Mideast Dispatches

Arabs of the various Jewish faiths/sects, Arabs of the various Christian faiths/sects, and Arabs of the various Moslem faiths sects have more in common than ever. Lebanon was on the way to being a model for all countries in the Middle East. Hopefully that's still possible.

Who destroyed the Lebanese army and police force, so that they couldn't get rid of Hizbollah themselves? Why, Arab Syria and Arab Israel. Now Hizbollah gets weapons and more from Syria/Iran while innocent Lebanese and wiped out.

The only way to defeat evil is to drain away its support. You can't kill evil, but once a group loses support it will disappear. One can hope Hizbollah and others like them will fade, but they won't be killed. The Arab Israelis are going way overboard but I guess they had no other ideas. Hopefully when this ends Lebanon will be sovereign and wonderful to live in, Israel will face peace, and Palestine will be a peaceful country, growing in their own right.

Guys we should not blame Mr. bush for all that mess that has been going on in Lebanon, because after all he is just a human being who is doing his part, and he is doing it the best, the blame must go to the educated people in America who are watching the war as if they are watching a move in a theater, and you know what this war unfortunately is very entertaining for some powerful people in the USA , this war has never been like it before, a Hezbollah militia Armey with less technological weapon is battling the Israeli military elite force with the best technological American weapons , I tell you it must be very entertaining , and specially with the new smart missiles that the F16 has, I tell you it is quit interesting to see it finally at work , and the manufacturer is probably saying my smart missiles work damn good, I told you it will work ,and tomorrow we are going to make a lot of it. And the American people in the USA are saying what a disaster in Lebanon with all that destruction and mass killings they are really gone out of their mined they should stop or SOMEONE should do something about it, and the media in America is probably COVERING the story really good.
Let me tell you people that it is sicken me to find out that there are some powerful people in this world are entertained by this war. and it is show us what will happen when a society looses it’s moral by few billionaires who are running the show and showing the people threw the media, tv,newspaper and radio, their point of view for their own profits and leading the events to their benefits. That’s why it is good to get self educated and to get to know what is going around us before it happens to us. And I thank god that Canada hasn’t got to this stage, but it doesn’t say that the possibility is gone forever ,that’s why we must choose our leaders carefully because they are the ones who will change us for bad or good.

It is refreshing to finally see some Lebanese people who are willing to accept that their country shoulders some of the blame for this conflict. (Indirectly via allowing Hezbollah to grow unchecked)

I see so many who blame Israel and the West, when you should be blaming your cowardly Arab neighbours. The have used you, and positioned your country as a buffer for themselves. Then they play to your fears, and trick you with a carrot on a stick by building hosptails and a few schools. Sort of like our own Lefty parties in the West.

Until you learn to stand on your own, and stand up for yourself you will always be a pawn of someone else.

Unfortunately just like in Iraq, this might require a civil war to occur.

Why can we be left alone is the question i ask myself everyday?
The lebanese have been hoping to live in peace for the last 15 years after the civil war but at the same time they had an armed group building their arms for the last 15 years. Didn't we as lebanese think that this group was going to eventually use these arms. How did we let hizballah become the new plo , a state within a state. Hizballah has turned it's areas into a mini iranian state, there are pictures of ayotolals everywhere you go in their areas, They have banned alcohol in their areas, they have created their own laws in areas under their control and the lebanese government have turned a blind eye on these events. How can alcohol be legal in the country but not legal on a certain street or area? How come the lebanese army can be in control of every inch of lebanon but is not allowed to be mobilized to the south. The lebanese government have been living with motto "hear no evil see no evil" and now the evil has came out of it's box

how did hizballah kidnap the cedar revolution ?
one and half million lebanese hit the streets on march 14 2006 demanding the withdrawl of syrian troops in lebanon. The one and half million demo was an intidah of the lebanese people who not ony wanted the syrians out but something more. They wanted a new country, new leadership, new mentality, and a country where every sect is equal , where every sect is disarmed, where every lebanese person can live in dignity and freedom.
The leaders of the march 14 commited three major mistakes which lead us to to the situation we are at now.
1)They allied with hizballah in the 1995 election and created a triple alliance which included psp, future hizballah. This alliace revided hizballah role in the country after it was weakened by the march 14 demo.
2) The march 14 leaders brought hizballah undr the banner of the lebnese government by adopting the role of the resistance in lebanon until it frees the shebaa farms the freedom of all prisons in israeli jail. This gave hizballah a new cover to continue his state withing a state attitude.
3) the march 14 then isolated one of the pillars of this movement michel aoun and pushed him into the lap of hizballah which allowed hizballah to make new allies in lebanon and to find a new christian cover to its existence.
these three events lead to the revival of hizballah hich was on the verge of collape after march 14. Even the shia community were strating to become suspicious of hizballah's agenda.
Now we are here in the begining of the end of hizballah, we should never got to this stage in the first place, lebano should have never been destroyed to disarm this group. Hizballah is not worth one blood of every lebanese person that dies everyday.
Every leader in lebanon from he march 14 camp to michel oun camp to israel should be held accountable for the destruction of lebanon.

to mr jan, lefties and other terrorist supporters:

Th euporeans have done nothing for lebanon and the nmiddle east, all they did was carve up the region based on countries and regimes that benefits them , so like i said before , do not give us advice about our own coutry.
your credebility has been lost a long time ago my friend.
In regards to a civil war, the civil in lebanon was as a result of the cold war between the us and it's allies including your so called europe vs the russians and their allies (including arabs ands other europeans countries)
We the lebanese were pawn in the hand of super powers and hassan nassralah is trying to bring us back to the proxy war days.
From arafat to nassrallah the game has not changed, the south is burning and the whole world is laughing at us and trying to impose their own solutions on this problem.
Jan and others:
The solution is simple in lebanon, The borders must be redrwan with israel and syria , the shebaa farms must be returned, hizballah myst be disarmed , the return of all prisoners from syriand and israeli jails , dead or alive. The disarnment of all palestinian militias in lebanon, the shipment of all palestinians to other arab countries that champion the arab causes. After all this is done, we have abolish the confessional political system and brng in new leaderships all across the coutry. Then finally we will sign a peace treaty with israel.
After all this my lefty , michael moores, terrorist supporters , you can come and see lebanon and only then you can compare it to israel and the so called free world. But as long as the irianian us war is on we in lebanon will remains hostages.

So Jan, the Israeli's have performed an economic miracle in the Middle East? In the past 10 years, Israel has received about $30 billion direct economic and military aid from the US (about 30% of ALL US foreign aid). This does not include loan guarantees, which typically totalled $2 billion each year until 2003, when the US gave approved a $9 billion guarantee to help the Israeli economy out of a slump (http://telaviv.usembassy.gov/publish/mission/amb/assistance.html).

