It has been more than two weeks since Hezbollah launched a raid on Israel that prompted a brutal Israel response and appears to have triggered what can only be called a war. The international community has sharply criticized the combatants, but has done little more than protest. There is talk of inserting a multinational peacekeeping team, but the odds of that occurring are long under current circumstances. Most disturbing is the apparent failure on all sides to set realistic objectives in this crisis. Without them, this incident will be another bloody interval in Lebanon's sad history.
On July 12, the militant Islamic group Hezbollah launched a raid on northern Israel, kidnapping two soldiers. Israel responded by sending troops to find and retrieve the two. They failed, but not before several other soldiers died when their armed personnel carrier hit a land mine. Israel retaliated by bombing key targets, including infrastructure, within Lebanon. Hezbollah responded with rocket attacks on Haifa, Israel's third-largest city, which prompted full-scale bombing of Lebanon by Israel and a blockade of major ports.
Thus far, the fighting has killed hundreds of Lebanese and dozens of Israelis. The United Nations estimates that 600,000 Lebanese, more than 15 percent of the population, have been forced to flee their homes. Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora has said Israel's bombardment has taken his country "backward 50 years." That may provide some primitive satisfaction for those Israelis seeking vengeance for the wounds inflicted by Hezbollah. But the airstrikes weaken the Lebanese government while strengthening Hezbollah, which has won popular support for both its ability to hurt Israel and to deliver social services to Lebanese who have been all but abandoned by their own government. The creation of a failed state on its northern border does not strengthen Israel's security.