Not a day, nor an hour goes by without television hitting us with the horrible images of the destruction that Tsahal is inflicting on Lebanon. All this accompanied by the interminable account of dead people. Yes, this war as yet without a name, kills many. Yes, the hundreds of dead Lebanese include women and children.

But first let us ask a question which is not just a mere formality. Hizballah is an army, an insurrectional army that is carrying out an insurrectional war. Now, in this sort of conflict, a “civilian” is often a militiaman who has just laid down his Kalachnikov or who will take it up a few hours later. This has to be said and has to be kept in mind. As must also be said and be kept in mind that Hizballah is a cynical organisation that feeds on the hatred and revenge spread by each death.  And that is why the army of cowards has its base in the civilian population, that is why it trains adolescents to become militiamen – when it doesn’t train them to become kamikazes – and that is why it conceals its stockpile of weapons in family homes. It must also be kept in mind that the Israeli army forewarns the civilian population before it strikes. This, of course, doesn’t diminish the horror of both the death of innocent women and children.

But, it’s a fact, that all those who in political circles as well as in the media denounce the disproportion of the Israeli counterattacks are, in the final analysis, happy with the fact that Israel does the job, “the hard work” as the Russians say. Can there be anyone in Europe or in the Arab world who does not want to see an end to Hizballah, this totalitarian and terrorist organisation that, yesterday, took a democracy as hostage and that today takes hostage the entire Lebanese population?  Can there be anyone who doesn’t wish to destroy this armed branch of the Republic of mullahs. Yes, the Israeli offensive upsets because it kills civilians. But, yes, it pleases in fact a lot of people - and many capital cities – because at last it provides an opportunity to end with Hizballah (at least on a military level) and to force Teheran to realise that there are red lines that cannot be crossed.

Let us not fool ourselves : a retreat or weakness of the Hebrew State would do no service to the world – and we are not referring here only to the western world – if the offensive does not reach its logical end, that is, to destroy the Hizballah fighters,  eliminate its leaders,  break its chain of command and its operational capacity and get rid of the weight that its stock of missiles lay on Israel  (not only on Israel but also on the Arab governments which, tomorrow, could upset Teheran, as well as Jordan …),  then these dead will not have died in vain. If the military organisation of Hizballah is not destroyed, then, tomorrow, it will be the soldiers of the U.N.O. taking part in an army of intervention who will be the target of their weapons and the hostages who will rot in the caves of Beirut, as in 1985, will be foreigners.

The smart ones will say that it would be enough to apply the 1559 resolution of the U.N.O. Sure, but as it happens the only problem is that the U.N.O. is a giant with feet of clay that never has the willpower to carry out (its) decisions. The international community said it already years ago: the Hizballah has to disarm. But the Hizballah has refused to do it and has plunged Lebanon in tragedy. Who has been there to apply this resolution? Has the Lebanese Army?  Certainly not!  Besides, Lebanon is now led by a government that includes three Hizballah members – one official and two sympathizers – and its Prime Minister who asks the organisation to lay down the arms knows for certain that they will not listen. As to the President of Lebanon, Emile Lahoud, this valet who has sold his country to Syria, proclaims urbi and orbi that “Hizballah is respected throughout the Arab world.” His master’s voice…

Human nature and that of the world are such that laws without enforcement are useless. If that were not the case, would we really need  police to apply penal laws in our democracies?  Wouldn’t the citizens follow the rules of their own accord? But that is not the case.

Today it is Israel that has to do the dirty job in Lebanon.  There’s no reason, here, to crown with laurel-wreaths soldiers of this democracy. But maybe there is one reason to pay attention to the criticisms and the manner in which they are uttered. Today, when the Lebanese government or Europe, condemn the “disproportion” of the Israeli retaliation, they do it because of their failures, their cowardice and their compromises. These failures, this cowardice and these compromises, as much as the senseless provocation of Hizballah, have plunged Lebanon in mourning. The Israeli army is here only the instrument of destiny.  But it is a very heavy weight to be carried by a democracy which, it’s true, after so many years, has become accustomed to go it alone.