Mideast Dispatches

I don't think that alot of people know that in the Talmud theres a parash that stats that Isreal is "the promised land" for jews and that it was taken away from them when the romans were in power. the romans then transplanted palastinians there and in the koran there is referance of Isreal and that the Jews belong in Isreal and Isreal belongs to the Jews...and as far as the conflict is concrened if you have a bee hive on you front porch and a bee stings you you kill it then another and another and so on, you kill the hive and terrorist groups are the problem of everyone and not just the middle east. if we don't solve the problem now and there it will be on this side of the pond. The proof is in 9-11 and we all remember that don't we.
I do feel sorry for whats going on there and I am jewish and come from an Arab country and have alot of friend still there. but we can already see it all coming here at home.

I think that the Israeli people are being very selfish in pursuing their strange obsession with remaining alive. It’s almost as if they feel some divine right to not be massacred. What, I ask you, is so wrong with complete annihilation? Especially when such annihilation is carried out from a very respectable and legitimate group such as Hezbollah? Hezbollah, after all, has gone through the time, trouble, and expense to get together, decide that they share a similar opinion (i.e. that Israel does not have the right to exist), and pursue this mandate. Israel gripes about Hezbollah crossing the border and attacking their military outposts. Yet, what about the tremendous time and expense Hezbollah had to expend when conducting such a raid? Why should Hezbollah have to travel so far into Israel in order to kill Israelis? Israel’s military outposts should be moved closer to Lebanon, and should remain unarmed, so as to facilitate the easier and quicker annihilation of Israel. Otherwise, I think Israel should have to compensate Hezbollah for their travel expenses. Now, it should also be acknowledged that it is terribly expensive and inconvenient for Hezbollah to bomb all of the Israeli people from such a distance, and for this reason, the Israeli’s should have the courtesy to move their population further north. Furthermore, it would also be gracious of the Israelis to paint large bull’s eyes on top of their more critical and populous targets.

Gosh, this is all just so frustrating! Israel has always been such a tedious and difficult country to wipe off the map. I surely hope that, in the future, other self-proclaimed political groups won’t have such a difficult time annihilating countries that they don’t like. After all, don’t we all deserve to go around annihilating countries or groups of people who we don’t like?

Mr Halla Koudsi,

hate to inform you of historical fact.
the origin of the name "Palestine" is a Roman term meant to insult the people of Isreal ( read Jews). The Phillistines were an
extinct people.
The vast majority of the people called The Palestinians have not been there for eons.
If you look a the birthplace of such figures as Yassir Arafat or Edward Said they were both born in Egypt.
The majority of these now claiming to be of Palestinian origin came to the land in the early 20 th century ( 20's and 30"s) from countries such as Syria and Egypt in search of a better life now being created by the British and the Jews.
It is amazing that the basis of Christian and to a great degree Islamic culture is based on the bible.
How is it that the personalities in the bible were Jewish and happened to be in Palestine / Israel ?

My reply to Paul Schumm …. You are partially right. Killing civilians doesn’t justify taking revenge against those suicide bombings. If a dog bites you, you don’t bite it back… or do you?
It’s very disappointing that NO ONE seems to care UN regulations or appeals. We should rather oil the NATO officials who appear to be a stronger than any UN officials.
I was shocked to see that 4 UN Observers died due to Israeli bombing and our Honorable Prime Minister was blaming the UN as it was continuing its operation in that region at risk. Let’s not forget that 1 of the dead observers was from the Canadian forces. Then why don’t we blame anyone for the deaths of Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan? Shouldn’t we blame the peace keeping program itself?
I think any war is good for us… I mean good for our capital market.. specially for game industry… someone should use the satellite to record every incidents for future animation purposes!

Israel has more accurate weapons than Hezbollah and is trying to avoid killing innocent lives but what can one do against a bunch of terrorists that wear no uniforms, use women and children as human shields as they fire rockets from inhabited villages toward Israel?
Hezbollah and its sympathizers appear to be winning the propaganda war. They know very well the buttons to push - know very well how gullible the West is when it comes to harming women and children.
I do not consider these women innocent bystanders but rather the kind of women who are proud that their sons committed suicide while ending the lives of many innocent people. Their presence besides rocket launchers with their children may be their contribution to this war.
And we feel so much regret for their passing. How gullible the West has become!

I agree with the gentelman who expressed concern not to bring the Middle East conflict into Canada. Unfourtunatly this is not possible since for a long time ordinary Canadians, plititians and other wise were only exposed to one point view, that is the Israeli point view. The Israeli point view was unchalanged till recently. Canada though it clamis it is neutral in this debate but to the contrary it is not. Under Mr.Harper and bebore him Mr. Martin Canada became more bold in its support for the Israeli position. This official Canadian shift in policy is fueling this this conflict. For those who wants a civilized Canadian solution to the problem should support the Idea of a single democratic state not Jewish, Muslim, or Christian. An international fund should be build to help in re-accomodating the refugees who were deported from their land when the state of Israel was build. It is impossible to accept the notion that Jews have the right of return to a Lnad they lived in 4000 years ago, and not accept the same right for Arabs who lived in this land all their lives, but been deported 50 years ago. Israel, US, and the rest of the International commuinty are the only ones who can bring in a logical and a comprehensive peace if the will is present. Canada has a historic opportunity to adhere to its values by supporting the right of selfdetermination of people who are under occupation. Israel has for a long time benifited from a favourable public opinion that have been unchalanged. Also Israel had more than half a century to reconcile its difference with the endogenous people of historic Palastine but it proven it could't do it. Israel NEEDS help to know how to communicate its purpose and philosophy to the rest of the world.