I am sure the Lebanese would enjoy being more like the Israeli's, with billions of US funding each year. The latest US military hardware would also be appreciated.

The Lebanese are not asking for equality though. They would be content with the return of their lands and people and a solution to the Palestinian problem.

*** To Jean and others who are bashing Lebanese ***
Lebanon was not Hezbollah you have turned it into Hezbollah!!!

http://www.phoenicia.org/

The aim is to destroy Lebanon the homeland of the Phoenicians: one of the first civilizations in the world. Why don’t you stop your name calling and your propaganda of painting the Arabs and the Lebanese Phoenicians as barbarians? Origin of words (Bible->book-> From "Biblos", the Phoenician-Lebanese port that exported paper to Greece): http://www.krysstal.com/wordname_phoenician.html

Why the Arab Countries have one the lowest crime rate in the world if they are that barbaric??? Isn’t it the CIA budget of billions of dollars which has nurtured extremists in order to justify future planned aggressions????

The majority accept the existence of Israel within current UN resolutions but they will not accept the greed of occupying more land, by torturing more people.

Israel should implement UN resolutions and stop massacring people. Israel has 100's of WMD, if they are unleashed they will make the whole ME inhabitable. The United States is impotent when it comes to UN resolutions that are related to Israel. It cannot stop the billions of dollars in weapon shipments to Israel.

Few Facts for you and search the web for 1000s more:

Jerusalem (Urashalim) was first inhabited and established by the Canaanites and not the Jews. Read the history. Also, Several of the Old Testament Psalms were simply adapted from Ugaritic sources; the story of the flood has a near mirror image in Ugaritic literature; and the language of the Bible is greatly illuminated by the language of Ugarit (www.phoenicia.org look under Torah then look under Jerusalem).

The Lebanese Phoenicians and not the Jews are the one who built King Solomon temple because the Phoenicians were more skilled.

They hanged Jesus on the cross because he wasn’t a military leader that he will fight wars in their name… Jesus preached peace and they didn’t like that!!! It is not the roman who crucified Jesus it’s the Jews who chose to free a criminal and prosecute Jesus. Lebanon had the biggest concentration of Christians in the ME and the Israeli succeeded in draining Christians out of Lebanon and replacing them by radical Muslims to justify their future aggressions. But the Magic turned on the Magician.
Europa, Europe comes from the Phoenician word EROB, meaning where the sun set (west of Phoenicia,west of Bosphorus, Sea of Marmora). Erebo: I go under. Ereba: The land where I go under. Acu (pronounciatian asu) the land where I (the sun) are coming up: Ereb, ereba= europa Asu = Asie, Asia. Morningland-Eveningland, seen by the Phoeniciers That's why Bosphorus always has been the geographical border between Europe and Asia. Anatolie /= Asia-minor,which forms 97% of todays Turkey, comes from greeche language and means : east, east of what ? East of European Greece!
Hans Thijssens, Amsterdam Netherlands
Saddam has used chemical weapons supplied by the United States and the European. 1.5 million Iraqi died from 12 years of sanctions. Iraq the father of civilizations too.

In 82 Israel bombed Beirut with cluster bombs and killed 18 000 civilians in a city of 800 000 inhabitant.

The US used and is using depleted Uranium which is radioactive weapons that will harm all living things for ages to come.

Assad of syira bulldozed 20 000 civilian in Hama Syria and bombed Christian civilians in Lebanon at a rate of 40 000 (1989) bomb a day on a area of 1 million inhabitant by Christians! While the west always claimed that Syria (a dictatorship) is in Lebanon to keep peace and called the war a civil war, though Israelis, Syrians, Palestinians, Iraqi, Iranian, Somalis, fighters were involved in all wars. Meanwhile Hezbollah was flourishing under the supervision of Syria, Israel, and the west to use as a pretext for future aggression on Lebanon

Israel is an occupying power of some territories according to the UN. Thus, why the Arabs have to give their lands to house the Palestinian refugees?

For more facts about real Lebanon and Lebanese (not the propaganda of the Jewish controlled media: at least %60 percent of the world media are owned by Jews. Search the net for the subject) check these links:

Inventor Hassan Kamel Al-Sabbah worked for the General Electric Company (GE) in the 1920s and 30s. His inventions helped the West Win WWI: http://nooralislam.org/last/6970/pdf6970/nor9.pdf

More Famous Lebanese:
In the US: http://www.lebanonembassyus.org/ProminantLebaneseAmericans.html

Lebanese-born NASA JPL Director Dr. Charles Elachi: http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200401/lebanon.pasadena.mars.htm

The founder of MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) Candy Lightner is of Lebanese origin. MADD is the largest crime victims’ assistance organization in the world

The courageous astronauts who lost their lives aboard the space shuttle Challenger represented several racial and ethnic groups: African-American, Hispanic-American, Asian-American, Anglo-American, Jewish-American — and Arab American: schoolteacher Christa McAuliffe (Lebanese origin).

We know they dominated sea trade in the Mediterranean for 3,000 years. Now DNA testing and recent archaeological finds are revealing just what the Phoenician legacy meant to the ancient world—and to our own: http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0410/feature2/index.html#

Facts of what has been called “civil war” : http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/Parliament/2587/war.html

More about “Real” Lebanon: http://www.downtownbeirut.com/picsoftheweek.htm

Falafel, Hummus, Tabouli aren’t Israeli food but Lebanese and Arabs food! Stop hijacking everything!

Get Lost!

Jan I am reading your comments and you seem to have lots of knowledge about whats going on. As a Lebanese-Canadian, I have to agree with your point of views. As for "THE GENERAL" you really need to stop, your comments don't make sense and you're making us look really bad. And you have the audacity to use the general's name like we're really going to believe it's him that's posting these comments. And if it really was, I would hope his secretary would advise him to use spell check?

