The Shebaa Farms Myth
Our good friend and frequent commenter Mike asks my opinion on the view of many of the left that the current conflict is a result of a failure of Israel to withdraw from the Shebaa Farms territory, claimed by Lebanon and used as an excuse for Hezbollah to continue its terroristic attacks on Israel because it perpetuates their status as an ‘occupier’ of Lebanon.
This view is a totally Arab-centric one, and is unfortunately widespread. Witness this post at LiberalOasis, linked to by our friend Mike, that claims as evidence that the Shebaa Farms controversy is the root problem UN Resolution 1680 of 2006. That this is offered as evidence is rather astonishing, since it deals with Lebanon’s borders with Syria (UPDATE 2:26 p.m. – to be fair, the author of the LiberalOasis piece is not arguing that Israel is wrongly occupying Shebaa Farms, and recognizes that Syria and Hezbollah are playing games with the issue to continue the antagonism between Lebanon and Israel). In fact, the representative of Qatar expressed regret that Israeli border issues were not addressed in the resolution:
…[H]e [the representative from Qatar] regretted that the resolution did not mention any breaches by Israel of the “Blue Line”…
The Security Council itself explicitly confirmed Shebaa Farms was not illegally occupied in defiance of the UN:
The resumption of military measures, for which Hezbollah took credit, asserting its claimed prerogative to resist Israeli occupation of Lebanese territory by force, was disturbing, the report says. The United Nations has made abundantly clear that no violations of the Blue Line are acceptable. The continually asserted position of the Government of Lebanon that the Blue Line is not valid in the Shab’a farms area is not compatible with Security Council resolutions. The Council has recognized the Blue Line as valid for purposes of confirming Israel’s withdrawal pursuant to resolution 425 (1978). The Government of Lebanon should heed the Council’s repeated calls for the parties to respect the Blue Line in its entirety.
The “Blue Line” mentioned is the line that the UN called for Israel to withdraw to in Resolution 425 of 1978 – and in fact the UN itself certified that Israel was in full compliance on June 18, 2001:
In resolution 425 (1978), the Council called upon Israel to cease its military action against Lebanese territorial integrity and withdraw its forces from all Lebanese territory. The resolution also established the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to confirm the Israeli withdrawal, restore international peace and security, and assist the Government of Lebanon in establishing its effective authority in the area. Resolution 426 (1978) established UNIFIL for an initial period of six months.]
In the report, the Secretary-General advises that Israel has met the requirements established in his 22 May report for the implementation of resolution 425. Those requirements were that Israel completely withdraw from Lebanese territory, that the Israeli auxiliary force known as the South Lebanon Army (SLA) be dismantled, and that all detainees in Al-Khiam prison be released.
The idea, then, that the Shebaa Farms territory is illegally occupied by Israel is one that has no backing from anyone other than Israeli opponents, and it flies in the face of repeated UN resolutions.
The more important thing to note, however, is that it is not Shebaa Farms that motivates Hezbollah, but hatred of Israel. In the New Yorker of October 14, 2002, Hezbollah spokesperson Hassan Ezzedin was quoted as follows:
If they go from Sheba’a, we will not stop fighting them. Our goal is to liberate the 1948 borders of Palestine…[Jews] can go back to Germany or wherever they came from.
The Shebaa Farms excuse is just that; it pretends that in the absence of this disputed plot, there would be no violence. It excuses terrorism and flies in direct contradiction of the stated views of the United Nations. Most importantly, it ignores the hatred of Israel that consumes Hezbollah and its puppetmasters, Iran and Syria. We know the goal of these fanatics, and it has nothing to do with Shebaa Farms.
Thanks Mark, I know very little about this supposed issue and will be reading up on it further.
Read the post more closely though because I think you’re missing the key point which isn’t that Israel is somehow at fault of being in Shebaa, but that had they withdrawn, Hezbollah would have that much more of a difficult time recruiting people to kill Israelis. I don’t understand your beef.
Is your beef with this statement?: This past May, the new Lebanon government was trying to step up pressure on Israel to withdraw, and they scored a UN resolution calling for Syria and Lebanon to clearly define their borders — an implicit call to resolve the Shebaa Farms matter.
I don’t read anywhere in the post that says Israel is in defiance of any resolution, they only state that many people, including David Brooks state Israel has withdrawn when in fact they still control the region.
