Juan Cole Commends Lebanon's Army For "Pluck" In Incident That Killed 4 People

The Israeli's were trimming a tree on their side of the border they share with Lebanon when some fools in the Lebanese Army thought that would be a good time to shoot at the Jews.

How egregious was the action of the Lebanese? Even the UN took Israel's side.

The United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, Unifil, said Wednesday that it had concluded that Israeli forces were cutting trees that lay within their own territory before a lethal exchange of fire with Lebanese Army troops, largely vindicating Israel’s account of how the fighting started.

...Israel told the United Nations around 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday that it was planning to trim a tree on a narrow strip of land the Lebanese believe should be on their side of the border, Mr. Le Roy said. The United Nations then informed the Lebanese, who objected. Mr. Le Roy said that his troops began negotiating between the two sides, but that Israel had decided to go ahead after a few hours, leading to a clash around 11:40 a.m. on Tuesday.

“We asked for more time for both parties to agree,” Mr. Le Roy said.

An Israeli commander, two Lebanese soldiers and a Lebanese journalist were killed in the border skirmish, the worst clash in the area in four years.

Juan Cole however knows exactly who the good and bad guys are.

The Israeli army says it was their tree, which they wanted to remove to get a better view of Lebanon. The Lebanese army says it was their tree and that the Israeli troops crossed the border to chop down the woody miscreant. The Israelis say that they warned the Lebanese army of what they were doing by megaphone. The Lebanese say that the Israelis repeatedly violate Lebanese sovereignty, indeed have done so thousands of times since the 2006 war.

Couldn’t they, like, have called in the UNIFIL United Nations peacekeepers to cut down the trees? That is what UNIFIL is there for. Some trees were worth the lives of Lebanese troops and a journalist and that of an Israeli officer?

One surprising thing is that the Lebanese army showed such spunk in the face of the perceived Israeli affront. They know very well that they are vastly outgunned, and of course the Israeli military hit them with fire from helicopter gunships and artillery pieces. What made them so bold, that they shot and killed an Israeli officer over the tree removal?

Is it just me or do you get the sense Cole would like to take the Lebanese soldier responsible for this out for a celebratory dinner?

I know Cole doesn't like Israel and seems to want to ignore its existence but here's a note professor...sovereign nations don't have to get permission or ask for help to do whatever they want on their own territory.

If you are asking your self, "Juan who now?", he's the go to guy for the like of Andrew Sullivan and other anti-Israeli writers when Walt and Messerschmidt Mearsheimer are busy. Cole has made a few previous appearances here at the HQ. We haven't written about him in awhile, it's good to know he's still a loathsome bastard.

posted by DrewM. at 01:31 AM

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