Lebanese attack Muslim guerrillas with no concerns about Western public opinion
By EZRA LEVANT, Western Standard
TEL AVIV — A Western ally in the Middle East, armed with U.S. weapons, attacked Muslim guerrillas in a Palestinian refugee camp last week, killing seven.
Is that big news? The answer, this time, is “no”.
No Western newspaper has run a banner headline about a “massacre,” no emergency meetings of the United Nations have been convened, and Canada’s deep thinkers on human rights, Michael Ignatieff and Louise Arbour, have not declared the military action to be a war crime.
That’s because the Western ally rooting out terrorists was Lebanon, not Israel.
Since May 20, Lebanon has been engaged in a mini-civil war against Fatah al-Islam, which is just what it sounds like — a Muslim terrorist group, holed up in a Palestinian refugee camp called Narh el-Bared.
Killing Palestinians, including Palestinian terrorists, is normally fodder for at least half a dozen UN resolutions, investigations and accusations, and plenty of harrumphing from the CBC, BBC and Globe and Mail.
But only if the ones rooting out the terrorist are Israelis — that is, Jews.
Lebanon’s army is no different in any respect, other than that one fact.
Like Israel, it is a democratic state that is threatened by Muslim terrorists.
Like Israel, Lebanon is backed by the West.
It has recently received military aid from the U.S.
Lebanon’s military action has been less careful than Israel, which would never have used artillery to root out terrorists from populated areas like refugee camps as Lebanon has done.
The Lebanese are not as concerned about the niceties of Western public opinion — and the yawning silence of the West’s scolds in the face of 200 casualties shows that Lebanon’s assessment of the fickle nature of the media and the UN is accurate.
What a difference from Israel’s invasion of Lebanon 12 months ago to expurgate Hezbollah, the Iranian-financed and Syrian-backed terrorist group.
Lebanon’s own army wasn’t strong enough to do the job, so Israel did the dirty work, provoked by Hezbollah sneak attacks across the border in Israel.
It was the top news item in the West for weeks — and the subject of much gnashing of teeth amongst Western intellectuals.
Every day, the world’s media inspected Israel’s attacks, subjecting every military move to exquisite inspection.
Was a bombing raid too close to civilian targets — even though Hezbollah deliberately hid amongst civilians?
Did the Israelis give enough warning to civilians?
What did international law have to say about this bomb or that bullet?
Though Israel was doing everyone’s anti-terrorist dirty work, it was still too much for the faint hearts of the West.
Or rather, because it was Israel, it was too much.
So, why the double standard?
Why are military strikes by Israel news, but not those by Lebanon?
Why is an Arab killed by a Jew news, but not an Arab killed by an Arab?
Why did the UN intervene to save Hezbollah from Israel, but the world shrug in apathy — no, actually send arms — to support Lebanon against another terrorist group?
There can be no other explanation beside an anti-Israel bias in the newsrooms and diplomatic salons of the world.
This is no revelation; reading the speeches of Arab diplomats at the UN, or the official press of a dozen Muslim dictatorships is like reading old Nazi propaganda.
That explains the bias of the UN, Arabia and its shills.
But it surely cannot explain the double standard here at home of a hundred Canadian newspaper editors and TV producers.
Can it?
Something to remember when Israel is confronted with the next military operation. The Lebanese episode of Nahr-el-Bared should be the perfect reminder to disqualify all those self-righteous accusers of Israel.
The onus should be on Canadian newspapers, editors, TV producers and even Parliamentarians as regards their adding their two cents worth, to explain away their apparent anti-Israel bias as being something other then what it seems.
That onus is however meaningless unless they are made to feel the weight of that onus and feel compelled to explain their fixing Israel with a double standard being not what it appears or admitting it is exactly what it appears to be and so start the process of a major attitude adjustment.
Levant’s article alone will not put that burden on the shoulders of these institutions and people whose views sure seem to stem from an anti-Israel prejudice.
Where are B’Nai Brith, CJC, CJPAC, Synagogues and other high profile pro-Jewish/Israel advocacy groups when Israel and the Jewish Community really needs them?
Levant deserves all the credit for taking the lead, but his effort will be for nought unless the aforementioned organizations that claim to have the best interests of Israel and the Jewish community at heart prove their worth and follow Levant’s lead.