http://www.nypost.com/postopinion/opedcolumnists/hezbollah_3__israel_0_opedcolumnists_ralph_peters.htm
HEZBOLLAH 3, ISRAEL 0
August 17, 2006 -- ISRAEL'S rep for toughness in tatters. Hezbollah
triumphant. Iran cockier than ever. Syria untouched. Lebanon's government
crippled. An orgy of anti-Semitism in the global media. Anti-Americanism
exploding among Iraqi Shi'as inspired by Hezbollah.
Thanks, Prime Minister Olmert. Great job, guy. The debacle in Lebanon
wasn't even a war. It was only round one of a war. And Israel's back in its
corner, dazed and punch-drunk.
Israel got in a gut jab, but Hezbollah landed three ferocious haymakers:
*Despite the physical damage the Israeli Defense Forces inflicted,
Hezbollah's terror-troops were still standing (and firing rockets) when the
bell rang.
* At the strategic level, Hezbollah's masterful manipulation of the
seduce-me-please media convinced the region's Shi'a and Sunni spectators alike
that Hassan Nasrallah is the new Great Arab Hope. He's got a powerful Persian
cheering section, too. * While Israel couldn't plan or execute a winning
campaign, it also failed to think beyond the inevitable cease-fire. But
Hezbollah did. The terrorists had mapped out precisely what they had to do the
moment the shooting stopped: Hand out Iranian money, promise they'll rebuild
what Israel destroyed - and simply refuse to honor the terms of the U.N.
resolution. Israel couldn't wait to throw in the towel and start pulling
out troops. Then Hezbollah's fighters emerged from the rubble of towns Israeli
leaders lacked the courage to conquer - and the number of terror-soldiers who
survived shocked the Israelis. Politicians and generals everywhere, repeat
after me: "Air power alone can't win wars; you can't defeat terror
on the cheap with technology; and (in the timeless words of Nathan Bedford
Forrest) War means fighting, and fighting means killing." The U.N.
resolution called for Hezbollah to disarm - a fantasy only a diplomat could
believe. As soon as the refugees began flowing southward and packing the
battlefield, Nasrallah told the international community to take a hike. He
knows that U.N. peacekeepers won't try to disarm his forces - if they ever show
up - and the Lebanese military not only won't try, but couldn't do it. The
world's response? The French (who talked so boldly) took a cold swig of Vichy
water: Now they say they won't send in their peacekeepers until Hezbollah is
completely disarmed - which isn't going to happen. And Lebanese leaders stated
openly that not only wouldn't the Lebanese army attempt to take away the
terrorists' weapons, it wouldn't even confiscate caches it stumbled on.
Sucker-punched (well, don't fight with your eyes closed), Israel's
complaining to the ref. While staring around in bewilderment. Want more
good news? After finally calling our enemies by the accurate name of
"Islamo-fascists," President Bush backtracked so fast the White House lawn was
smoking. Then he declared that Israel had won. That's about as credible as
insisting the Titanic docked safe and sound. And that ain't all, folks. If
you're an Israel supporter - as I proudly admit to being - get ready for some
tough love: Not only did Israel's abysmally incompetent government start a war
impulsively and prosecute it half-heartedly, the country's military leadership
failed, too. Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz, who was going to destroy
Hezbollah from the skies, reportedly put his main effort on the eve of war into
selling off his stock holdings before his bombs could weigh down the market.
Now that's insider trading! But that was just one jerk-general dishonoring
his uniform. The serious news is that the IDF's reserve
forces were a shambles when they mobilized. Information from an inside source
reveals that, when the reserves' warehouses and depots were opened, key stocks
were missing - stolen. What was gone? Fuel, weapons, ammunition, food, spare
parts - all that a modern military needs to go to war. And I doubt it ended up
in Iceland. The IDF has great combat leaders and brave soldiers. But
Hezbollah's boys proved tougher - and we can't pretty it up. The terrorists
were willing - even eager - to die for their cause. Israeli leaders dreaded
friendly casualties. And IDF troops - except in elite units - lacked the will
to close with the enemy and defeat him at close quarters. Israel tried to
fight humanely. Hezbollah was out to win at any cost. The result was
inevitable. On the ground in southern Lebanon, the IDF was able to muster
a ten-to-one advantage around contested villages. But its leaders lacked the
guts to do what needed to be done. And Hezbollah's frontline
fighters survived. You can't win if you won't fight. The IDF needs
pervasive reform. Still structured to defeat the conventional militaries of
Syria and Egypt, it faced an enemy tailored specifically to take on the IDF.
Historical reputation isn't enough - the IDF must rebuild itself to take on
post-modern threats. As one senior American general put it, "The IDF's been
living on fumes since 1967." Hezbollah cleared the air. All this is
heartbreaking. I wish it were otherwise. I wish I could back up our president's
surreal claim that Israel won. I wish Israel had won. I wish it had the
leadership the Israeli people deserve. And that's what's tragic: Israel's
politicians turned out to be even more profoundly out of touch with their
people than the pols in Washington. Israelis were willing to fight. They wanted
to win. The rank and file of the IDF would have done what needed to be done.
And their leaders failed them. There will be consequences. Iran's
convinced it's on a winning course. Syria got away with murder (literally).
And Hezbollah will come back more determined than ever. Oh, I almost forgot
those two IDF soldiers whose kidnapping triggered all this. But I can be
forgiven, since Israel's leaders forgot about them long before I did: The U.N.
resolution Olmert welcomed makes no binding and immediate demand for their
return. And the world is going to let Iran build nuclear weapons. Get
ready for Round Two. Ralph Peters' new book is "Never Quit the Fight."
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Lebih Baik, in Commonality & Shared Destiny.
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