Bombing Beirut is no solution! Instead Israel must create a no-man’s land, a 30-mile buffer zone along her border with Lebanon—at Lebanon’s expense. Evict the population, raze the villages, scorch the earth. That will prevent missile attacks for some time.
Use the time to arm Lebanese Christians to fight Hezbollah. Israel cannot root out a popular guerilla organization that hides among civilians. What can be done with the camp-based PLO cannot be done with Hezbollah. Only the local population can conduct micro-level house-to-house guerilla searches.
Israel cannot go on defeating every country in the Middle East as its neighbors applaud. Jews are stereotyped as schemers; why is the Israeli government so straightforward? War is the last option. Hezbollah should be embroiled in a civil war instead of a border conflict. The Arab Middle East despises Persian Iran; can’t we exploit that?
Unless we are ready to attack Iran, rooting Hezbollah out is not a feasible option. We can do that, but at what cost? Accommodate them, accept the cease-fire, and arm the Lebanese population against them.
And for Heaven’s sake, destroy the Iranian reactor!