I read both sides of this story everyday, and listen to blame being assigned time after time, excuses being made for the killing of innocent people on both sides. My question to all of you, those on here, those on both sides of the current conflict, those who promote war but won't stand up themselves (I'm looking your way Dubya)... When is it enough? Seriously, when do you finally say "Why are my children dying? After 50 plus years, why are we no further ahead? What has Hezbollah done for me? What has the Israeli government done for me? One side has rockets, the other bombs. Why do I not feel any safer?" Come on people, we need to wake up. It has become obvious that those involved cannot resolve this on their own, so WE, those of us on the outside, need to take action. As North Americans, we live rather safe lives, not worrying about our neighbours bombs killing us in our sleep. This, despite very obvious, and deep differences. We need to step up, and start disciplining BOTH sides. The American military routinely stakes out and finds military leaders around the globe, does it not? We need to let both sides know that if things continue, it will get ugly. Let the Palestinians know, that if their leaders can't abide by peace, we will root out their leaders. If Hezbollah can't allow Israel to survive, we cannot allow Hezbollah to survive. If Omert can't stop killing women and children 'accidentally' then we will replace him and his military with people who can. As a Canadian, I am SICK and TIRED of seeing innocent people, be they Israeli, be they Palestinian, be they American, Lebanese, Sudanese, Pakistani, Indian, etc, etc, die to please a group of overzealous, blood thirsty, useless old men, who aren't brave enough to settle their own battles. Come on Canada, come on America... let's do what we do best... what we have done for years... what had, up until this point, made us the envy of the world. It's time for North America to take over.....

To "the general",

Free thinkers? Democracy? I think you guys in Lebanon demonstrated neither one when you were more than willing and able to carry on a bloody civil war for over ten years! There is absolutely nothing wrong with discussions but in your country they tend to end up in civil war.

Israel is your enemy that's true. But there's alot to be learned from them. In less than sixty years they managed to build a viable nation (granted by taking someone else's), they care deeply about each other, and militarily by far the strongest in the region. Now let's look at Lebanon? While its territory is being bombed freely in the last 25 days, the Lebanese army did nothing. And how could they, they have nothing.

The Israelis even went as far as going into space on a NASA mission. The Lebanese? It's very sad really. I really don't like putting down Lebanon. I went there on a business trip two years ago and was stunned by how beautiful this country is, or sadly was. But that's it, beauty and only beauty. No industry to speak of, no technology, nothing.

So Mr. General, this time instead of starting a civil war like in the past, you and your other countrymen need to huddle together and come up with ways to improve your country economically (and I don't just mean developing many entertainment venues in the centre of Beirut for the enjoyment of rich Arabs) and militarily. You hate the Israelis so much? Well be like them. That's the best advice I can give you.

Jan

I would like to have your attention for the fact that there are no excuses for killing civilians and nothing justify killing and massacring civilians, whatever the reason was, even if the Hezbollah militia was firing missiles near a civilian houses, the Israeli’s certainly have no right to wipe out everything that is standing in that area indiscriminating between civilians to a Hezbollah militia, and I also strongly condemn Hezbollah missiles over Israel. Even at war there are rules but it seems that the rules of engagement had failed.
I would like to have your attention too on the fact that I heard Mr. Nasralla’s speech the other day and he said that lunching missiles over Israel is just a reaction on the Israeli air strikes bombardment over Lebanon.
And as proof for that when the UN has suspended the Israeli air strikes bombardments for 48 hours, Hezbollah has stopped lunching missiles over Israel.
And at the very beginning of the war at the start, Hezbollah attacked Israeli soldiers not Israeli civilians dropping two rockets in an open field at Israeli territory near the border for distraction only, so it would be able for Hezbollah to kidnap the 2 Israeli soldiers for prisoner exchange, if Hezbollah attention was to kill civilians at the very begining from thestart then why Hezbollah didn’t lunch 100 missiles in that particular incident , the Israeli’s immediate respond was air strikes bombardment over Beirut killing innocent civilians with excuse of destroying Hezbollah offices and headquarters without considering a civilian lifes. Hezbollah response was a 3 days after when they took an Israeli war ship down in the sea, once again hezbollah had targeted a soldiers but the Israeli’s insisted on bombarding more infrastructure and wasting civilians blood until then Hezbollah started to lunch missiles over Israel .These are ground facts that you can investigate for your self.

Christina of Edmonton: Mr. Harper and his party were democratically elected, and the time will come when people can vote for or against his party. We don't 'get rid of' people in Canada , a la Stalin or Mao, we vote them out of office.

mr jan:

We lebanese are free thinkers, we are not slaves and we put the interest of lebanon above everything else. We don't need you to tell us about how bad israel is and what israel's intentions are and what we should do. We already know the solutions to our problems but it will take all of time to convince others to lay down their arms. Mr jan We are israel's neighbour, we have been at war with israel for the last thirty years, don't you think that we are the ones who should be educating you on israeli politics not the other way around. Me and myllow lebanese nationals might argue and debate but that's democracy and the bottum line is that the mojority of the lebanese including the shias want to live in peace, like human being and this what democracy is all about. The majority rules and when the majority of the lebanese want hizballah disarmed then this should happen. Israel is and will always be the enemy of lebanon as long it keeps the occupation of lebanese land but at the time lebanon will not and shall not be a battledield anymore. Mr jan u want to fight israel , fight them from europe , and if you want take hizballah with u.

I am sick and tired of hearing the 2 sides of the story.
The problem from the very beginning was that the Israeli Armey in the year 1982 when Lebanon was struggling a civil war, Israel invaded Lebanon and reached the capital Beirut. now I don’t know exactly what the Israeli’s were thinking but the matter fact of reaching Beirut was very upsetting to the Lebanon’s people and they were so upset that they started to resist the invaders and at that time a Hezbollah militia Armey was formed as respond for Israeli’s occupation, witch is very normal, because every country in the world would resist invaders, and in return this militia had driven the Israeli’s to south Lebanon were the Israelis liked the south and they stayed there for 18 years or until year 2000 were the Israeli’s had decided that they had enough casualties in their side and they withdrawn from the south of Lebanon making the same mistake as before taking another piece of land from south Lebanon giving a reason for Hezbollah to claim it later by the only diplomacy that Hezbollah new and acted upon for many years.
So my conclusion is that never start a fight with your neighbor and especially when you and your neighbor cannot move out to another place. Got It??????!!!!!!!!!!
To make the Middle East livable place for everybody you have to build peaceful relationships and not invading and killing your neighbors, how do you want them to like you if you kill them?
I have a few words for both sides to think of very seriously if both sides want to live in peace:
Values, respect of human life’s, honor , friendship, decency, rules, truth, positive mental attitude, loving, caring.

Being European I like to think that I can look at this topic with objectivity.

It's quite sad for me to see Lebanese nationals argue on this board as to who did what. I'd like to pass a message to them if I may: Stop wasting your energies on one another and redirect it on your real enemy, Israel. In a matter of 25 days Israel has destroyed your country and killed almost 1000 innocent nationals. What does that tell you about Israel? To me it sounds like Israel holds nothing but hatred towards Lebanon, all of Lebanon, regardless of the religion. Judging from the speed in which Israel destroyed your country one can only deduce that this military campaign (war crime) was well prepared months in advance and was missing the trigger. So kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers or not, this destruction was in the cards for Lebanon courtesy of Israel. Do you guys not see that?

