Say Anything Blog

The White House today blamed Syria and Iran for the Hezboallah attacks from southern Lebanon. Hezboallah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers Wednesday morning near Israel's western border, causing the IDF to launch attacks into Lebanon seeking their release. Israel has now attacked Lebanon for its support of Hezboallah, which is part of the Lebanese government. Israel has attacked Beirut's airport, which is a supply route for Hezboallah, and has blockaded Lebanese ports. Roland Watson: "I think we can expect a day or two more of the Israeli bombardment of Hezbollah targets inside Lebanon. The Israeli military justified today's bombing of Beirut airport because they said it was used freely to channel arms from Iran to Hezbollah. Despite pressure from hawkish elements in the Israeli military establishment, there is no plan at present to take military action against Syria."

Bashar Assad

Perhaps there should be a plan to take military action against Syria, other than just rattling Bashar Assad's windows. There will be no permanent solution to Israel's security problems until Syria is brought to heel. Damascus is terrorism's regional hub, as it were. Syria gives Hezboallah its lifeblood in military, economic and political support, and if Israel does not sever that tie it can expect several more generations of rocket attacks and kidnappings from these Islamic totalitarians (Michael Totten has a harrowing description of their self-governed enclave in southern Lebanon).

According to U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad Syrian newspapers "glorify the terrorists as resistance fighters . .. " and that Syrian authorities "allow youngsters misguided by al-Qaeda – from Saudi Arabia, from Yemen, from North Africa – to fly into Damascus International Airport, attend training camps and then cross into Iraq."

Syria gives shelter to Hamas terrorist-in-chief Khaled Mashaal (who looks disturbingly like George Clooney in Syriana, by the way) and perhaps to Imad Mugniyah, last seen being feted by none other than Bashar Assad in Damascus last January (no thanks to France which had a chance to arrest Mugniyah in 1985, and Saudi Arabia, which let him slip out of the country in 1995). Mugniyah has also been seen living in Lebanon, where he masterminded the 1983 Marine barracks explosion. If anyone proves the lie that Shi'ite, Sunni and secular terrorist organizations in the Middle East would never work together for a common cause, it is Mugniyah. A leader for Hezboallah (shi'ites supported by Iran), he has allegedly participated in many of al-Qaeda's major attacks, including Khobar Towers, the east African embassies, and the USS Cole. Even howling moonbat Larry Johnson says that Mugniyah has met with Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda, and they have probably forged operational ties. The fact that Mugniyah would sit down in a meeting with secularist Ba'ath party leader Bashar Assad, also a member of the Alawite sect of Islam, which is considered heretical by Wahabbis, should tell you all you need to know about the supposed intractable differences seperating the various terrorist factions in the Middle East. For more information on the absolutely impossible Shi'ia/Sunni terrorist connections see Al-Qaida's Links to Iranian Security Services.

This does not even begin to scratch the surface of Syria's support for, or cooperation with terrorist organizations. The list of terrorist groups linked to Syria is a veritable Who's Who Of Terror, including the Kurdish Worker's Party (PKK), the Basque ETA, and the Tamil Tigers. Perusing the list of Palestinian terrorist organizations, it seems that Damascus supports every single one of them. Hamas, for example, even had a terrorist training camp since 1991 in Yarmouk outside Damascus. There are reputed to be scores of such terrorist training camps throughout Syria.

Syria provides terrorists exactly what they need to thrive in the Middle East: a safe haven, 'diplomatic immunity' for terrorist leaders, banking, training, logistics, propaganda and operational support.

Israel has to consider wiping out this nexus of terror, all the more so because it is eminently attainable: the IDF will be able to attack Syria with almost complete impunity - the Syrian ground and air forces just cannot compete with the IDF due to Israel's vastly superior armament, training and morale. The Iranian ability to retaliate against Israel is next to nil at the moment, other than through its proxy Hezboallah. Iran has Shahab-3 missiles with the range to hit Israel, but as yet no nuclear warheads. Israel may be looking at its last opportunity to clear out the rats' nests of terror in Syria without risk of a retaliatory nuclear strike.

Maybe Israel should strike while the iron is hot.

Crossposted from WILLisms.com