“International terrorism” is back in the ‘news, rather inaction again, First in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and the next day in London. Its fingerprints were all over the place, Powerful explosions planned meticulously, executed and with brutal efficiency, killing a large number of unsuspecting civilians, it is “international terrorism’” in its stark manifestation. And “international terrorism” is the US Israel shorthand for Arab violence directed against Israel or its symbols across the World. Israel has sought international help to isolate and crush “international terrorism”. The USA has vowed to trace it and, in the meantime, its hook an angry, accusing finger at Iran and its Shia militants, collectively called Hizbollah, or the party of god.
When Israel airs an accusation, it follows it up with prompt but punitive action. Since the bogeyman, Hizbollah, is supposed to hide in southern Lebanon, a bout of serial pounding is in order. This comes within a few days, In fact, southern Lebanon, bordering northern Israel, has been a sort of shooting gallery for Jewish soldiers, Unchallenged incursions, artillery bombardment, war jets and helicopter gunships firing rockets and an occasional kidnapping of a semi leader or two: this forms the full retaliatory response of Israel.
Such a violent reaction, rather overreaction, should have instilled the fear of god in Hizbollah and its sponsors and supporters. Terrorism should have died a dozen deaths by now. But it has not. On the contrary, it seems to feed on this Israeli show of ruthless power and the thirst for bloodletting. How does one explain this? ‘Well, by reading Israel’s own past, that is how. The state of Israel is » child of brutal terrorism. It has tried to forget its past, clothing it in high moral arguments, Butlikesn old ghost, the past refuses to go away. It erupts at unsuspecting moments and in unexpected forms. Like the way Mossad (the Tsracli intelligence agency) sought out and extinguished the life of the Canadian who invented the super gun. His. crime was to have offered the same technology to Iraq too.
The West, rather the USA, looks with pride at Israel’s present. Its capacity to harshly subunits Arab neighbors. Highly motivated, its army and air force have put the US gifted military hardware to stunning use. Incidentally, that has been a good advertisement for the US military industrial complex and its cash registers have been ringing for more than four decades now.
But the Arabs tend to look at Israel’s past, rather the Jewish settlers” record, at the way the British mandated territory called Palestine was rubbed off the region’s map and how anew state called Israel was carved out.
The Arabs, and Hizbollah, look back longingly at that period and draw bloody inspiration from it. During those hectic days in the late forties Jewish “militants” were fighting against a reluctant British army Rather, ferocious outfits like Stern Gang antigun (with which the at Prime Minister Manechem Begin was associated) systematically liquidated Muslim Palestintanist in a Village called Der Yassin. After a midnight raid by Irgun, it ceased to exist. ‘The sheer scale of butchery so demoralized the Palestinians that they meckly conceded the state of Israel.
The British army could still be a stumbling block, and it was taken care of when the King David hotel was blasted out of existence, The British army too waved the white flag.
What the pre Israel Jews practiced was pure terrorism. Their method had all four ingredients: Select the least suspecting people, use the most devastating power, strike at the least expected moment and. Wait for the best possible fallout In fact this has been the credo of every terrorist worth his name, and Israel can Drave chilling comfort from the thought that its Arab Rivals are proving to be good students.
This then is Hizbollah’s ideal. Its motivation is the zigzag goings-on in the region. One day Iraq was a US friend, deserving all help and the next day it was ‘bombed back to the Middle Ages, Jordan ‘was its friend during the six day wat, hence became an international pariah, It now smiles at Israel and the USA hugs it to its bosom. Saudi Arabia, along time US ally, is known to be playing a double game, yet its corrupt regime is the pivot of the US policy in the entire region.
The PLO has been forced, by the new= found tightfistedness of the Gulf countries, to accept peace terms with Israel that are not Honorable. Even so, Israel treats Yasser Arafat as a junior satrap.
All this rankles, and the Friday sermons in mosques fan it into raging fire. Syria, the odd man out in this scramble for winning US support, contributes its own mite. ‘That comes in the name of Quneitra. This ancient town was flattened during the 1973 war and Syriahas cunningly left it as in. Thus the town has metamorphosed {into a thought, deeply bum into the psyche of all Arabs. Many Arabs look the other ‘way, but still cannot banish it from their mental eye or emotional view. Others, the militants, “live” the memory and swear by taking revenge.
“International terrorism” stands on a tripod, Repeated and humiliating attacks on southern Lebanon, Israel’s successful use of terrorism in the past and the scorching heat of Qunestra’s memory.
Add to it the explosive chemical of the Shia’s love for suffering, and the blood toothed face of “international terrorism” emerges. It is a pity that Israel and the USA refuse to recognize this, sometimes violence is self-willed and often it is unwittingly perpetuated by the victim himself.
A highly motivated people strike out to get over their feeling of impotence. These men are not deterred by yesterday’s defeat or debacle they fix their eyes on the distant future. Hope drives them, and only hope can set them on a different path.
Article extracted from this publication >> June 16, 1995