It is so disheartening to see the Security Council is so ineffective till it sees hundreds and thousands innocent civilian are butchered in the name of freedom.

These comments may or may not be baised. but what is happening in Lebanon today and over the years is unbearable. here we are making our comments and judgements which at the end of the day don't make the slighest difference. there will still be people dying and suffering from attacks by Isreal and whoever is behind the scene (England and the U.S). I ask myself to remember that we have an institution called the UN to salvage this fear and horror. However, this institution is completely useless. I recite someone earlier saying Shame on Canada for residing by the U.S. and I shall say shame on all of those nations in the world who are watching and not doing anything today. these are murders caused by conflicts between countries that were implanted by outside powers who at the end of the day are only Oil and blood hungry, you may or may not know who I'm talking about. I wonder had the arabs resided by the U.S and became allies with them during the cold war as opposed to residing by the former Soviet union, will we be in this situation today, or for the past 50-60 years?.

A question where were the UN observers when over the years great amount of missiles were being poured in Southern Lebanon ?
Sort of the like the disasterous "Oil for food program " scandal.
Would such events be tolerated by any other country.
It is not as if the missiles suddenly appeared overland from a 3rd country overnight.
It was well known and very well reported the 10,000 or so missiles for many years.
Imagine if Paris was bombed from Belgium.
How long would it take for Chirac to take drastic action.
This will all end in crying.

How can our PM be so dismissive of the nature of the attack on the UN post? Given that the level of warning coming from the field along with the precision guilded nature of the weapons suggests that the actions were deliberate at some level of the Israeli command structure.

As well, how can our PM think that a massive military response will accomplish the goal of removing Hezbolah from the fabric of Lebonese society? Such is the delusional thinking that brought us the idea that "we'll be greeted as liberators in Iraq".

I've seen it argued that such actions would make no sense politically for Israel. Abu Ghraib and Haditha made no sense for the American effort in Iraq, but they happened.

Now, I read about the apartment building that got hit, killing dozens, mostly women and children. I suppose that will be seen by our "Water boy in chief" as a measured response.

How can we can support Israel's right to exist as we sit by and watch Lebanon's destruction?

Hurry up, Liberal Party of Canada, so the voters of Canada can inflict a measured response against the Bush cheerleaders.

I today reviewed the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child adopted in 1989 and ratified by Canada in Dec.1991.Among them Article #6"the right to survival and development" and Article #19 " the right to Protection from abuse and neglect.Hundreds of Lebanese children are now dead.More will die as a direct result of the deprivation they will experience.Are Lebanese children, not children ? Where is the UN.

We all know that desperate times require desperate measures and that strong actions lead to stronger responses. Yet, after all this time it's curious that we haven't turned to new solutions. In Israel alone, generations have endured and perpetuated so much bloodshed and violence--there is no method to measure it all. Of course, there is no easy answer or way to end the vicious cycle. But, I wonder what would happen if the grandfather who lost his wife and two of his sons to this relentless conflict, turned to his grandchild and told him, "Please, no more killing. Make peace and teach your children to do so."

Why is the West ignoring the root cause of all
the problems in the Middle East.The occupation
of lands ilegally by Isreal and supported by the USA since 1967.The Zionists frankly are not interested in peace,it's not in their long
term national interest to agree to 242 or any
other resolution that declares them aggressors
and forces them to pay compensation.Israel is going to find ways and means to keep the conflict alive and enrich herself at the cost
of the Western taxpayer's hard earnings.

The prospect of the morally bankrupt, discredited Bush administration, backed by a supine Congress and pliant mass media, pretending to be a peace broker in the current Mideast conflict might be laughable if the circumstances were not so tragic.

With the temperature of the earth rising, there is no need to create additional heat and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere in a war. Global warming and ominous predictions of sea level rising 7 - 15 meters by 2050, species going extinct, and climatic events striking with a force that exceeds the Israeli war of aggression/survival, why do the rest of the peace-loving nations not call on an end to the war.
Shame on our Canadian government for siding with the US in condoning the Israeli over-reaction. Will the world view the resulting war crimes against civilians in the same way as the war crimes in Nazi Germany and the former Yugoslavia?

