Re: Qana
As Israel has so many times before, Hezballah raiders crossed the northern border on July 12. They attacked a patrol. Five of the eight Israeli soldiers killed, however, were killed inside Lebanon: 4 in the tank that crossed the border and ran over a landmine and one who tried to retrieve bodies. In short, this was a border skirmish limited to military targets. Israel reacted by a massive bombing campaign against infrastructure and civilian targets all over Lebanon, in gross violation of international law. It therefore did not "respond[] accordingly."
It's a telling case of hypocrisy that when two Israeli soldiers are kidnapped its an act of terror and war meriting a savage response, according to most U.S. officials and pundits, even against the indisputably innocent. But when Israel kidnaps Palestinian civlians (over 2,000 are held by Israel now, without charge), even children, these same people conclude that no act of retalliation or reprisal can be justified. The mainstream consensus is that it's an inconvenience the Palestinians should have to live with; part of the price of being Arabs.
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