On the verge of an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah
...following a deadly strike in Majdal Shams, in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.
Yesterday (Saturday 27th July 2024), soon after the Israeli bombing of the umpteenth school in Gaza, killing more than 50 people and injuring hundreds in Deir Al-Balah (see for instance this article by The Guardian), a missile or rocket strike in a football field in the village of Majdal Shams in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights killed at least 12 children, as reported for example in this AP article. However, unlike the umpteenth Israeli strike on the school in Gaza, this strike caused outrage, especially in Israel, which immediately blamed Hezbollah, with the hypocritical Western mainstream media (MSM), such as BBC, spinning the Israeli narrative, as reported by independent journalist Jonathan Cook in his latest article linked below (a recommended reading), highlighting the double-standards of western MSM:
First of all, it must be said that Majdal Shams is made up almost entirely of Druze Syrians and that Israel has been illegally occupying the Golan Heights since the Six-Day War of 1967. Hence, Israel should not call the Druze children “Israeli”, as Dmitri Gendelman, an advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, did on a Telegram post (emphasis mine):
A rocket fired by Hezbollah hit children who were playing on a playground in the town of Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights. So far, 9 Israeli children and teenagers have been killed and more than 30 have been injured.
This is a serious escalation, an aggression by the terrorist organization Hezbollah, and Israel's response will be very tough - we will take all necessary measures to restore security on the northern border.
Lebanon and the terrorist organization Hezbollah, which operates under the leadership of Iran, are responsible for the aggression and its consequences. This is a clear violation of UN Security Council Resolutions 1559 and 1701.
(It is funny that he talks about clear violations of UN Security Council Resolutions, when Israel is violating several of those, including the one (497) related to the occupation of the Golan Heights!)
Secondly, given the huge number (thousands) of Palestinian children killed in Gaza by the Israeli “Defense” Forces (IDF), Israel has no moral right to preach, even if we assume that it was a Hezbollah missile/rocket that hit the football field in the village of Majdal Shams.
Third point: Hezbollah has always focused mainly on Israeli military targets, as reported even by a BBC journalist in the tweet below, and immediately declared that it was not involved in the attack and even informed the United Nations, as reported in this Al Mayadeen article, suggesting instead that Israel is behind the attack, possibly looking for an excuse to start an all-out war against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The aforementioned Al Mayadeen article says that
Reports indicate that the explosion may have been caused by an Iron Dome anti-air missile that deviated off its course and struck the area, as per Israeli media
and it is validated by the following statement of Ghaleb Saif, head of the Druze initiative, cited in this tweet by the Quds News Network:
Nevertheless, Israel insists that Hezbollah is behind the strike on the Golan Heights and the Outlaw US Empire and its vassals, as usual, are on its side. In fact, earlier today, The Guardian reported that (all emphasis mine)…
US intelligence officials have no doubts that Hezbollah carried out the attack on the Golan Heights, but it was not clear if the Lebanese militant group intended the target or misfired, a source told the Associated Press.
And here is the German Minister of Foreign Affairs, Annalena Baerbock, who on X (formerly Twitter) wrote the following statements:
I condemn the attack on the Druze village of Majdal Shams. It is appalling that children and young people who simply wanted to play football were killed. My condolences go out to their families.
For months, Israeli citizens have been under fire from Hezbollah and other extremists. The perfidious attacks must stop immediately. Now it is time to act with cool head. Far too many people have already died in this conflict.
Where is she when Israel bombs schools, churches, mosques, hospitals and football pitches? Where was she when Israel bombed the umpteenth school in Gaza, killing more than 50 people, just yesterday? Why doesn’t she tweet at every Palestinian child killed by Israel? Or are they worth nothing for her?
But let’s not waste time with a German minister who doesn’t even know the meaning of a 360° turn and let’s focus instead on what the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, has said today, while in Tokyo, where he is currently giving orders for war against China (see this Wall Street Journal article, in case you are interested).
Here is what Antony Blinken said, as reported by The Guardian (all emphasis mine):
Well, with regard to the Golan Heights. First let me say that we are deeply saddened by the loss of life that we saw. There is no justification for terrorism, period, and every indication is that indeed the rockets were from or the rocket was from Hezbollah.
We stand by Israel’s right to defend its citizens from terrorist attacks, and one of the reasons that we are continuing to work so hard for a ceasefire in Gaza is not just for Gaza, but also so that we can really unlock an opportunity to bring calm, lasting calm, across the ‘blue line’ between Israel and Lebanon.