So my advice to you is as follows: invest your energy in pursuing legal means to collect damages from the government of Israel (is it a government or a terrorist organization? I keep forgetting) for the massive destruction it has caused in Lebanon. Then organize yourselves and support your government in brining the Israeli leadership in front of the International War Crimes Tribunal in the Hague. That's how a united nation (like Lebanon must be) reacts to catastrophies like this war, not by attacking one another and putting each other down. You should be ashamed. Israel would be very happy to divide you guys up, don't let it have what it so desperately wants.

Jan

I meant by double standard , is that the first is because i am not jewish and the second is because i am an Arab.

I saw on the news that the Israeli commandos kidnapped 5 civilians in a hospital in Lebanon. I think that Hezbollah should declare war on Israel for kidnapping those civilians because he have THE RIGHT TO DEFEND LEBANON just like the Israeli’s said when Hezbollah kidnapped 2 Israeli soldiers for prisoners exchange and Israeli officials said that Israel have” THE RIGHT TO DEFEND IT SELF” and we can see how Israel is defending it self by INVADING Lebanon and destroying Lebanon’s social infrastructure and killing civilians witch 40 % of them women and children including the massacre in Qana were 54 civilians had been killed with 37 children among them, and the mew massacre were 33 people were killed, rising the death total to 980 civilians and 3000 injuries , and destroying Lebanon’s oil reservoir creating ecological pollution problem to the region in the Mediterranean sea. And not complying the united nation resolution by stopping the mass killings and withdrawing to the border line and for dropping USA made illegal phosphor bombs that its effect is not destroying buildings but burning civilians and the UN have proof for that.
Someone tell me please why Israel didn’t go directly to face Hezbollah instead of ruining Lebanon and killing its civilians??!!
Maybe because they had an awful experience with Hezbollah from the year 1982 until year 2000 where the Israelis couldn’t take the resistance of Hezbollah fighters any more and they end up withdrawing from south Lebanon.

In lebanon when u ask for army's deployement to the south they call you a zionist, when you ask for disarnment of hizballah, they call you a us agent but tell me this, isn't this the job of the state to take control of its borders and ensure no armed elements exist on it land. Where was hizballah when the syrians occupied lebanon for thirty years installing presidents, prime ministers, parlement members, where was the so called resistance when arafat established a fatah land in their so called southern lebanon, where was hizballah when the americans sold lebanon to syria in the taef accord. There are over 500 lebanese prisoners in syria, why doesn't the so called resistance use force to trade for these prisoners. Hizballah is not a resistance, it is a militia. A resistance is suppose to resist all ocuppiers and does not choose who is an occuppier and who's not. This militia is a proxy irinian militia just like the sla in south lebanon was an israeli proxy militia. There is no difference between the sla and hizballah. The time has come to end this militia. To all the arabs we don't need you to defend lebanon but if you really support this militia please let this militia fight from your borders and let's see how you feel when your country gets destroyed. To all the arabs and the iranians , you want to fight israel, fight it from you own borders, we will not be a battlefield anymore

CBC is so concerned with casulties among Levanon civilians and projects so pro-Arabic views on situation in the middle east that it makes me feel sick. After all I paid my tax money to support this station. They never mentioned that 300,000 Israelis are displaced. That if war ends now then Hizbolla will regroup and ressuply and atack Israel again in near future and then if they get a nuke from Iran, we will see hundreds thousands of killed civilians. Their reports does not make any sence, just appeal to the feelings of anti-Israeli auditorium. Other reason why I think they have unbalanced approach is because they keep pounding Israel every day about unproportional use of force. My question to them is what is proportional use of force ? Wnen Canadian troops kill civilians in Afganistan (not on purpose) during fire fights, is it proportional. Would they rather to see canadian body bags back home and paying troops for every searched house with canadian lifes or would they rather canadian military to minimize looses by using its firepower ? I guess the answer is clear. But when it comes to Israel they start calling this war crimes, even though israelis notify all civilians to leave before they move in.
Shame on CBC. You can not have double standards, one for your boys in the uniform and another for Israelis.

SOMEBODY GET RID OF HARRRRRRRPPPPPPPPPERRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!
He is destroying the reputation of Canada! What a disgrace!

To Ghassan and others:

You should stop promoting hatred by spouting totally false statements! We can never progress if your lies continue to brainwash most of our people and the world outside.

Israel was NOT founded by forcing civilians out of so-called "Palestine". People in "Palestine" bought what became Israel peacefully and legally-- and at grossly inflated prices, by the way, since they were classified as second-class citizens in the Arab countries along with Christians (so-called Dhimmi peoples). Lebanon never wanted wars with Israel and all was peaceful until Hizballah and Palestinian terrorists invaded our country and seized control for their own illegal activities.

Unfortunately, no one stopped the occupation of Lebanon by Hizballah. IDF should never have withdrawn from our country until we could control it, but because it did Hizballah got free reign. Nasrallah drove out the original, peaceful residents of towns like Bint Jbel and Maroun er-Ras, and replaced them with Hizballah supporters.

Hizballah doesn't care about Lebanese people, only about Iran. Iran is too cowardly to attack Israel itself, so it uses Hizballah to do it from our country and against our will.

Hizballah gunmen occupy homes and force civilians there to remain inside at gunpoint.

CBC should interview other places in Lebanon to hear the story, not only from Hizballah apologists who benefit from their gangs.

Canada is finally taking a just and honest stand in this conflict, and many people appreciate this.

Calling for ceasefire before Hizballah is ousted is criminal. We have seen so much bloodshed and destruction during the Civil War, we will be strong enough to survive one more round if it means the end Hizballah's occupation.

does one really ever have an objective viewpoint of reality if your viewing point is static and onesided? Is it possible to come to know a thing,a person,a country,if one has predetermined it according to one's own sympathies,and biases at the outset?
To come to a true picture of the tree that is Lebanon or the middle east we would have to climb off of our little eeyries and with goodwill try to touch its' being from as many viewing points as possible,using all the senses at our disposal, including listening based on a genuine interest in the others experience and aspiration. When this is done in a micro situation it is surprising how often an unexpected solution can arise which allows for real growth.
In this particular macro crisis that is Lebanon,Israel,Palestine...,there can be no lasting solution,nor even a partial one wihtout all parties agreeing to a ceasefire and round table,face to face talks and listening and yes,I include Hezbollah in this.(Begin and the Israelis were also considered terrorists by the British)Of course I have a healthy scepticism about whether the leaders of all parties want a solution which isn't unilateral, but here is where the other parties, US,Europe et al, yes and Canada too should insist on such a path and not be static in their viewing points. The taking of sides from high on our western eeyries will only ensure the civilians on the ground will continue to be the ones caught in no mans land with no way out.
We ordinary folk have the task of trying to see the greater reality and pressure our politicians to use our countries influence on behalf of those suffering.
Thank you Nalah for what you contribute and take care.

