Lebanese Defense

A few days ago I highlighted Imshin's comments defending Israel's actions in Lebanon. I just found a great post passionately arguing the Lebanese perspective. Although as with Imshin's posts I don't agree with everything in it - I think, for example, that the Shebaa Farms issue is just an excuse for Hizbullah to stay armed - I still advocate reading the whole thing. I will, however, highlight this portion:

"Do Americans and Israelis actually believe this drivel? Hezbollah does not need to blend into the population of the South. Hezbollah IS the population of the south. Thousands upon thousands upon thousands of Lebanese are loyal and passionate about Hezbollah. It is true that Hezbollah has the backing of Syria and Iran, but to claim it’s a foreign entity is lunacy. Hezbollah is a Lebanese party, with Lebanese leaders and Lebanese followers, with Lebanese aspirations and Lebanese deficiencies. Whether you like it or not, it is the single most popular party in Lebanon.

"There is no way to get rid of a resistance that has the backing of a large portion of the population. Hezbollah has its roots deep in Lebanese society, with literally hundreds of thousands of supporters. Unless Israel is thinking of mass extermination of a vast section of the Lebanese people, there is no way to eliminate the resistance.

"Israel’s current strategy (bombing the hell out of us) will not shake Hezbollah. They do not have infrastructures that can be hit from the air. They don’t have tanks and caserns. Even if Israel is foolish enough to go for a ground invasion, and even if they break Hezbollah's military backbone after suffering major losses, the resistance will not fade away. Other groups will form; other forms of resistance will take shape, more effective and more deadly to Israel."

This is all true, and one reason I'm not sure what Israel is trying to accomplish. The post also notes that the Maronite Christian Michael Awn and his organization have been supporting Hizbullah. Those two formed an alliance a year or two ago, and this crisis is probably helping them politically.