(Go Israel, Go! Slap Down Em Hezbullies!)
Well said. Certainly Israel will develop counter-measures, but Hezbollah has certainly earned Israels respect at least militarily.
By its own admission, Hezbollah claimed to have planned the kidnapping raid five months in advance. The Arabs' problem with warfare really hasn't been so much with the planning and even the execution of a plan (assuming rehersals), it's been with what happens after the plan or when a variable throws a kink into the plan that's been the problem-junior Arabs leaders don't take the initiative and aren't taught to act for themselves.
That said, if Hezbollah's been trained by the Iranians, maybe they got that problem worked out.
Look at the 1973 war with Israel, particularly with the Egyptians. Their invasion of Sinai went so well that it took them by surprise. But what to do after that? Eventually, they again went of the offensive because the Syrians asked them to, but now Israel was prepared, and Ariel Sharon and co. trapped them in the desert (at least that's the way I understand it).
Tlb, I would've thought a silkworm would have caused more damage as well. Do you know if the missile has to be armed or something. Using the Falklands example, I know there were numerous British ships which were struck by inert ordnance because of the way the Argentines had to deliver their payloads. I'm thinking either the missile was a dud, the Hezbollah folk using it failed to arm the missile, it wasn't a missile, but a drone as first reported, or the silkworm's weaker than it's cracked up to be.
"This is an opponent that deserves a measure of grudging respect. We haven't see Arabs this skillful in any of their past wars with Israel."
Au contrare, Hezbollah have a long track record of success againt the IDF during the war in Lebanon. Probably the major reason there are no Israeli boots on the ground in this stauch. Israel's VC if you will.
Actually, the 1973 Yom Kippur War was masterfully planned, skillfully and courageously executed, took Israel by surprise and came within a hair's breadth of success.
I don't think this is the same thing at all. If the Israelis were unaware of the presence of Silkworms, that's an intelligence failure on their part, but not insuperable. Hezbollah may be tipping their hands.