mr eddy, the general is with 1559 , the general can turn and twist and change but the end of the dau he is with 1559, m eddy , i still ask the question why does hizballah refuse a refrendum on it's arms? who gave hassan the right to start the war ? who gave hm the right to kidnapp the shia community and who has appointed him the king of the south? eddy my friend iran and the us want to fight a war, they should fight it somewhere else because we the lebanese can not take any omre wars. As for salim el hoss , who is salim alhoss, a syria appointed politician who didn't even dare to enter the elections in 2005. Hoss was one of the syrian pillars who sold lebanon the syria in 1990 and he has no right to speak. Any ways eddy welcome to the new world, welcome to freedom, welcome to democracy. We will not allow hizballah turn lebanon into an iranian mullah state and we will not let nassralah kidnapp the cedar revolution with his sick and paranioa mentality.

The Israelis-Lebanese war would not exist if Hezbollah would have never came to the existance due to Israel's occupation of Lebanon years ago. This situation sounds quite similiar to the United States empowerment of the Taliban and Saddam Hussan's government. It's called karma. The West and Israel should not try to start wars.

If Hezbollah rockets can reach distance of 70km, yet Israels stated goal is a river that is 30km from the border then let a international force come and replace them, what happens if the rockets keep raining down on northern Isreal?

Their stated goals are unachievable (get prisoners back AND move Hezbollah far enought away from the border). They will either be forced by the US to agree to a ceasefire without destoying Hezbollah and without getting back their 2 soldiers or they will be forced to continue north towards Beruit, which will likely broaden the conflict.

They are in a lose/lose situation know, unless you define winning as the ongoing death innocent cilivians and young conscripts and the further empowerment of your enemy.

to the person who call himself michel Aoun!! first you shouldn't use this name because he is one of the brave politicien in lebanon that wouldn't accept being occupied or controled by the israeili or the states or any other country. probably because of that he will be the next to be called iranina cancer in lebanon by the pple who are weak, afraid and accept to be the slave of bush and olmert like you..by having pple like you, it is the only success that zionist can have in the region. but no way, as long as there is a real Michel Aoun and a Hassan Nassrallah and Salim el Houss, it will be their dream and your dream as well..

to mr karim who is spreading propaganda that most lebanese peope support hizballah is nothing more but almanar propaganda, hizballah are a noisy minority in lebanon . The build fear through their weapons. Mr jumblat asked nassrallah a year ago on a refrendum on hizballah arms, Nassrallah did not answer. Mr karim i as a lebanese will gaurantee you that if there was ever a refrendum over hizballah arms, there will be a 90 percent maority that will vote against them. Rember karim hizballah had to issue a fatwa in the 1995 south election for the people to come out and vote for them. But these fatwas only work on the brainwashed. Karim don't bring up your garbage stats in here , i would like you to go to mount lebanon, north lebanon, and beruit and see what they will tell you about hizballah.

I have always admired Nahlah's coverage of Middle East issues on CBC. While the media (including the CBC)usually braodcatsts stereotypical images of arabs as out-of-control showting crowds, Nahlah has been able to show us their real life stories with a human face. Obviously, for people who prefers a "black and white" approach to this crisis, she might look biased...
You are very professional, and very brave too, congratulations !

I'm trying to imagine what it's like for you. Maybe like trying to get from Hamilton to Toronto and finding the QEW bombed so you try Dundas and it's unusable and you try to go north to the 401 and it's impassable. You figure if you take a small unpaved country road you can get around the damage and find that all of them have been hit too.

And then to get to your destination and verify that it's essentially rubble. Call me Canadian but that, I can't imagine. I have taught ESL to youth from many war-torn areas and their stories are so far from my experience that it's surreal.

Maybe that's why many people can't accept your reports as simple reportage.

I'm used to people saying the CBC is biased. Usually I find it from people who are hoping media would actually be more biased but biased towards their side of a story.

On the other hand don't think that the international press haven't noticed the bias our current government shows. For example, out of Paris, "All this activity on what was supposed to be the final day of Harper's overseas mission provided a counterweight to Harper's pro-Israel mantra over the past week." And in the Australian, "Since taking power in February he has shifted Ottawa's stance on the Middle East from one of relative neutrality to a firmly pro-Israel position."

"The US-backed Israeli assault on Lebanon has left the country numb, smouldering and angry. The massacre in Qana and the loss of life is not simply "disproportionate". It is, according to existing international laws, a war crime. The deliberate and systematic destruction of Lebanon's social infrastructure by the Israeli air force was also a war crime, designed to reduce that country to the status of an Israeli-US protectorate. The attempt has backfired. In Lebanon itself, 87% of the population now support Hizbullah's resistance, including 80% of Christian and Druze and 89% of Sunni Muslims, while 8% believe the US supports Lebanon. But these actions will not be tried by any court set up by the "international community" since the US and its allies that commit or are complicit in these appalling crimes will not permit it."

"The obscene score-card for death in this latest war now stands as follows: 508 Lebanese civilians, 46 Hizbollah guerrillas, 26 Lebanese soldiers, 36 Israeli soldiers and 19 Israeli civilians.

In other words, Hizbollah is killing more Israeli soldiers than civilians and the Israelis are killing far more Lebanese civilians than they are guerrillas."

John....how could Nahlah Ayed remove her personal feelings from her reporting? She is only human. She is a great Canadian Journalist with much compassion for the Lebanese. It is only the fault of the CBC to not employ a Canadian Jew (who would offer the same emotion)to provide us with an accurate account of the Israeli perspective.

Did UN or Human Rights organizations condemn Israel for kidnapping Lebanese civilians and trasporting them across the border?

Dear Nahlah,

My wife and I are big fans of yours. You are always reporting the most engaging stories from the most troubled places with such class. Thank you for all that you do! Please do be safe.

Every democratic country wants peace. Israel wants peace more than most for its long-term survival. I deeply understand calls for ceasefire -- hundreds are being killed, thousands injured and displaced. I think a fundamental question here is: How do you stop an organization with "terrorist tendancies" such as Hezbollah? It is impossible to use precise tactics because there aren't precise targets. It has seemed impossible to negotiate a solution because there has been a refusal to even recognize Israel as a country -- and in fact calls for her destruction. Accepting the status quo, in this case, seemed to mean accepting an escalation of violence (from regular, sporadic missiles to killing and kidnapping of soldiers to..). What is the solution? Lebanon was not willing or able to take military control of their border with Israel -- so, essentially, Israel had a defacto neighboring country in Hezbollah -- a particularly unfriendly one.

