"Kill
Them! Kill Everyone!
All Of Them!"
By Uri Avnery
28 November, 2006
Gush Shalom
During
the first Lebanon war, I visited Jounieh, a town some 20 km north of
Beirut. At the time, it served as a port for the Christian forces. It
was an exciting evening.
In spite of the war raging
in nearby Beirut, Jounieh was full of life. The Christian elite spent
the day in the sun-drenched marina, the women lounging in bikinis, the
men slugging whisky. The three of us (myself and two young women from
my editorial staff--a correspondent and a photographer) were the only
Israelis in town, and so we were feted. Everybody invited us onto their
yachts, and one rich couple insisted that we come to their home as guests
of a family celebration.
It was indeed something special.
The dozens of family members belonged to the cream of the elite--rich
merchants, a well-known painter, several university professors. The
drinks flowed like water, the conversation flowed in several languages.
Around midnight, everybody
was slightly drunk. The men got me into a "political" conversation.
They knew that I was an Israeli, but had no idea about my views.
"Why don't you go into
West Beirut?" one portly gentleman asked me. West Beirut was held
by Arafat's PLO forces, who were defending hundreds of thousands of
Sunni inhabitants.
"Why? What for?"
I queried.
"What do you mean? To
kill them! To kill everybody!"
"Everybody? Women and
children, too?"
"Of course! All of them!"
For a moment, I thought that
he was joking. But the faces of the men around him told me that he was
deadly serious and that everybody agreed with him.
At that moment I grasped
that this beautiful country, rich in history, blessed with all the pleasure
of life, is sick. Very, very sick.
The next day I indeed went
into West Beirut, but for another purpose altogether. I crossed the
lines to meet with Yasser Arafat.
(By the way, at the end of
the party in Jounieh my hosts gave me a parting present: a big packet
of hashish. On the morrow, on my way back to Israel, after Arafat had
made our meeting public, I heard over the radio that four ministers
were demanding that I should be put on trial for treason. I remembered
the hashish and it went sailing out of the car window.)
* * *
I AM reminded of that conversation
in Jounieh every time something happens in Lebanon. This week, for example.
Much nonsense is being spoken
and written about that country, as if it were a country like any other.
George W. Bush talks about "Lebanese democracy" as if there
were such a thing, others speak about the "parliamentary majority"
and "minority factions"' about the need for "national
unity" to uphold "national independence", as if they
were talking about the Netherlands or Finland. All these have no connection
with Lebanese reality.
Geographically, Lebanon is
a torn country, and there lies a part of the secret of its beauty. Snow-covered
mountain chains, green valleys, picturesque villages, beautiful sea-shore.
But Lebanon is also torn socially. The two schisms are inter-connected:
in the course of history, persecuted minorities from all over the region
sought refuge between its mountains, where they could defend themselves.
The result: a large number
of big and small communities, ready to spring to arms at any moment.
At best, Lebanon is a loose federation of mutually suspicious communities,
at worst a battlefield of feuding groups which hate each other's guts.
The annals of Lebanon are full of civil wars and horrible massacres.
Many times, this or that community called in foreign enemies to assist
it against its neighbors.
Between the communities,
there are no permanent alliances. One day, communities A and B get together
to fight community C. The next day, B and C fight against A. Moreover,
there are sub-communities, which more than once have been known to make
an alliance with an opposing community against their own.
Altogether, a fascinating
mosaic, but also a very dangerous one--the more so since every community
keeps a private army, equipped with the best of weapons. The official
Lebanese army, composed of men from all communities, is unable to carry
out any meaningful mission.
What is a Lebanese "community"?
On the face of it, it's all about religion. But not only religion. The
community is also an ethnic tribe, with some national attributes. A
Jew will easily understand this, since the Jews are also such a community,
even if spread around the world. But for an ordinary European or American,
it is difficult to understand this structure. It is easier to think
about a "Lebanese nation"--a nation that exists only in the
imagination or as a vision of the future.
The loyalty to the community
comes before any other loyalty--and certainly before any loyalty to
Lebanon. When the rights of a community or sub-community are menaced,
its members rise up as one in order to destroy those who are threatening
them.
* * *
THE MAIN communities are
the Christian, the Sunni-Muslim, the Shiite-Muslim and the Druze (who,
as far as religion goes, are a kind of extreme Shiites.) The Christians
are divided into several sub-communities, the most important of which
are the Maronites (named after a saint who lived some 1600 years ago.)
The Sunnis were brought to Lebanon by the (Sunni) Ottoman rulers to
strengthen their hold, and were mainly settled in the large port cities.
The Druze came to find refuge in the mountains. The Shiites, whose importance
has risen over the last few decades, were for many centuries a poor
and down-trodden community, a doormat for all the others.
As in almost all Arab societies,
the Hamula (extended family) plays a vital role in all communities.
Loyalty to the Hamula precedes even loyalty to the community, according
to the ancient Arab saying: "With my cousin against the foreigner,
with my brother against my cousin." Almost all Lebanese leaders
are chiefs of the great families.
* * *
TO GIVE some idea of the
Lebanese tangle, a few recent examples: in the civil war that broke
out in 1975, Pierre Gemayel, the chief of a Maronite family, called
upon the Syrians to invade Lebanon in order to help him against his
Sunni neighbors, who were about to attack his territory. His grandson
by the same name, who was murdered this week, was a member of a coalition
whose aim is to liquidate Syrian influence in Lebanon. The Sunnis, who
were fighting against the Syrians and the Christians, are now the allies
of the Christians against the Syrians.
