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Inside the Middle East Humanitarian Crisis

AID WATCH at the Oakland Institute is compiling latest updates and reports on the humanitarian crisis in Lebanon. These updates come from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, wire services, relief organizations, and international media outlets.

http://www.oaklandinstitute.org/?q=node/view/363

(Added: Wed Aug 02 2006   Hits: 37)

As the 6am Ceasefire Takes Effect...the Real War Begins

The world may believe - and Israel may believe - that the UN ceasefire due to come into effect at 6am today will mark the beginning of the end of the latest dirty war in Lebanon after up to 1,000 Lebanese civilians and more than 30 Israeli civilians have been killed. But the reality is quite different and will suffer no such self-delusion: the Israeli army, reeling under the Hizbollah's onslaught of the past 24 hours, is now facing the harshest guerrilla war in its history. (Robert Fisk, Independent, 14 August 2006)

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0814-01.htm

(Added: Wed Aug 16 2006   Hits: 32)

Bush 'Viewed War in Lebanon as a Curtain-Raiser for Attack on Iran'

This article looks at the report by Seymour Hersh published in the New Yorker that claims that the Bush administration was informed in advance and gave the "green light" to Israel's military strikes against Hizbollah ­ with plans drawn up months before two Israeli soldiers were seized ­it has been claimed. This report is the first to tie the Israeli operation to a broader framework that includes a possible US strike against Iran. (Andrew Buncombe, 14 August 2006, Independent)

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0814-06.htm

(Added: Wed Aug 16 2006   Hits: 30)

Israel/Palestine/Lebanon: Climbing Out of the Abyss

A diplomatic and political approach is needed to defuse the twin crises in Lebanon and Palestine, including immediate ceasefires on both fronts and steps to restore stability and re-launch a comprehensive peace process, or matters could become far worse. Resolution of the Palestinian crisis should involve allowing the elected government to govern in exchange for a cessation of hostilities. Israel's pursuit of a knockout against Hizbollah is unrealistic and counterproductive, risking pushing Lebanon to breaking point. Cessation of hostilities should be followed by a prisoner exchange and, if agreed by all parties, dispatch of a UN-authorised international force charged with verifying ceasefire adherence. Sustainable peace requires continued EU and UN engagement with Hamas and Hizbollah and renewed U.S. engagement with Syria and Iran. The key to resolving both crises is reinvigorating the Israeli-Arab peace processes. (International Crisis Group, 25 July 2006)

http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?l=1&id=4282

(Added: Wed Jul 26 2006   Hits: 76)

Lebanon, Israel, and the "greater west Asian crisis"

The Lebanon war is one component of the crisis of a new geopolitical region - "greater west Asia" - whose dangers are comparable to those of Europe in 1914, according to this article. (Fred Halliday, Open Democracy, 18 August 2006)

http://www.opendemocracy.net/globalization/westasia_crisis_3833.jsp

(Added: Mon Aug 21 2006   Hits: 41)

Agreement Struck in Lebanon to End Political Crisis

The agreement reached by Lebanese political factions early Wednesday amounted to a significant shift of power in favor of the militant Shiite group Hezbollah and its allies in the opposition, who won the power to veto any cabinet decision

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/22/world/middleeast/22lebanon.html?_r=1&ref=world&oref=slogin

(Added: Thu May 22 2008   Hits: 18)

Amnesty International coverage on Lebanon

Amnesty International's reports and press releases on the situation in Lebanon. Regularly updated.

http://web.amnesty.org/library/eng-lbn/index

(Added: Wed Aug 09 2006   Hits: 32)

Analysis: could Israel face war crimes charges?

A UN warning that Israel's bombardment of Lebanon may constitute war crimes has legal legs - but with the issue as much about politics as law prosecutions are unlikely anytime soon, analysts say. (Michael Herman, Times Online, 20 July 2006)

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,251-2278347,00.html

(Added: Fri Jul 21 2006   Hits: 39)

Call for an immediate investigation into violations of international law by Israeli and Hizbullah

These violations may amount to war crimes. By writing to member states of the UN Security Council, request that the UN Secretary-General establishes a comprehensive, independent and impartial investigation.

http://web.amnesty.org/pages/isr-180806-action-eng

(Added: Thu Aug 24 2006   Hits: 258)

