Informed Speculation

It’s the clearest sign yet that the recent war was a major defeat for Israel; I don’t know what is more odious, the thought that Israel has to pay ransom, or the thought that it is the UN that will decide how much the ransom is:

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Monday that Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to indirect talks for the release of two abducted Israeli soldiers and that he would appoint a mediator.

It would be the first time that Israel has publicly agreed to indirect contacts with the Lebanese guerrilla group over winning the release of the two soldiers, snatched in a cross-border raid on July 12.

Their capture sparked a massive Israeli offensive against Hezbollah that lasted 34 days until a U.N.-arranged cease-fire.

Hezbollah has said it would only free the two Israelis as part of a swap for Arab prisoners held by Israel. The Islamic militant group also has said it is ready for mediation to arrange an exchange. Israel has insisted it wants an unconditional release of the soldiers.

Annan told a press conference in Jeddah that both sides had agreed for the U.N. secretary-general to negotiate between them on the issue of the soldiers, according to an Arabic translation of his comments.

Charles Krauthammer recently tried to convince us that Hezbollah had lost the recent war (funny, that, since Krauthammer seemed to know what the stakes were BEFORE the ceasefire); tell me again, Charles, how Kofi Annan will fairly represent the Israelis, and then I’ll tell you the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears…