It was only a matter of time before the situation escalated to it's present state. The past couple of months have seen tensions rise in the Middle East, with the recent kidnappings being the supposed justification for the latest round of military attacks. The recent rise in tensions can be traced back to the democratic election of Hamas by the Palestinian people. This was, of course, treated with much disdain throughout the western world due to it's position regarding Israel. As a result of this election, western powers felt it necessary to punish the Palestinian people for daring to vote for a party that does not share their vision of the Middle East. Consequently, the EU and the US suspended vital financial aid to the PA, exacerbating the situation for the poor and desperate in Palestine. It doesn't take a genius to work out the strategy here. By punishing the Palestinian people for voting for Hamas they hoped that the people would turn against Hamas and they would, ultimately, be removed from power. Despite earlier protests, Hamas have maintained their position in Palestine.
The tensions between the two sides increased after the beach bombing incident, in which seven people, including three children, were killed by a 'stray' Israeli missile. The usual whitewash followed as the Israeli government 'investigated' the incident, despite protests from human rights organisations about the way the enquiry was handled. Of course, once again, the Palestinian people suffered while those in power washed their hands of the suffering that they have caused.
The subsequent kidnapping of an Israeli soldier, led to the current military actions by the Israeli government. Once again the Israeli government loses public support by acting disproportionately to events. Of course the kidnapping is abhorrent, however, the bombing of the civilian infrastructure (including power stations and water supplies) is an absolute disgrace. How is that proportionate to the act of kidnapping a soldier? It is not. To compound the suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza, the Israeli government also refused to allow emergency aid (including food) to be delivered to the Palestinian people. The western powers have, once again, been rather quiet on these recent activities. In fact, the Swiss government stand alone in Europe in condemning these actions. As for the US administration, once again they stand by the Israelis and their right to 'defend themselves' by murdering civilians (an interesting definition, somewhat Orwellian in tone).
And now there have been increased attacks in Lebanon due to the actions of Hezbollah near the Israeli/Lebanese border. The disproportionate reprisals (including the bombing of a civilian airport in Beirut) are themselves highly suspicious given the wider context of the situation in the Middle East. Hezbollah has known ties with Syria and Iran and it is within this context that one must analyse the actions of the Israeli government. After the recent statements of the Iranian leader, it is clear that Israel wants to give a strong message to it's enemies in the region. The attacks on Lebanon and Hezbollah are a thinly veiled attack on Iran and Syria, an attempt by Israel to assert it's authority in the region. Not long ago, the World Zionist Conference called on all nations to:
......act aggressively and immediately to remove the Iranian threat.
This is now part of the action that the Israeli government is taking. Hezbollah is widely seen as an extension of the Iranian regime and receives much of it's funding from Iran. An attack on Hezbollah sends a clear warning to the Iranians that they are not to be messed with and ensures that Israel maintains it's position as the dominant power in the Middle East. In fact, it would be fair to say that the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers has provided the Israeli government with the perfect opportunity to attempt to neutralise Hezbollah and Hamas, a long term goal of the administration. It is, however, worrying to consider what impact that this military offensive will have in the region and what Syria and Iran will do in response. But as long as Israel continues to target civilian infrastructure, the situation can only escalate to it's ultimate conclusion.
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