CrisisWatch N°36, 1 August 2006

In 36 months of publishing CrisisWatch, the International Crisis Group has not recorded such severe deteriorations in so many conflict situations as in the past month. The Middle East erupted with full-scale conflict between Israel and Hizbollah in south Lebanon, and there was a major escalation in Israel's conflict with Hamas in Gaza. Insecurity and sectarian violence surged in Iraq, claiming over 100 civilian lives daily. Somalia sits on the brink of all-out civil war, which is drawing in the wider region: Ethiopian troops entered Somalia to support the transitional federal government, and Eritrea is arming the opposing Union of Islamic Courts. In Sudan, implementation of the Darfur Peace Agreement was at a standstill, with rebels split, and fighting, over the agreement. The Mumbai bombings that killed over 200 had wider implications for the normalisation process between India and Pakistan. Tensions rose dramatically on the Korean Peninsula after Pyongyang fired seven test missiles. The situation also deteriorated in Colombia, Côte d'Ivoire and Haiti. Four situations showed improvement in July 2006: The Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Timor-Leste, and Cyprus. (ICG, 1 August 2006)

http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?l=1&id=4296

(Added: Wed Aug 02 2006   Hits: 108)

Deliberate destruction or 'collateral damage'? Israeli attacks against civilian infrastructure

The briefing that follows summarizes Amnesty International's initial assessment and concerns on the massive destruction of civilian infrastructure in Lebanon that has taken place during the conflict. It is based on first-hand information from a field mission which has visited Lebanon; interviews with dozens of victims of the attacks; official statements and press accounts; discussions with UN, Israeli military and Lebanese government officials; and talks with Israeli and Lebanese non-governmental groups. The briefing does not cover in any detail the broader implications of the bombing campaign, but underlines the need for an urgent and comprehensive international inquiry into the conduct of the hostilities by both parties. (Amnesty International, August 2006)

http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGMDE180072006

(Added: Thu Aug 24 2006   Hits: 38)

Did Hizbollah miscalculate? The view from Israel

This Open Democracy article asks the question: Why did Hizbollah launch its border operation against Israel, and is the movement prepared for the consequences? The article's author, Thomas O'Dwyer, is based in Tel Aviv and reports on the efforts of expert Israeli observers make sense of an escalating crisis.

http://www.opendemocracy.net/conflict-middle_east_politics/hizbollah_3739.jsp

(Added: Tue Jul 18 2006   Hits: 34)

Fatal Strikes: Israel's Indiscriminate Attacks Against Civilians in Lebanon

Israeli forces have systematically failed to distinguish between combatants and civilians in their military campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon. The pattern of attacks in more than 20 cases investigated by Human Rights Watch researchers in Lebanon indicates that the failures cannot be dismissed as mere accidents and cannot be blamed on wrongful Hezbollah practices. In some cases, these attacks constitute war crimes. (Human Rights Watch, August 2006)

http://hrw.org/reports/2006/lebanon0806/

(Added: Mon Aug 07 2006   Hits: 51)

Flooding South Lebanon: Israel's Use of Cluster Munitions in Lebanon in July and August 2006

Human Rights Watch performed research in more than 40 towns and villages found that the IDF's use of cluster munitions was both indiscriminate and disproportionate, in violation of International Humanitarian Law, and in some locations possibly a war crime. In dozens of towns and villages, Israel used cluster munitions containing submunitions with known high failure rates. These left behind homes, gardens, fields, and public spaces-including a hospital-littered with hundreds of thousands and possibly up to one million unexploded submunitions. By their nature, these dangerous, volatile submunitions cannot distinguish between combatants and non-combatants, foreseeably endangering civilians for months or years to come Human Rights Watch, February 2008).

http://hrw.org/reports/2008/lebanon0208/lebanon0208webwcover.pdf

(Added: Fri Feb 22 2008   Hits: 29)

Human Rights Watch Coverage of the Israel-Lebanon Conflict

Regularly updated.

http://hrw.org/campaigns/israel_lebanon/

(Added: Thu Jul 20 2006   Hits: 39)

Israel's action threatens to reopen moral vacuum of war years

This editorial in the Daily Star of Lebanon argues that Israel does have the right to defend itself but that indiscriminate acts of warfare are not defence. Instead, the paper's editors argue, the best way for Israel to ensure its security is through a comprehensive Middle East peace process. This Article has been included as a counterpoint to the op-ed ("Star Over") from the Haaretz newspaper of Israel, which is also included in the Crisis in Lebanon section of the Dev-Zone Knowledge Centre. Both articles have been included to capture some sense of the feelings in the two countries involved in this conflict.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&article_id=74000&categ_id=17

