Saturday, May 26, 2007

"I hope they will attack us soon. Then we'll strike back and finish them off"


Here is some excerpts for a Der Spiegel article about the situation in naher el Bared camp. I choose the parts where the journalist interviews a Lebanese soldier.
As a side note, I've always respected the army and its soldiers but after these past days, damn I have become proud and fiercely supportive of our boys!!!

Head here to read the full article
Thanks for Beirut Spring for pointing it out.

Excerpts:

"During the next 48 hours, we will eradicate them," says the elite Lebanese soldier, lying behind a freshly raised mound of red earth. "They," of course, are the militants of the radical Palestinian group Fatah Islam. And the effort to eradicate them has virtually destroyed the Palestinian refugee camp Nahr al-Bared where they are holed up.
The ground is strewn with the empty casings of high-caliber bullets; the soot-blackened ruins of the camp north of the Lebanese seaport of Tripoli stand about 200 meters (650 feet) away. Fatah Islam snipers on the roofs take aim at the Lebanese rangers who have dug in east of the camp. "I hope they will attack us soon. Then we'll strike back and finish them off," says the officer, who wants only to be called Spiro.
[…]
The terrain on the edge of the camp where Spiro's soldiers have dug in was still in the hands of the Fatah Islam militants on Tuesday. The rangers moved in at dawn on Wednesday, flattening the reeds that grew there and raising protective mounds of earth among the cypress trees. Ranger Rommel can't say how many people he has killed in the past few days. "It must have been a lot," says the 27-year-old, whose parents named him after the German Field Marshal who commanded the Nazi Afrikakorps. "At first it was a shock to be in a real battle after all the training," Rommel says. Later, he adds, it was like being in a movie. "A drunk state in which you don't care whether you're shooting at children, the elderly or militants."


It looks like the movie will play again soon, he says: "We have precise indications that our position will be a target for suicide attacks." The information he has indicates that the attackers will be old women.
[…]
At the camp, the soldiers are busy preparing for more fighting. Some, though, are also reflective after the four-day orgy of violence. Spiro, standing next to the wreck of a vehicle that is missing all of its windows, says: "People sought safety in this bus." Large puddles of blood have dried on the pavement below. "They drove towards us. They could have been militants," Spiro says.
His troops were the ones who opened fire on the bus -- before retrieving three corpses and several injured from the wreck. "Terrible, but that's just what war is like."

11 comments :

Anonymous said...

Bob,
I don't knw about you but I have a good memory...of you saying you were for peace at all times and against any killing of any sort, in that case against israelis who where then bombing the hell out of Lebanon, but suddenly you "fiercly support our boys" killings in Nahr El Bared instead of trying to find a peaceful political solution.
Interesting, interesting...
Amour de la paix quand tu nous tiens!

Anonymous said...

Si vis pacem para bellum


If you want peace, prepare for war

BOB said...

Peace with a people, peace with innocent civilians whom only mistake was to be born on the wrong side of the border…

But peace with murderers? With people who blow themselves up! With fanatics that know nothing but death? peace with those who want to kill, destroy all who oppose them? No peace with them is suicide.

Violence is rarely the solution to any problem, but what do you propose? Holding talks with those murderers. I m all in for peaceful solution but not before those who killed the soldiers are brought to justice!

It is funny that yesterday only, Nassrallah woke up and started talking about civilians and the need to spare them, where was he when his missile were falling on Arabs in Haifa killing children!!!!

At the end you should know the difference between legitimate force and murder. It will help you to know why I stand behind our Army and not behind any militia, or a petty rapist or killers in the street, for that matter, because they are one and a same.

Anonymous said...

Peace with zionists is suicide.
Peace with murderers? With fanatics that know nothing but death? peace with those who want to kill, destroy all who oppose them? No peace with them is suicide.

Violence is rarely the solution to any problem, but what do you propose? Holding talks with those murderers. I m all in for peaceful solution but not before those who killed the soldiers are brought to justice!

Amen.

Anonymous said...

Bob,
May I remind you that Nasrallah apologised for the innocent Arabs killed in Haifa because the zionist entity did not let them go to Jews only shelters.

BOB said...

Sam

Oh he did... then all is the good and the kids will return then...

A crime is not answered by an apology. And remember after his first apology he kept killing arab children in haifa.

BOB said...

Sam

You are blaming the many for the crimes of the few…

If I was to follow your example then we should blame all the syrains people for what they did to Lebanon and the crimes their army and leaders have committed against Lebanon (even if you don’t believe that, because I do…)

Moreover, your dangerous logic can be extended to the current situation. You could blame all the people in Naher el bared for the crimes of the few murderers who committed those awful crimes. As your logic do not draw any difference between those who act and those who happened to be born on the wrong side of the border.
So be careful with what you say…

I blame only those who committed the crimes, not all their people and families… So if you want blame someone blame those who committed crimes, be specific and don’t over generalize.

Anonymous said...

Bob,
Most of the arabs of 48 support Hezbollah (including the family of one who got killed), so stop pretending to defend people who don't care about your compassion.
Even the guy they elected Azmi Bshara (who is christian) is now accused of being a Hezbollah spy because he openly defends the actions of Hezbollah.
God bless the palestinian people that knows who really cares about them and who doesn't.

Anonymous said...

Shaker al-Abssi said in a video message that Fatah al-Islam would "fight Jews, Americans and their allies".
There you go, this is how this corrupt government gets us into a war we didn't need.
First they help setup extremist sunni groups to attack Hezbollah, and then when these groups turn against them because they are seen as american stooges (which they are) they send the Lebanese army without any preparation in a fight we didn't need.
This government is doubly to blame, but like usual it is our boys, and innocent civilians who are paying the price (again) for its total incompetence, short sightedness and treachery.

Anonymous said...

The situation at Nahr al-Bared looks grave. I don't see why the Lebanese army can't surround the camp and starve everybody out. Why don't all the Palestinian refugees leave? Are the militants holding hostages?

The Army soldier named Rommel sounds like a dangerous sort. Are Nazis really admired in Lebanon? Damn. No wonder that country has problems.

Anonymous said...

Sam,
Peace with Israel will be suicide?
Had Egypt commit sucide? Jordan?
As far as I know the peace only helped these countries!
What suicide would it be to stop attacking Israel?
Israel NEVER questioned the right of Lebanon to exist nor the Palestinians' right. We want to live in peace so leave us alone, and if you still try to attack us and kill us, be ready to get some burns, because we won't sit back and do nothing!
And there are no "Jews only shelters", you lier!
There weren't shelters on some of the arab villages because they didn't want to have them! They didn't believe their Arab brothers will kill them!
"Those who killed the soldiers" are HA! and they also kidnapped some! Should I remind you the morning of July 12th?
Hatred is your only fuel.