By William Briggs
The 940-kilogram “bunker-buster” bombs that killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah have been applauded by US leaders and celebrated by Netanyahu. The murder has been called an “assassination.” Israel’s spy-agency Mossad has a long history of assassinations. This was not just a single murder. While the massive bombs were designed to kill Nasrallah, they were also meant to terrorize a population.
The US leadership maintain the lie that they had no prior knowledge of the Israeli action. However, the swift responses from senior officials were carefully rehearsed. US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin, after a discussion with his Israeli counterpart, stressed yet again that Israel had a “right to defend itself.” He also warned that the US “is committed to deterring Iran and Iranian-backed partners and proxies from taking advantage of the situation or expanding the conflict.”
The response from Israel’s sponsor and puppeteer in Washington has been predictable. Biden described the killing as “justice.”
White House national security adviser John Kirby once more pledged American support for Israel and effectively goaded Iran, saying “we’ll watch the rhetoric coming out of Iran and we’ll watch what they do. We have capability to defend our troops and our facilities as well as Israel itself if it comes to that … Our support for Israel’s security remains ironclad and that’s not going to change.”
What becomes clear is that Israel, acting on behalf of its American ally, is doing all it can to provoke a wider conflict and one that either humiliates Iran or draws it into war with Israel and, by implication with the United States.
Kirby, in an attempt to deflect from this reality, brought his remarks back to what is being presented as a positive act of state-sponsored terrorism in killing Nasrallah. He called Nasrallah “a known terrorist with American and Israeli blood on his hands,” adding that “we certainly mourn the loss of any civilian life.” Seriously?
Kirby refused to criticize Israel’s use of such devastating materiel and that the massive bomb used was made-in-the-USA. On the contrary, he cynically assured reporters that “having decimated the command structure of Hezbollah certainly works to Israeli’s advantage and is good for the region and good for the world.”
This act that is so “good for the world” has resulted in a wholesale bombing campaign against Lebanon which has already claimed 1,000 deaths and a million people being driven from their homes. Israel says that it will continue until its objectives have been met.
People in the Middle East don’t see the murder and resulting military assault as “good for the region.” Hassan Nasrallah’s murder has resulted in waves of outrage. Days of mourning were declared in Lebanon, Iraq and Iran. Israel is no stranger to launching acts of terror against individual figures or leadership groups. The people of the region have never bowed to terror, and they will not now.
Israel’s stated objective is to destroy Hezbollah, as it has stated that it will destroy Hamas. The lunacy of such a claim is obvious. Israel is seeking to destroy resistance by making those who resist more determined. It promotes a cycle of hatred. That seems to be the desired outcome for Israel. The US has a bigger and more sinister objective. It is to draw Iran into war and secure the entire region for US imperialism.
Nasrallah’s murder was not simply an act of Israel but part of a bigger and more dangerous strategy.
Guardian (Australia)
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