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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Hezbollah Didn't Win |
| 2006-08-25 |
| by Amir Taheri, Wall Street Journal The way much of the Western media tells the story, Hezbollah won a great victory against Israel and the U.S., healed the Sunni-Shiite rift, and boosted the Iranian mullahs' claim to leadership of the Muslim world. Portraits of Hassan Nasrallah, the junior mullah who leads the Lebanese branch of this pan-Shiite movement, have adorned magazine covers in the West, hammering in the message that this child of the Khomeinist revolution is the new hero of the mythical "Arab Street." Probably because he watches a lot of CNN, Iran's "Supreme Guide," Ali Khamenei, also believes in "a divine victory." Last week he asked 205 members of his Islamic Majlis to send Mr. Nasrallah a message, congratulating him for his "wise and far-sighted leadership of the Ummah that produced the great victory in Lebanon." By controlling the flow of information from Lebanon throughout the conflict, and help from all those who disagree with U.S. policies for different reasons, Hezbollah may have won the information war in the West. In Lebanon, the Middle East and the broader Muslim space, however, the picture is rather different. . . . Go read the whole thing; there's a lot of interesting stuff in there that the MSM doesn't bother reporting. The last paragraph is worth highlighting: Having lost more than 500 of its fighters, and with almost all of its medium-range missiles destroyed, Hezbollah may find it hard to sustain its claim of victory. "Hezbollah won the propaganda war because many in the West wanted it to win as a means of settling score with the United States," says Egyptian columnist Ali al-Ibrahim. "But the Arabs have become wise enough to know TV victory from real victory." |
| Posted by:Mike |
| #10 Hey people, IMHO, the most important result of this war is the reversal of IDF's last dec policies re reservists' training etc... (Anybody advocating "professional armies should be reminded of the aftermath of Manzikert) and |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2006-08-25 18:50 |
| #9 My rule of thumb is, if you have to write a detailed analysis explaining the nuances that demonstrate you're the clear winner, then you're probably not the clear winner. Which doesn't mean you're the loser, of course. |
| Posted by: WhitecollarRedneck 2006-08-25 16:18 |
| #8 Sorry, but this article is just spin. Was it Mao who said "the Guerilla wins if he doesn't lose; the regular army loses if it doesn't win." Hez still exists, therefore they won. |
| Posted by: Greting Ebboting9640 2006-08-25 16:07 |
| #7 Hezbollah Didn't Win Yep. Though Israel earned a sour victory that it would be best advised not to repeat. Next time, complete the mission. |
| Posted by: Lancasters Over Dresden 2006-08-25 14:09 |
| #6 Hezbollah Didn't Win Now, all that remains is to |
| Posted by: Zenster 2006-08-25 13:13 |
| #5 The term is Pyrrhic Victory at best. |
| Posted by: Snish Whoque7727 2006-08-25 09:35 |
| #4 And the Hezbos still have the bodies of the two Israeli soldiers. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-08-25 08:57 |
| #3 Hezbo victory condition was to prevent Israel from achieving its goals. Hezbos are still in power and the Israelis have made themselves look like the Keystone Kops. Iran and Syria will ship in more and better missiles. 500 new martyrs are in training in Iran as we speak. Tehran will develop a nuke and deploy to Hezb'Allah. How is this a defeat? Taheri spends a lot of the article giving non-pro-Hezb'Allah quotes from various Lebanese commentators and politicos, but the fact remains that Hezb'Allah is still where it was in Lebanon and no Lebanese is doing anything about it. If Israel ever demolishes Hezb'Allah, everybody in Lebanon will have been anti-Hezbo, just like everybody in France was in the Resistance. I guess the Lebanese did learn something from their colonial masters. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-08-25 08:57 |
| #2 Ask the hezzies if they want a few more "victories" just like this one. heh. "But the Arabs have become wise enough to know TV victory from real victory." It depends what you mean by "arabs." arab governments were happy to see damage inflicted on Iran's proxy. The arab street, I'm sure, is convinced the hezzies won. |
| Posted by: PlanetDan 2006-08-25 08:22 |
| #1 In the Arab mind if you're still alive you won and if you're stain somewhere your buds will claim victory. The only true win is silence. |
| Posted by: BrerRabbit 2006-08-25 08:02 |