COIN 101

Almost as soon after two Katyusha rockets fell harmlessly on Israeli fields, Israeli and American officials went to work lobbying for UN Resolution 1701 in Lebanon. Gabriela Shalev, Israel's envoy at the UN, faxed a letter to her American counterpart, and soon after Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced, "The parties must fully adhere to Security Council resolution 1701 and respect the cessation of hostilities agreement."

Assistant Secretary of State PJ Crowley would add, "We strongly condemn these attacks which were in clear violation of the cessation of hostilities called for in UNSC (UN Security Council) resolution 1701." He said the incident, "highlights the urgent need to put arms in Lebanon under control of the state and the need for the international community to remain fully committed on supporting UNIFIL which is the UN mission in Lebanon."

There's just one slight problem - the rockets may not have been Hezbollah's, which is presumably who everyone is talking about. According to the Haaretz, "Channel 10 reported that a Palestinian faction in Lebanon has claimed responsibility for the rocket fire, while military sources said that a global jihad terror group was likely responsible, according to Army Radio."

Israel is certainly correct for holding Lebanon accountable seeing that it cannot secure its own territory. This is a known fact, and accomplices within the army are likely as well. It's simply amusing how quickly Israel and America turn a random jihadist attack into a call to disarm Hezbollah. Perhaps Hezbollah aided the militants in their attack, one can never be sure. What is known though is that Israel and America will never disarm Hezbollah through the UN, they are merely yelling to raise international attention. Propaganda is powerful but it doesn't take weapons out of a guerrilla's hands.

And neither will war. At least 15 Israeli rockets have reportedly struck a village near the site of the attack, in what the IDF described as retaliatory fire. Yes, this should win the people's support. The missiles probably failed to hit the perpetrators and likely damaged innocent property. This is a pointless counterinsurgency tactic as it won't deter small bands from firing random rockets. True disarmament runs through the Lebanese people and friendly Israeli-Lebanese relations.