(Added: Tue Jul 18 2006   Hits: 32)

Israel, Lebanon, and beyond: the danger of escalation

In this article on Open Democracy, Paul Rogers, English academic and specialist in Peace Studies, discusses the forces at play in the current Israel / Lebanon conflict. In it he analyses the political and military motivations of the forces involved and also looks into how the legacy of Israel's previous occupation of Southern Lebanon may influence what the IDF does.

http://www.opendemocracy.net/conflict/escalation_3743.jsp

(Added: Tue Jul 18 2006   Hits: 34)

Lebanon: Which Way Lies Democracy

Anti-government demonstrations held in downtown Beirut since Dec. 1 have sparked debate about democracy in Lebanon. Protestors, largely Hezbollah supporters, have been calling on Prime Minister Fouad Siniora to give more cabinet posts to the opposition, or resign. Siniora has warned that the demonstrations are threatening democracy, but many demonstrators say they are actually working to strengthen it. (Roxana Saberi, IPS, 15 January 2007)

http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=36170

(Added: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 30)

Lebanon: The First Step to Remaking the Middle East by Force

This article asks: Is the current operation in Lebanon a joint U.S./Israeli operation, with the latter playing the role of American mercenaries? Or was the Bush administration caught by surprise by the kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers at the beginning of the month and the rapid escalation of hostilities? Why, after initial concerns about the destabilization of the Lebanese government, has the United States been willing to countenance the wholesale destruction of Lebanon (and not just the destruction of Hizbullah's bases in southern Lebanon)? Why, when a political solution to Middle East problems seemed so close weeks ago, is this happening now? (Edmund Burke, Oakland Institute, 31 July 2006)

http://www.oaklandinstitute.org/?q=node/view/364

(Added: Wed Aug 02 2006   Hits: 34)

Lebanon: unity within diversity

This article from Open Democracy looks at the people of Lebanon and their different groupings and beliefs. It argues that the nature of Lebanon may affect the way that the conflict between Lebanon and Israel plays out. It also looks at how the conflict may affect the delicate internal balance within Lebanon.

http://www.opendemocracy.net/conflict-middle_east_politics/lebanon_unity_3740.jsp

(Added: Tue Jul 18 2006   Hits: 34)

Noam Chomsky: U.S.-Backed Israeli Policies Pursuing "End of Palestine"; Hezbollah Capture of Israeli Soldiers "Very Irresponsible Act" That Could Lead

to "Extreme Disaster". A transcript of Amy Goodman's interview with Noam Chomsky and Mouin Rabbani, which took place soon after Israel began bombing Lebanon. (Democracy Now, 14 July 2006)

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/07/14/146258

(Added: Fri Jul 21 2006   Hits: 82)

NZ backs efforts for Middle East ceasefire

Prime Minister Helen Clark said today that New Zealand was strongly supporting the efforts of the UN Secretary General to bring about an immediate ceasefire to the conflict in the Middle East and to negotiate and implement a solution to the crisis. New Zealand called on all sides to pull back from violence, observe international law and allow international facilitators and mediators a chance to put a peace process together. (NZ Government, 24 July 2006)

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0607/S00385.htm

(Added: Tue Jul 25 2006   Hits: 188)

On the US-Israeli Invasion of Lebanon

The standard Western version is that the July 2006 invasion was justified by legitimate outrage over capture of two Israeli soldiers at the border. The posture is cynical fraud. For over 30 years, Washington has unilaterally barred a peaceful political settlement, with only slight and brief deviations. (Noam Chomsky, Znet, 24 August 2006)

http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?ItemID=10811

(Added: Fri Aug 25 2006   Modified: Tue Sep 26 2006   Hits: 92)

Operation Peace for the IDF

In this opinion peace from Israeli newspaper Haaretz, columnist Gideon Levy argues that Israel is reacting disproportionately to the kidnapping of its soldiers by Hezbollah. He argues that: "Israel once again is not distinguishing between a justified war against Hezbollah and an unjust and unwise war against the Lebanese nation."

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/738739.html

(Added: Tue Jul 18 2006   Hits: 33)

Paradise Lost

Robert Fisk's elegy for Beirut - the 'Paris of the East' - defiled once again. (The Independent, 19 July 2006)

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article14068.htm

(Added: Thu Jul 20 2006   Hits: 31)

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