It is unfortunate that Lebanon has to take the brunt of Israel's misguided and overly heavy-handed attempt to again show the world it's military capabilities. (It would appear this time that the Israeli military bit off more than it could chew).
As for the "accidental" targeting of a clearly marked (and known)UN observation post resulting in the death of 4 UN observers, Israel has a long and sordid history of deliberately "removing" any international or non-combatant personal who might be able to inform the world of its flagrant violations of international law. (As witnessed by the deliberate attack on the USS Liberty in international waters during the 1967 war, resulting in numerous US casualties).
I am sorry, but I fail to understand how deliberate attacks on - and destruction of - Lebanon's infrastructure is going to gain Israel anything except the almost unanimous condemnation of the international community.

When will you people stop siding with one side or the other....All views expressed here are clearly biased.....Just alot of people expressing and venting their own cultural beliefs.....Why and for what purpose ?....Suggest all Arabs and Jews(and their supporters) in Canada start looking for once at what is going on as it relates to Canada. You are in the process of creating two hostile camps right here at home..Happy? Who is right and who is wrong cannot be answered .Not in this fashion....Getting any Canadian consensus towards a problem would have about the same chances as any lasting peace would in the middle east...Dont bring it home....The verbal arrows shot back and forth in this type of forum are just as dangerous as the missiles flying across the border in Lebanon..

beirut has been distoyed thirteen times and it has been rebuilt 13 times and no once can destroy beirut, but i hope this is the last time beirut gets destroyed. My message to israel is, if you want peace on the border, stop invading our airspace, stop bombing our country, stop planting spy rings in our country and stop the assasinations. and My questions to hizballah are, where is iran and syria? why aren't they fighting? why do we have to pay for your adventures? why are you the only one with weapons? and last but not least do you want a civil war in lebanon?

Countless years of sucide bombings most times targeting civilians of any age or sex. Countless years of listening as others spew hatred against you and call for your utter destruction,longing for your entire race to be wiped from the face of the earth. Israel has every right to move forward against these forces to protect itself.

WHAT CAN WE DO TO MAKE THE WORLD PAY ATTENTION AND STOP THE MADNESS IN THE MIDDLE EAST.

U.S. WANTS TO WAIT TO CALL A CEASE FIRE UNTIL THEY GET TO THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEMS IN THE MIDDLE EAST. THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM WAS DISPLACING ARAB PEOPLE FROM THEIR HOMES TO PROVIDE THE JEWS A HOMELAND.

SHAME ON ALL THE COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD WHO HAVE STOOD BY AND ALLOWED ISRAEL TO TAKE LEBANON AND IT'S PEOPLE BACK TO THE DARK AGES.

SHAME ON CANADA'S PRIME MINISTER FOR TAKING OUR COUNTRY FROM A PLACE OF RESPECT AROUND THE WORLD AND CRAWLING UNDER THE SAME ROCK AS THE U.S.

MOST OF ALL SHAME ON ALL OF US FOR NOT MAKING OUR VOICES HEARD. WHAT CAN WE DO? WHERE CAN WE GO? I AM NOT RELIGIOUS BUT I BELIEVE GOD WILL MAKE US ANSWER FOR STANDING BY AND WATCHING OUR FELLOW MAN BE DESTROYED.

ANIMALS DON'T EVEN BEHAVE THIS BADLY TOWARD EACH OTHER.

The imminent abuse of power by Israel and their disregard for human life, other than their own, is a redundant example of terrorist actions, by the same parameters that Hezbollah's are measured. Yes, Israel has the right to defend itself, but similar to the situation the United States is presently in, they are not fighting a conventional army. Their response must be adequate to the nature of the threat.

I find that the course of action that is taking place right now will just create the basis for another wave of anti-Israel sentiment in the region, another two thousand years of more conflict.

What would the case be if any of the countries which laws, citizens and sovereignty were violated and abused by the state of Israel during Mossad black box opperations, would take similar actions until Israel returned prisoners or sentenced the perpetrators of those crimes?

Why don't you report who fired the first rounds across the border?

Israel is the one that stared shooting first, or the fact thar Israel is the one that doesn't care for UN resalutions, as they've never follow 242 which was to pull their troops out of Lebanon.

Israel is the one that crosses borders kidnapping /killing people.

Even the Jews don't believe Israel has any rights. Jews against Zionism check it out.

But most of all try and tell both sides, Hezbollah is the people of Lebanon, 85% of all the people want them, ARMED and protecting the Lebanese People from Israel.

A curiously confusing title. "The Old Beirut is Gone." Remember the Lebanese Civil War? Remeber how the fighting last more than a decade? Remember how much of the "Old Beirut" was destroyed?

This latest Israeli invasion has inflicted only a minor scar on Lebanon if we compare the damage it suffered during its civil war. Don't try to confuse and mislead readers as to suggest that the Israeli forces have somehow leveled precious "Old Beirut."

Even the Beirut airport, which Israel has been allegedly accused of destroying, has suffered only minor damages: the main structure is still intact; a runway is damaged, along with fuel tanks.

Your histrionics are not appreciated.

Israel caused an oil spillage over the Lebanese coast to threaten the only tourism destination in the Middle East. Israel should know that even if they caused a blood bath in Lebanon we shall survive. They should know the most of what it means to be prosecuted.