Israel Loses Its First War

Thanks to weak and indecisive political leadership, Israel may well have lost its first war since the nation's founding in 1948. The UN resolution which is supposed to end the conflict, and which has been agreed to by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, not only will stop Israel from finishing the job of ridding southern Lebanon of Hezbollah, but at the same time legitimizes Hezbollah as a political entity by making them a party to the agreement. It's a big win for Hezbo.
How did this happen? The political leadership in Israel didn't act quickly when it had the chance. There was an opening big enough to drive an Israeli tank through during the early days of the conflict when Israel could have swept southern Lebanon free of Hezbo and their infrastructure, and could have done so with the approval of much of the world. However, the fear of casualties on both sides kept the Israeli leadership from doing what they needed to do to stop the problem, and instead of decisive action, fought a haphazard war that, while hurting Hezbo, certainly didn't eliminate them.

When they started losing the PR battle after that first week, their political leadership also started losing their resolve to finish the job, and now they've lost the war. Hezbo and their Arab allies in the region are now a more serious threat to Israel than they were before the conflict started over a month ago.

I'm not the only one who thinks this is so. Here's Ha'aretz columnist Ari Shavit (h/t HughHewitt.com)

Ehud Olmert may decide to accept the French proposal for a cease-fire and unconditional surrender to Hezbollah. That is his privilege. Olmert is a prime minister whom journalists invented, journalists protected, and whose rule journalists preserved. Now the journalists are saying run away. That's legitimate. Unwise, but legitimate.

However, one thing should be clear: If Olmert runs away now from the war he initiated, he will not be able to remain prime minister for even one more day. Chutzpah has its limits. You cannot lead an entire nation to war promising victory, produce humiliating defeat and remain in power. You cannot bury 120 Israelis in cemeteries, keep a million Israelis in shelters for a month, wear down deterrent power, bring the next war very close, and then say - oops, I made a mistake. That was not the intention. Pass me a cigar, please.

There is no mistake Ehud Olmert did not make this past month.

I can't help but wonder how things might have turned out had Ariel Sharon not suffered the stroke which for all intents and purposes killed him. I just can't believe that a former general like Sharon would have fought such an ineffectual war.