Israel is losing

Ralph Peters is right.

Israel is losing the current war.

Every moment that it continues a rocket and air attack on the military resources of Hezbollah in Lebanon which effect civilians- however unintentionally- is a victory for Hezbollah, and for terrorism- and a defeat for one of the two democracies in the Middle East (Iraq being the other).

We learned the hard way in Vietnam and again in our own current war in Iraq that wars cannot be won by remote control. Air power alone is not enough, discredited Air Force doctrine from the post-World War II era to the contrary. Tragically, Israel has apparently not heeded that lesson, and as a result is playing into the hands of its enemies.

The land invasion needs to be underway as soon as possible. It needs to be massive. It needs to be overwhelming. And it needs to be combined with as close to a cessation of rocket and air attacks as is compatible with the safety of the invading Israeli troops.

Peters article ticks off a number of other ways in which the current war is a disaster for Israel. Chief among them is the fact that weak Lebanon- in some ways, as put-upon by Hezbollah as Israel itself- is bearing the brunt of the attack, while the real villains- Iran and Syria- are getting off scot-free.

This thing needs to be turned around- and fast.

HT: Real Clear Politics

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