Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Looking into the barrel

Survey: Lebanon War Damaged Israel's Deterring Image - Hanan Greenberg

[O]ne serious consequence of the Lebanon war was that Arab states now doubt Israel's strength, and may take future offensive steps that would have been unthinkable six months ago.
(Ynet News)

1 comment:

LHwrites said...

Unfortunately, it does seem likely, as our own war in Iraq has emboldened Iran and North Korea, because of the resources tied up, and our poor showing there. Note that there was little sabre rattling by other nations when we took care of the Taliban in Afghanistan soundly and easily, despite the trouble they gave the Russian army for years. The world has changed, fighting has changed, and no doubt Israel is not perceived as invincible as it once was. This is why any war must be so carefully considered. The downside of anything but an overwhelming victory, to an enemy with little to lose, is that you will be perceived as weak, or at least, vulnerable.