In fact it is Hezbollah which has been firing much more rockets at Israeli civilians than the number of missiles Israel was firing.

Do the rules of engagement not apply to Hezbollah at all? Hezbollah rockets fired at Israel do not even make a pretence of targeting anyone else but civilians. The Hezbollah has been doing this for some time, as its rockets are too inaccurate to do anything else.

“Discussions around the world about the conflict have taken on an abstract air — even that of a sporting battle in which it has become de rigeur to cheer the underdog for the simple reason that it is the underdog. As in all other conflicts, distinction between who is wrong and who is more wrong blurs as violence continues...” (HT Delhi Editorial on August 9, 2006)

None of us can condone Israeli policy of targeting civilians, nor am I. But its wrong to expect a morally right/correct response from Israelis alone. All that Israelis were doing, is to ‘get down to the level of their enemies’ and not worse. Israelis are NOT MORE bothered than Hezbollah (or only as much bothered as Hezbollah is) regarding civilian casualties. On what basis can one tell Israelis that do not do more damage/civilian casualties than what Hezbollah does. As if Hezbollah is the scale/standard to measure Israeli retaliation.

Hence we must not fault Israelis alone, especially when they are the ones at the receiving end. One must not expect Israelis alone to display a higher degree of morality than the Hezbollah, given the fact that they are usually the ones targeted first. Israel is not a willing — or for that matter, the only — sinner.

Does Victim-hood gives the outfit the moral high ground of retaliation... Hezbollah, backed by sensibilities championing the ‘underdog’, cannot be made exempt from the immorality of killing civilians- on either side of the border; on one side targeting them, on the other side using them as shields.

Isn't Hezbollah A Terrorist Outfit?

It is argued by many, especially the Lebanese, that Hezbollah is not a terrorist group. It's a political party, that they're Lebanese people, that they work in Lebanese government, that they have ministers in Lebanese Parliament...

Isn't it a fact that almost all terrorist organizations in the world have backing from some political party or the other. And invariably many have their people in the Government. If because of these an organization does not become a terrorist outfit, then there are no terrorist organizations in the world. Consider Taliban; it is also a very strong political party and earlier had its people in the Govt. and from 1996-2001 they WERE the Afghan Government.

And if the issue for the war between Hezbollah and Israel was a Lebanese one, something that Lebanese govt. itself stood for, then why was Lebanese army missing in action when a foreign military invaded its territory, leave alone bombing its towns?

The UN Security Council Resolution 1559, of September 2004 calling for the disbanding of Hezbollah’s fighting force and the extension of Lebanese government control over the entire country, goes to establish and attest Hezbollah's true identity as a terrorist outfit.