Sailing in Dangerous Waters
“If I am not for myself, who am I for?”
—–Hillel
This Tuesday evening, November 3rd, the Francopt, a ship bound for Syria and Lebanon was intercepted by the Israeli military approximately 100 miles off the coast of Israel. On board were hundreds of tons of weapons intended most likely for Hizbullah.
What had been seized there was an arms cache approximately ten times the size of the notorious Karin-A, a ship seized by the Israeli Defense Forces(IDF) in January of 2002 with a huge arms cache organized and funded by close associates of Yasir Arafat and intended for Fatah’s al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades bound for Hamas in Gaza.
What was found on board were hundreds of tons of Iranian made weapons, including some 3,000 rockets, missile launchers, guns and ammunition.
Bear in mind that we are at the breakout point of a nuclear Iran, and that technology is becoming increasingly more transportable. Unfortunately, the possibility of a briefcase-sized nuclear weapon that can easily be smuggled into other countries is not in the realm of science fiction, but might be realized in the not-too-distant future.
Moreover, from this we understand the wisdom of the philosophy of self-reliance of the government of the state of Israel. It has always been a cornerstone of Israel’s national creed that Israel can never rely on international monitors for its national defense.
A brief history lesson: After years of the north of Israel being pounded by shells, Operation Shalom HaGalil was launched in 1982, to try to clean up the Syrian and Iranian presence in southern Lebanon. For eighteen years thereafter, there had been a continuous presence of the IDF in southern Lebanon, which gave birth to a very contentious, domestic internal debate. Israel was prohibited from acting offensively during those years, and many of the Israeli people were sick of seeing their sons become target practice for Hizballah.
In May 2000, Israel decided to remove every single last Israeli soldier and outpost from southern Lebanon. The United Nations certified Israel’s withdrawal complete. So certain was that fact that the UN painted the stones blue, which had become the northern front for Israel, “the blue line”.
In June 2005, the “blue line” was crossed by Hezbollah, who kidnapped three Israeli soldiers and killed several others . This incident was causus belli and launched what is referred to as the “The Second Lebanon War”, between Israel and Hezbollah, which lasted approximately one month.
A ceasefire was called and United Nations Resolution 1701 was adopted in 2006, calling for the immediate cessation of hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel and for the immediate placement of 15,000 UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) troops into South Lebanon.
Spain makes up a large component of the UNIFIL forces, essentially 1500 troops. At this moment, UNIFIL operates under the command of Italian General Claudio Greziano.
However, according to a report in “Haaretz” the Israelis want Graziono to stay because they are afraid that the Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is decidedly anti-Israeli , pro-Hamas, and pro-Hizballah, and according to today’s Pajama’s Media, leads what is “decidedly the most anti-Israeli government in Europe.” In January 2006, Mr. Zapartero is going to be rotated in as the Head of the European Union.
A massive roadside bomb killed six Spanish soldiers of UNIFIL in June 2007. Around that time, Spanish, Italian and French intelligence agents met with Hizballah representatives to discuss security measures. As a result, Spanish patrols are often “escorted” by Hizballah gunmen.
The short end of the most recent ship saga is that Israel has learned over and over again that Israel is sailing in dangerous waters and has no one to depend upon but itself when it comes to its self-defense.