I am very surprised when I continue to read or see what is happening in Lebanon and Gaza (which everyone has suddenly forgotten). When people comment how Hezbollah's weapons are supplied by Iran and Syria and how convenient that Isreal confirms that the rockets are "Made in Iran". Does anyone stop to think where the weapons of Isreal's are being supplied and paid for? That's right everyone fails to analyze that these weapons are supplied by the USA and "Made in the USA" and paid for by the USA. If anyone is to make any comments of what is actually taking place in Lebanon and Gaza why doesn't the "truth" be told. I am also no longer surprised when Isreal after each and every "accidentental" killing apologize. What good is an apology when they continue with their actions on a daily basis just at a different time and place. What about the prediction of a ceasefire is coming soon. What is Isreal doing "racing against the clock" as quoted by a news station to continue their mission before time is running out. If this doesn't demonstrate bad faith, intentions, evil than what does? Even Isreal has been quoted as saying "another day of fighting brings them closer to destroying Hexbollah". I guarentee each and everyone of you that if any other country or any other force spoke in this manner they would be criticized beyond belief and looked upon very badly. What doesn't this treatment go both ways?

i thank miss ayad for you great interest in lebanon. but miss ayd i would like you to visit every area in lebanon and ask the lebanese how they truly feel about hizballah. Hizballah is an organization that has kidnapped the shias community and kidnapped lebanon along with it.we the lebanese want a refrendum over hizballah's arms, hizballah is an iranian tool being used to put pressure on the us. We the lebanese are sick of war, we want peace , real peace. Hizballah needs to be disarmed by anymeans necessary, they need to be eliminated. Nasrallah is a cancer for lebanon and needs to go back to iran . The shia community needs new leadership in lebanon. If this does not happen than hizballah should create a seperate irania mullah state in the south and seperate itself from lebanon, they can call it hizballahstan or hizbiran, whatever they want to call it, but please leave us alone.

Nahlah

You are strong and brave. Pull through for us okay?

I would like to thank Nahlah for sharing her journey through Lebanon like it's been so far even though she and the crew are risking their lives to give a personal take on what is going on. After nearly a month of what looks like a war I understand the frustration amongst people (from the Middle East and abroad) who just want this mess to stop. I may not know the dynamics of this war or even those between the Israeli military and Hezbollah, but I have enough sense to know that it will be difficult to reach a resolution if the only thing either side knows how to do is to antagonize each other (I don't even know if either side even wants to compromise with each other). What angers me is how the Bush Administration -- who claim to be Israel's ally -- is just sitting back and encouraging this conflict to continue while people on both sides are dying on a daily basis. How many more human rights abuses have to happen before America steps in to help the UN stop this (or would they rather have Israel self-destruct)? The only thing I have seen on TV is that on CNN this tragedy is being played out like a video game and on some news websites there are pro-Hezbollah, pro-Israeli and (predominantly) anti-Israeli biases. I don't care who's right or wrong because in the end NOBODY on any side of this conflict really wins, more people are going to die and I start to wonder if this region -- like Darfur and anywhere else in the world in a similar situation to the Middle East -- will ever stabilize (given the current conditions).

The escaltion is doubling global arms sales.

Would either of the USA, BVritain, or Israel blame more of their troubles on Bin lauden and then "experiment" with nuclear weapons in the mountains of Pakistan, but for the fact that Packistan has a nuclear deterent?

Why would Iran and North Korea want nuclear weapons and who might help them?

This whole scene is a big mess.

When you distort issues, "double speak", and hide motivations, you have NO change of success.

The real issues and objectivss are lost in the rhetoric and propaganda. Yet so many can find some truth and reality.

Lets get back to ending poverty, providing clean water, food, and medical aid. The war mongers have no class.

I have always been more than impressed with the reporting from Nahlah and Adrienne in the Mideast, especially when compared to the spectacle of former MuchMusic VJ JD Roberts reincarnated as a "serious" journalist for CNN, the idea that a crisis isn't on the A-list until Anderson Cooper shows up, and CanWest's recent muck-raking front-page 'editorial' in the Ottawa Citizen entitled 'Is Iran Next?'. Thank you CBC for your standards.

I wish the CBC would spend an equivalent amount of time to report on the situation in Darfur, Congo, and other parts of Africa.

Do black people suffer less ?
Or is it a question of TV ratings ?

I wonder why she never mentioned that 300,000 israelis were displaced from their homes since the conflict started. Why she never tells the reason why so many levanon civilians are killed. Why Hizbolla use houses and civilian building for weapon warehousing. And why local population support Hizbolla. Why she never mentioned that in Hizballa sponsored schools childred are brainwashed by Iranian/anti-Western/antisemitic propaganda. Her reporting is bias and shalow.

I recommend a ceasefire after every Hexbollah rocket has been silenced. There will be no peace until Israel extinguishes Hezbollah. If the Lebanese people want peace, they need to tell Hezbollah to hit the road. Israel has every right to attack any and all sites that launches rockets into sovereign Israeli territory. While I deplore any civilian death, I am also aware that thousands of civilians died during Normandy and our boys were heroes. Ditto Israel, who is actually warning people to leave before they commence operations!

I think the best way to get the middle east crisis resolved is to let all sides fight it out until there is a clear winner. This is how WWII was resolved.

The Americans have a point. A negociated ceasefire will not solve the situation in the middle east, just like the treaty of Versaille did not solve the issues in Europe after WW1.

Here is my wife's blog from Northern Israel.

www.allkindsofwriting.blogspot.com

8 Israeli citizens were killed today my Hezbullah rockets - perhaps it takes a few more Jews to get killed to make headlines like Qana did.

Perhaps Hezbollah can conduct an investigation into this incident and issue a heartfelt apology. Probably not given it is their intention to kill citizens of Israel.

American policy in the middle east has been a failure. Iraq has turned into a bloody mess that produces an average of one hundred civilian deaths and hundreds more injured every day. The reason for America to invade Iraq ,WMD's there were none!

Did Iraq have anything to do with 911? The 911 commission says no.Most of the hijackers were from Saudi Arabia.