We are determined to bring the Gaza conflict to a close. It’s gone on for far too long. It has cost far too many lives. We want to see Israelis, we want to see Palestinians, we want to see Lebanese live free from the threat of conflict and violence.
Blinken says that the evidence collected so far indicates that Hezbollah is behind the rocket attack in the Golan Heights, yet he fails to provide any evidence whatsoever, not a single shred! Also, notice how The Guardian does not question his claims (see screenshot below), unlike Russian, Iranian or Hezbollah statements, in which case they always say “without providing evidence”. But, as we know, this is how “rules-based order” and Western propaganda work!
Anyway, it is “funny” that Blinken says that he is “determined to bring the Gaza conflict to a close” and yet he does nothing: sanctions against Israel and/or halting supply of weapons and ammunition to Israel would bring the Israeli military operation in Gaza to a stop, but, of course, sanctions apply only to the enemies of the Outlaw US Empire, such as Cuba, North Korea, Iran, Russia and China, not to friends and allies!
He wants to see Israelis, Palestinians and Lebanese “live free from the threat of conflict and violence”, yet he continues supporting Israel in all its abhorrent actions. In fact, as reported by Al Mayadeen in this other article…
Despite fears of a full-out war with Lebanon, Blinken reiterated that "Israel" “has the right to defend itself”, a notion repeatedly used to justify the ongoing Israeli aggression against Gaza and the Lebanese South, still hundreds of massacres later.
It is worth noting that, soon after Blinken’s statements, The Guardian reported that…
Israel’s education minister, Yoav Kisch, said he expects the cabinet to respond “with full force” after the deadly rocket attack in the occupied Golan Heights, “even if it means entering into an all-out war” with Hezbollah.
…and that…
the IDF chief of staff, Lt Gen Herzi Halevi, said Israel was “greatly increasing our readiness for the next stage of fighting in the north, as we are simultaneously fighting in Gaza”. [here]
…while Foreign Ministries of France, Norway, Belgium called on their citizens to leave Lebanon, as reported by The Jerusalem Post.
It is also worth mentioning the following statement by the Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon, as reported by Al Mayadeen:
We do not expect war and consider its chances to be very slim due to the established power equations.
…as well as the following statements by the Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman, Nasser Kanaani:
We strongly warn against any new Zionist adventure against Lebanon using the Majdal Shams incident in the Golan as a pretext.
Any reckless attack by the Zionist entity could expand the scope of the war and destabilize the security of the region.
The Zionist entity is primarily responsible for the unexpected repercussions of such foolish behavior.
…this other one by Iranian president-elect, Masoud Pezeshkian:
I pledge before the leader of the Revolution that we will only pursue the path of justice and fairness and that we will tread the path of the martyrs who served the Iranian people.
…this other one by the Lebanese Foreign Minister, Abdullah Bou Habib:
“Israel” launching any major attack will lead to the outbreak of a regional war.
…and the final one by the Head of the Lebanese Parliamentary Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc, Muhammad Raad:
It will be the end of the entity if it chooses to launch a large-scale war against Lebanon.
I have included all these statements first of all because they are largely ignored by the Western MSM and secondly because they show who really wants to escalate tension on the so-called blue line between Israel and Lebanon to a fully fledged war: not Iran and Hezbollah, but Israel!
Netanyahu, Ben Gvir, Smotrich and company are seeking nothing but the expansion of the war. Because when the waters calm down, their political career will end and Netanyahu will most likely end up in prison, because he has heavy charges of corruption. His only salvation is an endless war. That is why Netanyahu went to the US to seek support for a war on Iran and a war against Lebanon. And in fact, while he was in the US, a coincidence occurred that would justify further massacres. By the way, rumour has it Netanyahu received approval from the Outlaw US Empire for an operation against Hezbollah, while he was still in Washington DC yesterday:
P.S.: Israeli ministers and officials, including the Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, tried to attend the funeral of the children killed by the missile/rocket strike yesterday at Majdal Shams, but they were thrown out by the locals, who were shouting “Get out of here, criminal! We don’t want you in the Golan!” and “You came to dance on the blood of our children”, as reported by Quds News Network. Of course you this has gone unreported in the Western MSM, as it would go against the Israeli narrative.
UPDATE (29/07/2024): A minor update with a couple of extra readings:
Larry C. Johnson’s blog post on the same topic, with Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz’s statement that Israel has US and Europe support for escalation against Hezbollah;
an interesting Al Mayadeen article with a review of evidence available so far pointing towards a failed Iron Dome missile.