Liberal Talk Radio

Headline in the NYT today:

Iran Leads Islamic Nations in Demanding End to Mideast War

Are you f**king kidding me? Ahmadinejad, of all people, is now going to jump on the soapbox and tell the Israelis how to handle their counteroffensive against the Iranian sponsored terrorists in southern Lebanon:

Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and other Muslim leaders demanded a halt on Thursday to Israeli attacks on Lebanon and Gaza and said they wanted to strengthen U.N. peacekeeping forces in the area.

Ok, let me get this straight. Iran, prodded almost certainly by Ahmadinejad’s arrogance, funded, armed and empowered the initial offensive against Israel. That was a two pronged offensive, including the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers on the borders with Gaza and Lebanon. Israel retaliates– but not incrementally. Instead, they launch a full-blown invasion into southern Lebanon, partly facilitated by punishing mortar attacks and massive airstrikes reaching as far as Beirut.

Obviously, there are heavy civilian casualties– an inevitability of war that is practically encouraged, in this case, by the fact that Hizbollah stores its weapons caches in residential apartment complexes and private homes.

And then Ahmadinejad, without whom none of this may have happened, has the grapes to get up on the world stage with that stupid grin on his face and demands that Israel halt the counteroffensive. Oh yeah, and the US and Britain should pay for the repairs:

“Although the main cure (to the situation) is the elimination of the Zionist regime, in this stage an immediate ceasefire should be implemented,” Ahmadinejad, who previously has said Israel should be wiped off the map, told the closed door meeting.

“Britain and America, as the main associates of the Zionist regime in its offensive to Lebanon, should compensate Lebanon’s damages. Those governments should answer for their crimes in Lebanon,” he said in his speech, a copy of which was made available by Iranian diplomats.

To this, I respond: Go Ball Yourself, Mahmoud.

I’m not saying the Israeli counteroffensive isn’t extreme. I’m not saying I’m comfortable with the civilian casualties. I’m not saying I don’t feel for the Lebanese people– I do. They’re innocent bystanders in all this. But if Ahmadinejad wants to see and end to the slaughter of his fellow Shi’a Muslims, he can take a knee and beg for the West to grant him quarter.

Ahmadinejad made a reckless move here that was part of a larger power play. The Iranians wanted some room to negociate when they arrived at the UN later this month for a discussion of their nuclear program. But they drastically underestimated the Israeli response and now they’re responsible for the deaths of scores of their fellow Muslims– a fact which has not been lost on Iran’s regional allies.

So when Ahmadinejad grabs the microphone and starts demanding cease-fires, let’s not forget that he’s responsible for this catastrophe. He’s in no position to demand and end to it. He’s only in a position to surrender. And when he shows up at the UN this month to talk about his nuclear program, let’s remind him how quickly he wanted mercy in his most recent confrontation with the West.

All the more frustrating, of course, is that Ahmadinejad’s offensive against Israel is almost certainly the result of the Bush Administrations failed mid-east policy– a policy that has made Iran a huge player in the region. But that’s for another post…