When George Bush was asked why the 911 hijackers hate us his reply was a well thought out[uh they hate us for our freedom]oh come on! Could there be a little more to it then that ? When Bush was asked about the resistance to American forces in Iraq his cowboy response was [if they want to fight well bring it on].Bush seems to be a man that enjoys kicking some bad guy ass and looking to play the part of war hero, remember him saying [I'm a war president]

Do you remember him landing on the aircraft carrier and declaring [mission accomplished] Hard to believe he didn't want to go to Viet Nam! Now he seems to be quite happy to sit by and watch the Horror show in Israel and Lebanon. Hundreds of rockets have landed in Israel and thousands in Lebanon each explosion causing a deeper hatred of the other .

American policy seems to be guided by the mistaken believe that you can beat people into submission it hasn't worked in the last fifty years but unfortunately Bush wants to try it one more time.Bush said that you are either with us or your against us ,maybe he meant you are either with us or you are a terrorist?

The big question for Canadians is Why does our government want to adopt the foreign policy of George Bush?

NO more talking. No more U.N. resolutions. No more bombing. No more kid's dieing. No more. NO MORE

firstly i must say (and i believe it's an echo)that as a bit of a newsmonger i am truly gratefull for not just the cbc but all canadian journalist who sacrifice so much in risk and time away from their homes.i think we recieve as close to the truth as is possible.
secondly,(and herein lay my bias),as a canadian
with half his roots in lebanon,specifically tyre,it is very difficult to watch any american coverage of the crisis as they are so overwhelmingly pro israel.yes there is expressed concern for the citizens of lebanon by cnn et.al. but it always comes with some final word back to israels defence.
i had hoped that some day i would be able to see from whence i came but the US regime and the terrorist state of israel will never allow it i fear.
i could go on....

Nahlah,
Thank you for all your informative news reports that help people like me understand what's going on over there. I think you are very brave.

No matter whether one sides with the Israeli or or Arab perspective - or whether you feel that neither side deserves any respect or support at all - clearly the situation must be resolved. Not only to prevent the horrific loss of civilian life, but for stability in the region and the strengthening of moderate Islam (over fanatical Islam).

The only way that will be accomplished is if the international community abandons their entrenched positions and acts to promote peace. Obviously, that will require the USA to take a more balanced position. Their ongoing bias simply polarizes the region more and, in so doing, does Israel more harm than good (in the long term).

Canada's perspective appears to have shifted considerably with the new Federal Government in that a clear alignment has been voiced by the Prime Minister. The reality is that it is simply silly to talk about who is to blame. There are a lot of atrocities committed by both sides to count back through over the many decades (and beyond).

Looking for long-term solutions and promoting peace is what the vast majority of Canadians (and indeed Israelis, Palestinians, and Lebanese) would feel is the most important thing.

Perhaps it is worth, for inspiration if nothing else, to consider something that Canada contributed almost 50 years ago:

Quoting from Wikipedia:
"Lester Pearson, Canada's acting cabinet minister for external affairs, had gone to the United Nations and suggested creating a United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) in the Suez to "keep the borders at peace while a political settlement is being worked out." The United Nations eagerly accepted this suggestion, and the force was sent, greatly improving conditions in the area. Lester Pearson was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957 for his efforts. The United Nations Peacekeeping Force was Lester Pearson's creation and he is considered the father of the modern concept "peacekeeping"."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1956_Suez_War

Dear Ms. Ayed,

Your blog is very detailed and I command your bravery. Yet, I would be interested in your view of other events taking place in your area. For example, most recent report indicates the the final tally of civilians killed was 32 not 68 as reported (still to many, but goes to accuracy); or the accusations by many Lebanese people that Hezbulla forces them to stay and uses them as human shields? Can anyone blame those people on the ground for hating Israel? Can you blame the Israeli mothers whos children are dying under Hezbulla rockets? Can they be "objective" sources? This is the reality of war, any war taking place today. The one in Darfur, the one in Somalia and all other conflicts that don't make the news.

Most of all, I resent some of the comments on this blog that follow that awful idiology of referring to Hezbulla as anything but terrorist group that harms both Lebanese and Israeli people.

Finally, the blame game that resonates in the Middle East towards Israel and U.S. is old. Its time to look "truth" in the eyes. Iran and Syria are supplying the money and means for these groups to continue terrorizing innocent civilians. Lebanon often called for peace with Israel such was the reason withdrawal from there by their military. So called "occupation" is a nessesary defence mechanism for a sovereign country being attacked by group that hides in baracks and shoots rockets at night.

Stay safe Ms. Ayed.

I am 100% with George W Bush's idea that the world must address and eliminate terrorism. People need to know that the foundations of Israel were built using the worst methods of terrorism - It is called ethnic cleansing - terrorizing people out of their villages by bombing them and killing their helpless, and creating refugee communities all over the region. Israel later on was ligitimized by the same organization that it is now bombing and killing its members, the U.N.. Unless Israel starts respecting the world community, human rights and begins to treat the indigenous people of Palistine like humans, there will always be exremism and terror on both sides. It is up to Israel to find a solution and not by military means because so far, 58 years after the creation of Israel, their gargantuan war machine never worked.

Nahlah, I would to thank you for your honest reporting. Canadians cannot feel or understand why groups like Hezbollah exist because rarely do many get a chance to understand the extent of human tragedy people in Palestine and Lebanon face when Israel attacks. There is no justification for the attacks by Hezbollah, but if we as human beings care about stopping them we have to respond to the root causes. How many new recruits has Hezbollah gained because of the slaughter of innocent people? Israel's neighbours are responding to the injustice to their people. There is a reason why Hezbollah is in Lebanese civilian neighbourhoods, because Hezbollah is made up of everyday civilian Lebanese who have had seen and experienced great tragedy at the hands of Israel's military power. Thank you Nahlah for risking your life so that Canadians can get a glimpse into the humiliating and horrific events the Lebanese people have to face and maybe helping Canadians understand why bombing and killing does not prevent terrorism in the slightest.

For all those who support the Lebanese point of view, obviously you do not see bias, however from a more objective perspective one questions why Nahlah only notices Israeli activity but never seems to notice any Hezbollah activity during her "observations". I am also commenting on her past reports not just this one.

We all have our views and we all have the right to post our slant on here, however Nahlah Ayed is a journalist and is presenting her "observations" in such a way that infers guilt on Israel and innocence on Lebanon.

It takes two to tango my friends, and this time Hezbollah picked the dance.

I am so thankful for the CBC and for Nahlah Ayad. Her objectivity and obvious passion for what he she does is evident in each of her reports. I personally can't imagine how she can consistently maintain her professionalism while living and seeing the death and destruction that she is experiencing every day in Lebanon. Thank you.

