The Lebanese Army’s “Martyrs”
I can’t say that I ever had much hope that the Lebanese army would be able, even if it possessed the will, to enforce various critical elements of UNSC 1701, namely shutting down the resupply of Hezbollah through Syria or disarming Hezbollah anywhere, but especially south of the Litani River. A friend recently directed me to the website (English) of the army of Lebanon, and now I have no hope.
Read the text in the boxes for each of the soldiers killed during the recent war. These soldiers aren’t casualties, they’re not killed in-action (KIA), they’re “martyrs.” It’s one thing for suicide bombers to become “martyrs,” but the goal of a soldier ought to be to kill the enemy, not to become a “martyr.”
I in no way wish to demean the service, honor, or courage of the Lebanese soldiers. But I fear that the Lebanese army has become Hezbollah-ized to the extent that nothing substantive related to the implementation of UNSC 1701 can be expected.