Regardless of the statement above, the reporting about Lebanon’s Prime Minister is at least accurate, correct? I mean, it’s black and white he thinks there is some issue contained within the Shebaa Farms land, yes?
Take care,
Mike B.
Oh, also, a skeptical observer might notice that jewishvirtuallibrary could have Israeli centric viewpoints contained therein, perhaps widespread Israeli centric views.
Sure, but the language from the UN resolutions is unequivocal, regardless of whether it came from jewishvirtuallibrary.com – I’m not linking to their opinion, I’m using them to point to the source documents, which leave no room for disagreement.
Regardless, isn’t it transparently ridiculous to think that if Israel withdraw from this territory that anti-Semitic fanatics would not continue to rally to Hezbollah, or to deny their dreamed-of goal of a Middle East with no Israel?
Also, as a follow-up; you are correct that the LiberalOasis article doesn’t explicitly say Israel is in the wrong here, and it does indicate that Hezbollah was using it as an excuse. However, the author certainly could have helped his credibilty by mentioning the fact that the UN Security Council explicitly denied the allegation that Shebaa Farms is being illegally occupied under the terms of Resolution 425…
You know, I think I’ll update the post itself – you’re right that I’m a little too hard on the LiberalOasis piece and I don’t want to misrepresent it…
Hezbollah has very specific political goals and they most assuredly do NOT stop at Shebaa Farms or at the Green Line or Blue Line or the outskirts of Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. Their goal is the utter destruction of every Jew they can lay hands or other weapons upon. In this they may be declared “moderate” by the standards of the region in that they do not explicitly work for a new, global Islamic theocracy, merely the utter destruction of Israel. First. No, a few acres here or there are of no moment except how they will be employed to dupe those in the West with a neurotic inability to see this merciless program of genocide even when they declare it. Publicly. Repeatedly. Ad nauseum.
Re: Regardless, isn’t it transparently ridiculous to think that if Israel withdraw from this territory that anti-Semitic fanatics would not continue to rally to Hezbollah, or to deny their dreamed-of goal of a Middle East with no Israel?
No, it isn’t any more transparently ridiculous to think this than this statement:
Regardless, isn’t it perfectly reasonable to think that if Israel withdraw from this territory that some percentage of the Arab population would no longer continue to rally to Hezbollah or continue to support them seeing that Israel is acting in good faith?
I think it’s the difference between pessimism and optimism.
Granted, it shouldn’t ALL be on Israel’s hands, but they are the ones that pushed the envelope when defending themselves by taking over territory. Why should we be the ones that have to pay for this stubbornness to concede some/all of it back? This is my beef with the situation. It’s very difficult for me to look at this situation as an outsider and not think Israel should give some of the land back. In fact, I have no idea why a two-state solution is so difficult for either party to agree to. It makes no sense.
‘Pushed the envelope when defending themselves?’….Ummm, gee, Mike, you can bet I’D push the envelope when defending myself, wouldn’t you?
In other words, ‘when defending themselves’ is the key…
The terrorist groups are always moving the goalposts when it comes to Israel taking any military action to defend themselves – first it was Gaza, then the Golan Heights, then of course it was Mt. Sinai – all are facades for their only real aim – to eliminate the Jewish state in it’s entirety, nothing less will be acceptable. This is why Arafat decided at the last minute to include the preposterous “right of return,” that effectively killed the all – but – sealed peace agreement. They don’t want peace, they want the total annihilation of a people they consider to be an affront to their existence.
Mikebdot… you are right to think it’s pessimism on the part of the war cheerleaders. In the late 1990s when Arafat and Barak where close to an agreement, and before Sharon “visit” to the temple Mount, Hamas’s support among Palestinias were at its lowest ever. Moreover, terrorist/resistance activities were non existant. There was hope and optimism.
Well, Hasan, you know I would prefer a two-state solution, and I know you dream of a single state, so I know this question isn’t entirely fair – but don’t you think that the terms offered the Palestinians at Oslo were the best they’re ever likely to get? Oh, I know the deal-killer for you was the right of return…but still, doesn’t Oslo now feel like an opportunity lost?
“Moreover, terrorist/resistance activities were non existant.”
How about some actual cites for this amazing statement? Really now, you absolutely must start reading credible news sources before you keep batantly reciting news from HamasToday.
Mark, I’m talking about the takeover of land that was not previously theirs, not the sole act of defending themselves. My point is they created the mess they are in by taking over the land, why should we have to pay for it? It’s a terrible position to put us in (and themselves actually). Surely they could have seen this issue coming back to bite them…
Mike – you’re missing the big picture here. This is just another straw man for Hezbollah – if it wasn’t for this obscure item, they would just substitute (or invent) another one. If the Lebanese were so upset over this action, then why not a peep from them over the past year? History tells us what tactics will always be deployed by this group – their claims are simply not credible.
I used to be for a state solution till I truly understood the US Bill of Rights and the historical context in which it was written. I am still for a 2 state solution as an interim goodwill builing stage. A permenant 2 state solution is a defeat to pluralism. At the end of the day, Israel must evolve to a pluralistic society where the law of return is not a function of a religoius or racial background. Just imagine if our immigration policy is limited to a certain religious or ethnic group. What would you call such policy? Racist?
“Israel must evolve to a pluralistic society where the law of return is not a function…”
You mean like the one they currently enjoy in Palestine? And who says they “must” do anything in this regard? The Palestinians? Talk about hypocricy.
sheeba farms is only a pretext used by Hizbollah to stay in business.
Had the Israelis left the territory, Hizbollah would recently have not had a reason to stay, and less bargaining power when the Lebanese government sought to disarm them. This is however a non-issue and Syria screwed Lebanon by handing it over to them, knowing that they were creating a potential for more trouble on Lebanese soil. The victims in this case, as usual, are the Lebanese people.
I wish Israel could destroy Hizbollah, but that’s not likely to happen. Instead they have raised more would-be “resistance” forces against them. Yes – damn Hizbollah, enemies of peace. But also damn Israel for destroying the lives of so many civilians.
Maybe the Shebaa Farms issue, an area of about 10,000 acres measuring less than 2 miles by 9 miles, is being played out in areas here in the United States. Perhaps it’s the coastal swath of land encompassing Manhattan, Redondo and Hermosa Beaches in Southern California. Or maybe the same area of Torrance Beach eastward to the 110. Or the various so-called corridors of Southern California (Jefferson, Adams, Artesia etc.). Or maybe it’s in Pasadena encompassing the 91101 zip code? Just as ridiculous as this hypothesis is so is the savage brutality now in play in the Mideast.
Maybe it’s the right of psycho-subliminal recruitment. “Farms” (phony rooms) could be clandestine science based pods. “A” being the first letter of the alphabet therefore would represent “1″ (A=1). The “38″ farms in contention could be “Jew” (10+5+23=38). Now I suppose the Jews have just as much as right as any other cult-race to recruit and replenish as any other. My problem is not with the Jews or even Israel for that matter…it is with “hate”. Perhaps the Islamic radicals are underground (literally) with psycho-subliminal weapons gladly provided to them by killer regimes preaching a doctrine of which all the Jews are to blame for the ails of the world. Hate-mongers need an enemy and the Jewish issue is an easy target. And vis versa. Perhaps there are secret subliminal semetic battlegrounds all over the world in apartments, shacks and cottages everywhere. I live in Grants Pass, Oregon where such battle exists. Invisable psychological-physical torments together with incommunicado isolation are the standard orders.
I am certain of the existance of these pervert facilities though have no direct proof. But this Christian following the Gallilean from Nazareth am sick and tired of all the U.S. authorites sticking their head in sand (for oil no doubt) and ignoring the atrocities occuring in right here in America in the form of government saunctioned gulagsque conditions in secret restricted cities like Grants Pass, Oregon.
Umm…let’s see, ah….nope, sorry. Benjamin, my friend, I’ve got no way to even approach that…I, ah, sincerely hope you’re having a go at us, because that last post is a little, um…well, best of luck to you, if you’re serious…
[...] By giving new life to the Shebaa Farms myth (a matter that was considered settled by the UN in 2000), the UN Security Council has implicity allowed Hezbollah to continue to position themselves as resisters of occupation, rather than murdering terrorists. This is what has been accomplished, along with renewed pressure to paint Israel as the aggressor, and, in case you haven’t noticed, the notable absence of the return of the Israeli soldiers whose kidnapping from Israel’s sovereign territory initiated the war. [...]