How can Israel ever make peace with Hezbullah when Iran is out saying... quoted from the CBC.
"And in Malaysia, members of the Organization of Islamic Conference held a special session to discuss the Mideast crisis. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told the conference "an immediate ceasefire should be implemented," and said the ultimate solution should be the "elimination of the Zionist regime."
How do you deal with this sort of mind? Is it a communication barrier, do we just misrepresent what these people say, or are they this unrealistic to deal with?

Naylah and Adrienne are to be commended for the high quality of their reporting. After enduring American broadcasting while living in the States, I know how valuable the CBC is. They call it as they see it. The interpretation is up to the viewer. Journalists have been dying in very high numbers in the Middle East. Somedays I just want to tell them to come home and be safe. Thanks to all the CBC journalists and crew who bring us the information to help us make informed opinions. It is our responsibility to do what is necessary to make Canada part of the solution and not part of the problem.

Keep up the good work, Nahlah! I have seen many of your CBC reports and I appreciate the commitment you have to reporting the facts and experiences of people. I was in Beirut over the Christmas break, at a beautiful and peaceful time, just mere months ago. I hope the violence on both sides of the southern border will soon end.

John! you better stuck with the CNN as they have the journalist that are being paid and controled very well to say what you would like to hear (terrorist, terrorist and then terrorist..the same fake story all the time but different places).
the report was just discribing the road..not talking about airestrick hitting humanitarian aide or killing civilians or destroying all the country's ports and bridges..and with that, YOU, are asking CBC to replace someone who was in numerous danger place since 2002...I am scared to answer you just in case you are a teenage or someone who knows nothing about journalist and the danger they live with...just one think I am sure about, and it is that you don't know anything about what is happening over there and you better keep your comment to yourself and not to everyone. As for Nahlah, keep up the good work and speak your mind and never let the dirty politics control your writting.

Thank you for your views and insights into this Crisis. It means alot to me, as a Canadian, that you would risk yourself to provide us with an inside look as to the results of modern war. I hope you are safe, and keep up the good work

Dear Nahlah,

I just wanted to thank you for your excellent reporting. We in Europe very much appreciate your professionalism and you risking your personal safety to report to us the truth, and not some "spin" or sanitized story that we so often get from the American and Israeli side. I also wish to thank CBC for hiring such competent journalists!

I would like to give my opinion on this topic if I may: I wonder if our Canadian friends, whom we hold with great regards for their neutrality and peace loving attitude, are aware that Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and many other organizations of the like consider the Israeli leadership war criminals no better than terrorists else where. We in Europe recognize Israel's illegal occupation of Arab land (Palestine, Lebanon, Syria) and its blatant violations of endless UN resolutions ordering it to return these lands. It is this occupation that is the root cause of all what we see now. Hizballah or Hamas or whatever is only a symptom of the main problem which is the illegal occupation of these terretories.

Your friend in Europe

Mark

While war in all its forms is abhorant, I put it to all those nay-sayers that sometimes its necessary. Many things happen in a war zone, some of which cause destruction to people and property not involved in the conflict. My opinion is that Israel is doing the right thing. If Hezbollah wants to "hide in plain sight" by intermingling with the locals of Southern Lebanon, then its up to the local Lebanese to rout out the terrorists and identify them to the Israelis. Israel is using the argument that by having Hezbollah living and operating in the towns and cities of Lebanon then the Lebanese are giving Hezbollah tacit approval of their actions, and for every action there is an opposite and,in this case, more than equal re-action. In order to rid the body of cancer sometimes healthy tissue has to be sacrificed.
Maybe we as Canadians can't fathom the life that people in the Middle East, on both sides, live because we have not had to put up walls and live with bomb shelters in our houses. If there was a culture out there who really had a hate on for Canada, I also wonder how many would stand up and defend her.

Sal
I too have given out those little pins ..and have watched our neighbors from the south paste the maple leaf on their luggage and backbacks in the hope that it would bring them aceptance and safety.
I have been to many parts of this world and when I have been asked where I am from and said Canada, have always been greeted with a smile and these words "Canada is good ..peacekeepers"

Not sure that would be the replay these days given the stance of our PM.. sad when the country that is seen as the guardian of peace by many in the world (or at least it leader)suddenly needs to be "liked" by the bully on the block rather than standing up for what is right

Guess we as Canadians need to stand up and say "We are peacekeepers"

be safe Nahlah

Contrary to what John from Toronto thinks, I find Nalah Ayed's and Adrienne Arsennault's coverage of this conflict to be thorough and honest. Of course their stories are heart-wrenching and disturbing -- what other emotions are death and destruction supposed to envoke?!

I really appreciate people like Nalah and Adrienne taking huge risk and discomfort in order to relay to Canadians the sad horror of this conflict. I just wish that more Canadians and especially our government would rally against the criminal killing of innocent people, and push for an immediate end to hostilities.

I've travelled all over the world and inter-act with local folk whereever I've gone. The little Maple Leaf pins I've handed out always bring a smile to people. I believe and am saddened to think that Canada will no longer be seen in the same light around the world -- and Canadians will not be as warmly received as we traditionally have.

John from Toronto, what exactly do you find unobjective about this blog?

How could it be more objective when all it is is simple observations?

I'm at a loss to understand.

Did you want Ayed to say good things about the destruction of Qana? Did you want Ayed to portray all those people as evil hezbollah terrorists? Did you expect Ayed to say everything is just peachy and that everyone there is happy because their homes and lives are being destroyed?

What exactly is your idea of "objectivity"?

As for Ayed, I thank you for your courage in putting your safety at risk in order to shed some light on the realities of war, and how ordinary people are affected by it.

Again I see complaints about Ms. Ayed's objectivity. The story I read was description. It seems people are projecting things onto the stories. I won't go on as I mentioned this before. `nci' Ms. Ayed

I find Nahlah Ayeds lack of objectivity disturbing. I once respected Nahlah as an articulate journalist but now it is evident she cannot remove her personal feelings from her reporting.

CBC you should replace her with someone who doesn't have a stake in the story.

May your travels be safe Nahlah and your courage increase in the face of ongoing tragedy and danger. The Litani River..this water route and source....who will control this water supply now?

It is a little more than 18 months ago that I stood in the streets of Beriut eating ice cream and laughing.The last time I had stood in that street was in 1973 when I fell in love with Beriut and the rest of Lebanon,it's people and their warmth.

I find it gut wrenching,soul twisting to see what is now happening to a people, a land...

I am not religious but I wondered on July 30th what Jesus would have thought of the events in Qana the place it is said he preformed his first miracle..I belive he would have shed tears for Qana and all who live in what we so lightly call the "Holy Lands".

be safe ..take care