Opinion | Editorials
Who are the real cowards?
For a while, it appeared that Jan Egeland, the UN Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, was moved by the scenes he saw during the course of his inspection visit to Beirut.
- By Duraid Al Baik, Foreign Editor
- Published: 00:00 July 30, 2006
For a while, it appeared that Jan Egeland, the UN Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, was moved by the scenes he saw during the course of his inspection visit to Beirut. He blamed Israel for the carnage then but reversed his statement in less than 24 hours, blaming Hezbollah for the destruction.
Accompanied by cameramen and reporters of international news agencies, Egeland was shown jumping on debris of what used to be the residential district of the southern suburbs of Beirut. Full of sympathy, he told reporters that the Israeli military response had been disproportionate. "When ? one third of the wounded and killed are women and children, then it is clearly goes far beyond responding to armed groups," Egeland told reporters on June 23, which was the 12th day of the war.
Twenty-four hours later, Egeland surprised the world with a completely different statement. On his arrival at Larnaca Airport in Cyprus, he blamed Hezbollah for the destruction and deaths he saw in Lebanon. He claimed that the militia has built bunkers and tunnels near the Israeli border to hide weapons and fighters, and its members easily blend in with civilians.
He told a different group of reporters that his message was that the group must stop this "cowardly" act of hiding amidst women and children. Egeland, and/or those who suggested to him to revert his statement in Beirut, knew that this is a big lie and cannot stand the realities on the ground.
Disgraceful
The argument should now be, who is the coward? Is it Jan Egeland himself? Is it Hezbollah? Or the Israel Defence Forces (IDF)? Or is it the Security Council and the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan for failing to demand a ceasefire?
After listening to the above contradicting statements, I am sure that the most cowardly person amongst all is Jan Egeland and the organisation he represents.
The fact that he changed his statements based on what he heard, not what he saw, was a cowardly act. If he was brave, Egeland would have insisted on speaking his mind the way he had after inspecting bombed-out buildings in Beirut. He would have said that clearly and loudly, wherever he went. Otherwise, he could have kept his mouth shut or pledged contributions of $150 million from the international community for victims in Lebanon.
Egeland should have blamed the destruction and killing of civilians he saw in Beirut on the Security Council and Annan, as they did not stop Israel from continuing its aggression against the Lebanese. The war, which is now in its third week, has not been condemned yet by the UN. The attitude of Annan and the Security Council reeks of cowardice. This was clear from the UN's reaction to Israel's killing of four of its observers at the border, despite repeated pleas from the Blue Helmets.
For the first time in the history of the 60-year-old organisation, the Security Council, which was entrusted by the international community to maintain peace in the world and protect civilians in war zones, is refusing to carry out its role according to its mandate. The reason given for the slackness is even worse: to give the aggressor ample time to complete its brutal operations in Lebanon.
The 15-member Council, which met to discuss the issue, could not arrive at a resolution, although it knew that the outcome of its criminal negligence of the lives of the Lebanese civilians would be catastrophic.
Another coward in the list of cowards in this war is the Israeli army, which has bombarded the streets and bridges of Beirut knowing well that those it hunts are hiding somewhere else along the front.
The cowardly IDF pilots hit Lebanese cities day and night, with their US-made precision missiles. They aim their very "precise" guns at houses and cars carrying refugees from the frontiers, killing civilians. The war has already claimed the lives of 450 Lebanese, injuring 1,500 others.
From the very beginning of the war, the Israeli army knew that attacking civilian targets in Beirut was just an act of cowardly revenge that was of no military significance.
Buffer zone
The army, the moment it wanted to create what it called a "buffer zone", started its confrontation, moving on the ground. There's were the army started getting embroiled in a real battle with Hezbollah fighters, unlike the press-button one over Beirut against helpless civilians.
However, Egeland can be excused for his cowardice as well as Annan and the members of the Security Council, excluding the five permanent ones. And that is because of America's stance in this war, which has completely crippled the international law in favour of killing more civilians.
The precedent that been set by the US and Israel since July 12 has changed international law forever, as has been been rightly pointed out by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
The new rule of wars and international security states: "It doesn't matter whether you are cowardly, or undermine morality. If a country launches a war like Israel has against Hezbollah, it should win it using any means possible, and at any price, regardless of any values. Ends justify the means."
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