Hezbollah is a political party and military organisation. We are talking about people who I think want to be treated as political leaders , not as organisers of terrorist attacks. I hadn't seen their party flag until I found it on Wikipedia this morning. It shows an arm emerging from Allah's name, holding aloft a Kalashnikov rifle poised above the world. What does that symbolise to you?
3 comments:
It makes me happy that MOST of the U.S. religious zealots don't bear arms. (Though one could make the case that they get young men and women to do it for them.)
Looks similar to the paramilitary logos from northern ireland, the organisation is pretty similar too : claim protect one ethnic group from another or locals from occupying forces, while providing civil infrastructure with one hand and throwing bombs with the other - much like a certaon government in the country next door to it.
Of course - the fact that they have a political wing and at least pay lip service to supporting 'their community' means that it *should* be possible to move from being paramilitary to being purely democratic (or at least disarmed), this worked with the PLO in palestine until they were undermined by Israel and internal corruption, and with northern ireland. Hammas is also in a similar position.
This isn't like 'al-quaida': different philosophy, clearly defined goals (Israel leaving occupied teritory, and ceasing it's assinations, kidnapping of political figures and civilians), altruism towards their own community (undermined and overwhelmed by incurring israel's disproportionate responses to it's activities).
Israel and the west's refusal to deal with these groups has what has held back progress and created this situation, it is also what has cost hundreds of civilian (mostly children) lives, when a ceasefire was possible weeks ago.
Aaron Trevena
http://hashbangperl.livejournal.com/
It reminds me of the bomb-in-the-turban Mo toon.
Perhaps the Muslim world will start boycotting the Lebanon.
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