Hizballa and "Collateral Damage"

One of the key strategies employed by the Israelis in their war against Hizballa is to inflict pain on civilians. They are hoping that the civilians will pressure Hizballa to stop their attacks and somehow submit to the will of the Israelis.

Does Hizballa care if the population suffers? The answer is no. As a matter of fact, the Israeli punishment of the Lebanese civilians plays in the hand of Hizballa for three main reasons:

1. The suffering inflicted on the population makes it more hateful of Israel, and by the same token, more supportive of Hizballa. While this sounds somewhat illogical when seen from a Western point of view, it is quite logical to the population of the Middle East, where emotions are more powerful than rational thought.

2. Hizballa thrives on misery. The misery of the Shiites, who have been hardest hit by this war, provides Hizballa with the opportunity to offer them help. Using the hundreds of millions of dollars provided by Iran, Hizballa will hospitalize the wounded, offer food and necessities to the refugees, and help the people of the South and Beirut's Southern Suburb to rebuild their homes. Nasrallah will then become even more of a hero in the eye of the Shiites.

3. The West hates misery. Seeing pictures of dead civlians, suffering children and destoryed homes will prompt the Western powers to put pressure on Israel, thus restricting the Jewish State's room to maneuver.

It is interesting that the Israelis have not learned from their experience with the Palestinians of Gaza and the West Bank: Collective punishment of civilians does not work to their advantage, quite the contrary.