Posted on 07/30/2006 11:58:14 AM PDT by West Coast Conservative
Despite the events in Qana, the US is decided in its rejection of an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hizbullah. Minutes after speaking on the telephone with US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice (who currently in Israel), US Under Secretary for Political Affairs, Nicholas Burns, declared that the United States is not interested in repeating former mistakes.
"We need a sustainable ceasefire. We need to ensure that Hizbullah will not remain in a position that allows it to threaten Israeli security and we need to return sovereignty to the Lebanese government. We cannot allow Hizbullah to sit on the border and launch thousands of rockets at millions of Israelis," said Burns in an interview on ABC's show 'This Week'.
Burns emphasized that, in the event of an immediate ceasefire, "Hizbullah will keep firing on Israelis and Israel will stay in Lebanon." He added that efforts to create a multinational force will continue, stating that several nations expressed willingness to participate in such a force, but refraining from naming them explicitly. Earlier, ynet reported that these states were France, Spain, Italy, Poland, Turkey, and India, who had been approached by the US.
Rice to return empty-handed?
Despite the fact the Secretary Rice did not visit Lebanon on Sunday, she conducted a number of telephone calls with Lebanese Prime Minister, Fouad Siniora, in order to advance political initiatives. However, NBC's chief foreign affairs correspondent, Andrea Mitchell, who accompanied Rice to the Middle East, said that the incident in Qana shattered American diplomatic efforts. According to Mitchell, Rice may return to the US empty-handed, causing Israel to pay a heavy price to revitalize a diplomatic process.
In the meantime, Israel has intensified its PR campaign in the US. Senior Israeli spokespersons were sent to appear opposite Lebanese and Syrian representatives on Sunday talk shows. Vice Premier Shimon Peres appeared on CBS's 'Face the Nation' program, along with PM Lebanese Fouad Siniora. Minister Isaac Herzog appeared opposite the Syrian minister of public relations on CNN, while Israeli UN representative, Danny Gillerman, and Israeli ambassador in Washington, Dan Ayalon, spoke on ABC.
Gillerman stated that "it is important to recall that Hizbullah uses civilians as human shields. It shoots from the midst of the population, which proves the need for disarming the organization. They are holding the Lebanese people hostage."
Ayalon argued with Siniora's security advisor, who labeled Israeli operations, "not a war…(but) war crimes," and called for an immediate and sustainable stop to the killing. Ayalon agreed that 'war crimes' was an applicable term: war crimes undertaken by Hizbullah "who position their forces and their rockets in the midst of civilians."
Lebanon sovereignty? They have no sovereignty, they handed their country over to hezbollah if not before this started, certainly when Lebanon military fired on Israeli choppers. They've sided with terrorist. They will get what they deserve.
How many at the UN were whining about Lebanon's sovereignity while Syria was occupying it?
I don't believe it's in their genetic makeup to do that.
Let me take a wild guess......0?
Israel has denied this report. I think it still stands that any cease fire will require Hezbollah to disarm. Please show me another link that supports your rebuttal, because the one I followed actually had the title updated to read that Israel denied this.
What women and children...hezbollah women and children?
Any women and children.
The U.S. or Israel need to go medieval on these bastards. Show no mercy.
Did you not read where I said that, my post # 37? Any women and children.
What the hell do I care about terrorist women and children...They are just as likely to strap a bomb to themselves as their menfolk.
I keep my sympathies with the Israeli women and children and what harm is being done to them. You can worry about the terrorist's women and children.
Haven't you noticed that the Crusades didn't work? ONLY God can change each individual Muslim and give them repentance. We hate their sin. We hate the destruction their lies have placed on thier families and entire civilizations. We hate the harm their evil has caused others. But they, as individuals, who create their governments, can only change if they hear that Allah is not God, and that the real God wants to change them and forgive them and give them new lives, through His Son's atonement for them.
There always will be evil people. We can't just kill them all, or soon our neighbors will be killing us because they view us as evil. "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
God does hear prayers, but only of those who trust His redemption is in His Messiah, Jesus Christ, Who rose from the dead, proving His eternal Deity. This is a time when millions could be converted to Him, or millions decimated. We need to be praying.
"Be merciful, as your Heavenly Father has been merciful to you," Jesus said. THIS is why we always don't just go in and bomb the sh$t out of everyone. This is why we try diplomacy, and politics, and more diplomacy. God allows force, yes. But that's not His unilateral solution, as easy as it would seem to us. Poof, Hiroshima, white flag. But do you think they're not resentful, and have not insiduously taken over the US auto industry as one means of revenge? However, when a nation of individuals gets truly converted to Christ, they're not revengeful, but instead loving, and try to spread His love, truth, values, etc.
Correct.
And sad to say, there will be less bloodshed overall if we choose to kill those 85 percent ASAP rather than go through a futile futuristic attempt to 'reprogram' them, and THEIR kin, and THEIR kin, and their kin, and so on.
Some people are simply evil, and incapable of being programmed.
And if I recall my Sunday School lessons, when God told Joshua to go into the land of Canan (sp?), he told Israel to leave no one alive.
Now, I am not saying Israel should willingly slaughter non-combatants, but suffice it to say that the Bible even seemed to recognize that there are times when non military people are at risk of being killed.
Israel giving up the skies today lost BIG TIME.
THere is no way in hell Israel would have allowed this without the US putting it's boot on Israels neck.
The Iranians and Syrians and Terrorists throughout the ME and HERE in the US must be laughing their collective arses off.
Hey,babe. I want to see the big gun graphic! Please don't lose your magnificent touch!
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