The Gemayel family was the
main ally of Ariel Sharon, when he invaded Lebanon in 1982. The common
aim was to drive out the (mainly Sunni) Palestinians. For that purpose,
Gemayel's men carried out the horrendous massacre of Sabra and Shatila,
after the assassination of Bashir Gemayel, the uncle of the man who
was murdered this week. The massacre was overseen by Elie Hobeika from
the roof of the headquarters of the Israeli general Amos Yaron. Afterwards,
Hobeika became a minister under Syrian auspices. Another person responsible
for the slaughter was Samir Geagea, the only one who was put on trial
in a Lebanese court. He was condemned to several life prison terms and
later pardoned. This week he was one of the main speakers at the funeral
of Pierre Gemayel the grandson.
In 1982, the Shiites welcomed
the invading Israeli army with flowers, rice and candy. A few months
later they started a guerilla war against them, which lasted for 18
years, in the course of which Hizbullah became a major force in Lebanon.
One of the leading Maronites
in the fight against the Syrians was General Michel Aoun, who was elected
president by the Maronites and later driven out. Now he is an ally of
Hizbullah, the main supporter of Syria.
All this resembles Italy
at the time of the Renaissance or Germany during the 30-Years War. But
in Lebanon this is the present and the foreseeable future.
In such a reality, using
the term "democracy" is, of course, a joke. By agreement,
the government of the country is divided between the communities. The
president is always a Maronite, the prime minister a Sunni, the speaker
of the parliament a Shiite. The same applies to all positions in the
country, at all levels: a member of a community cannot aspire to a position
suited to his talents if it "belongs" to another community.
Almost all citizens vote according to family affiliation. A Druze voter,
for example, has no chance of overthrowing Walid Jumblat, whose family
has ruled the Druze community for 500 years at least (and whose father
was murdered by the Syrians.) He doles out all the jobs "belonging"
to his community.
The Lebanese parliament is
a senate of community chiefs, who divide the spoils between them. The
"democratic coalition" which was put in power by the Americans
after the murder of the Sunni Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, is a temporary
alliance of the Maronite, Sunni and Druze chiefs. The "opposition",
which enjoys Syrian patronage, is composed of the Shiites and one Maronite
faction. The wheel can turn at a moment's notice, when other alliances
are formed.
Hizbullah, which appears
to Israelis as an extension of Iran and Syria, is first of all a Shiite
movement that strives to obtain for its community a larger part of the
Lebanese pie, as indeed is its due in accordance with its size. Hassan
Nasrallah--who is also the scion of an important family--has his eyes
on the government in Beirut, not on the mosques in Jerusalem.
* * *
WHAT DOES all this say about
the present situation?
For decades now, Israel has
been stirring the Lebanese pot. In the past, it supported the Gemayel
family but was bitterly disappointed: the family's "Phalanges"
(the name was taken from Fascist Spain, which was greatly admired by
grandfather Pierre), were revealed in the 1982 war as a gang of thugs
without military value. But the Israeli involvement in Lebanon continues
to this day. The aim is to eliminate Hizbullah, remove the Syrians and
threaten nearby Damascus. All these tasks are hopeless.
Some history: in the 30s,
when the Maronites were the leading force in Lebanon, the Maronite Patriarch
expressed open sympathy for the Zionist enterprise. At that time, many
young people from Tel-Aviv and Haifa studied at the American University
of Beirut, and rich Jewish people from Palestine spent their holidays
at Lebanese resorts. Once, before the founding of Israel, I crossed
the Lebanese border by mistake and a Lebanese Gendarme politely showed
me the way back.
During the first years of
Israel, the Lebanese border was our only peaceful one. Those days there
was a saying: "Lebanon will be the second Arab country to make
peace with Israel. It will not dare to be the first". Only in 1970,
when King Hussein drove the PLO from Jordan into Lebanon, with the active
help of Israel, did this border heat up. Now even Fuad Siniora, the
prime minister appointed by the Americans, feels compelled to declare
that "Lebanon will be the last Arab state to make peace with Israel!"
All efforts to remove Syrian
influence from Lebanon are bound to fail. In order to understand this,
it is enough to look at the map. Historically, Lebanon is a part of
the land of Syria ("Sham" in Arabic). The Syrians have never
resigned themselves to the fact that the French colonial regime tore
Lebanon from their land.
The conclusions: First, let's
not get stuck in the Lebanese mess again. As experience has shown, we
shall always come out the losers. Second, in order to have peace on
our northern border, all the potential enemies, and first of all Syria,
must be involved.
Meaning: we must give back
the Golan Heights.
The Bush administration forbids
our government to talk with the Syrians. They want to talk with them
themselves, when the time comes. Quite possibly, they will then sell
them the Golan in return for Syrian help in Iraq. If so, should we not
hurry and "sell" them the Golan (which belongs to them anyhow)
for a better price for ourselves?
Lately, voices have been
heard, even of senior army people, that hint at this possibility. It
should be said loudly and clearly: Because of a few thousands of settlers
and the politicians who do not dare to confront them, we are liable
to be dragged into more superfluous wars and to endanger the population
of Israel.
This is the third conclusion:
There is only one way to win a war in Lebanon--and that is to avoid
it.
Uri Avnery is an Israeli
writer and peace activist with Gush Shalom.
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