To war, or not to war?
Posted on 03 August 2010
When I finally got downstairs the talk was, of course, about the skirmish on the border with Lebanon. No one was especially bothered about it, the threat of conflict or actual conflict is a way of life, but there was a feeling that this is preparation for taking on Hezbollah and therefore Iran. From what I’ve read in the Israeli press America seems to be quite preterbed by the incident.
Israel’s history is war and so will its future be, until there are some fundamental changes in both political leadership and the general public’s attitude. Israel will not allow any country in the region to increase its power and it will continue to play the isolated victim in a sea of hatred. It’s a dangerous game as the consequences could be catastrophic. Israel also has to control the many competing factions within, hence the collective fear of a greater enemy works wonders for making the public stand united.
J believes there will not be a war (against Hezbollah or Iran) for at least five years; M believes that America will do what Israel wants. The others agreed with them both. I don’t believe that America does or will blindly do anything Israel demands. That would be politically naïve. But America will do anything to support Israel if it believes it is also in its best interests. But, from what my Israeli friends have said, I do believe that the public are being prepared for another conflict.
I’ve noticed that over the last few days there’s been an increase in military flights over the West Bank. I asked if this was recent or has been a regular occurrence for a while. (It used to be a daily occurrence for so long, I’d almost forgotten what quiet skies are like.) I was assured that the flights had only started on the last few days, so there are certainly military manoeuvers happening. But for what purpose? I hope that J is right and it’s just a bit of sabre-rattling, and I’m inclined to agree at the moment, but I guess all we can do is wait and see.
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