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Al-Ahram Weekly 11 - 17 March 1999 Issue No. 420 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 11 - 17 March 1999 Issue No. 420
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Special Features Travel Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Licence to kill civilians
By Zeina KhodrEver since the right-wing government of Binyamin Netanyahu took office in 1996, it has made clear its opposition to the April cease-fire understanding, which in principle lays down the rules of the conflict in south Lebanon. But Netanyahu's opposition has become louder following mounting casualties among Israeli soldiers occupying a border strip in south Lebanon at the hands of the Hizbullah resistance movement.
"Israel should consider abandoning the truce since it is bad for the Israeli army," Defence Minister Moshe Arens said. "We are not free to attack Hizbullah. Our hands are tied and we cannot use our full capability."
The accord, brokered by the US and France after Israel's Labour-led government launched a 17-day offensive against Lebanon in April 1996, bans attacks on and from civilian areas but legitimises resistance operations against Israeli occupation troops and their Lebanese militia allies. Arens's comments were echoed by General Gabi Ashkenazi, head of the Israeli northern command, who admitted the army was encountering problems in its fight against Hizbullah. "We are finding it difficult to locate Hizbullah and when we do it is hard to target them because they are in civilian areas."
Ashkenazi also criticised the cease-fire agreement. "If we embark on a big operation, that is one of the things we would like to fix," he said.
Lebanon, however, has rejected threats to abrogate or amend the accord. "Lebanon remains committed to the understanding and we will not accept any change," Prime Minister Selim Al-Hoss said.
However, the secretary-general of Hizbullah, Sayed Hassan Nasrallah believes there will be a US attempt to amend the agreement. "This is the aim of US Assistant Secretary of State Martin Indyk's coming visit to the region," he said. "But this will certainly be rejected by Lebanon and Syria because any amendments suggested by the US will be in Israel's interest and not in the interests of Lebanon or the liberation of Lebanese territories."
While some analysts say Israel has an interest in maintaining the accord since it protects civilians in northern Israel, others believe it may try to change the terms of the understanding.
"We may see some sort of attack that will target civilians in a bid to coerce Lebanon to enter security negotiations with Israel," Rajah Khoury, a columnist for the daily newspaper An-Nahar, wrote.
Sayed Hassan Nasrallah
But Lebanon reaffirmed that it will not consider any Israeli conditions for ending its occupation. "Lebanon is not ready to discuss any security arrangements or guarantees for an Israeli pullout," Al-Hoss said. Beirut wants Israel to withdraw unconditionally in line with UN Resolution 425 before negotiations on a peace treaty can commence.
"The Labour government was forced to accept the understanding due to international pressure after Israel killed over 100 Lebanese civilians in Qana," Khoury said. He added that Hizbullah had only violated the truce when civilians came under attack but Israel has breached its terms on numerous occasions.
Since 1996, more than 100 Lebanese civilians have been killed in Israeli attacks but no Israeli civilians have been killed by Lebanese resistance actions.
Meanwhile, Lebanese students buoyed by the success of the liberation of the village of Arnoun on the boundaries of the occupation zone two weeks ago, planned to march on the southern village of Mlikh, which lies inside the occupied zone. But before the protest march proceeded, the students were warned by Israel that any such action would not be tolerated.
The London-based Arabic daily Al-Hayat reported earlier this week that US Deputy Head of Mission in Lebanon David Hill "informed Lebanon that the Israelis would not remain idle if they are confronted with another Arnoun." A spokesman at the office of the Lebanese prime minister said Hill was only speaking in general terms on the need to maintain calm in the south.
On Sunday, residents of Mlikh, located in the Iqlim Al-Tuffah mountain range, staged a sit-in in the nearby village of Jarjouh and vowed to "liberate" their village. The sit-in followed a failed attempt to march, aborted when Israeli occupation forces made good on their warnings by firing at civilians from the army's hilltop positions.
Mlikh has been abandoned for years and only a handful of residents remain there. It is continually subjected to attacks by Israeli forces. Villagers want the government to de-mine the area around the village and provide electricity and water to their homes.
Late last month, hundreds of students tore down the barbed wire surrounding the village of Arnoun. The wire had cut off the southern village from the rest of the government-controlled areas in south Lebanon for nine days.
