Not all Coincidences are Beautiful: Another Clash in the Morning and yet Another Bomb at Night

In the Arabic language, there is a phrase that many people like to use a lot: sudfeh jamila (سضفة جميلة), which means "beautiful coincidence". I had a couple of them the last few years, when one of my long-time friends called me on the phone after a couple of years not hearing much from him, and when I saw this one guy who attended my school... 7 years ago. Either that, or it's a very small world.

Just yesterday, we were entreated to devastating news suggestive of a conflagration in Lebanon and Gaza, of which the latter is already up in flames, and I hoped that things would put down. Unfortunately, this was not to be. At Nahr el-Barid, the Palestinian refugee camp outside Tripoli, clashes intensified in a second day of fighting between the militants and the army. And for the first time, reports coming out of Tripoli indicated that the army was indiscriminately shelling the camp. As Al Jazeera reports,

Fierce clashes between the Lebanese army and an armed Palestinian group at a refugee camp in northern Lebanon intensified on their second day, despite calls for a truce to allow aid missions into the area. Fighting quietened at nightfall on Monday after the army shelled Nahr al-Bared camp near Tripoli, targeting the Fatah al-Islam group.

Sources told Al Jazeera that up to 40 people had died inside the camp amid heavy tank fire. Fathallah Deeb, head of the camp's medical centre, said during the shelling: "We are hearing heavy bombardment... We are receiving floods of injuries into the medical centre." We have many reports that houses inside the camp have been totally destroyed." He described the shelling as a massacre and appealed through Al Jazeera for international aid. He said bodies were lying uncollected under rubble.

Sad words, indeed. The Lebanese Army followed the same collective punishment procedure that the Israeli army follows: the ends justify the means. No matter how many civilians are killed and no matter how many houses are demolished, the Fatah al-Islam militants must be killed at all costs... well, that's apparently coming from the Lebanese Army, not me. And, thanks to the Los Angeles Times, it's apparent that the U.S. government, if not having a hand in this entire mess, is supporting such movements that will further destabilize the nation of Lebanon, for violence will only beget violence in this scenario, as it is not only unproductive but also completely out of the blue. This is furthermore confirmed by the pro-U.S. Lebanese government, courtesy of the incompetent Fu'ad Seniorita, who indeed scapegoated this group to diverge the people's attention from the real problem: the Lebanese government itself, which has been in flux over the past 2 years.

Just one day after the bombing in Al-Ashrafiyeh, another popular Beirut district, Verdun (ironically named after a battlefield in France during one of the World Wars), was lit ablaze with another car bomb. However, thankfully, there have been no casualties or severe injuries resulting from this car bomb. Again, Al Jazeera reports that at least 10 people were wounded... but that's about it. While I can't confirm this now, TV reports claim that Fatah al-Islam denied any links to the bombing that occurred today and yesterday. Another unconfirmed report is that a dense concentration of Israeli jets is hovering over South Lebanon. Strange...

Lebanon wasn't alone. South of the border, in an Israeli town called Sderot, rockets landed and hit their marks. Three people were injured, of which one of them, a woman, died in hospital. That makes her the ninth victim of rocket attacks. Al Jazeera reports that

A source told AFP news agency: "A woman who had sustained critical wounds in a Qassam attack in Sderot died of her wounds shortly after arriving at the hospital." The last Israeli to die as a result of a Palestinian rocket attack was in November 2006.

Not to devalue life here, but

Most of the rockets that landed in Sderot caused little or no damage, according to Israeli police. Islamic Jihad and Hamas both claimed responsibility for the attacks. David Baker, an Israeli official, said: "Israel is fully determined and fully prepared to take to the necessary actions to bring the Qassam attacks to an end."

And by "necessary", I hope you don't mean this, Mr. Baker.

The rocket attack on the car came during a meeting in Sderot between Tzipi Livni, Israel's foreign minister, and Javier Solana, foreign policy chief of the EU. Israel has increased military operations inside Gaza in the wake of renewed Palestinian rocket attacks over the last week. On Monday, four members of Islamic Jihad men were killed in an Israeli air raid, with a separate air attack killing a Hamas fighter, the Israeli army said. At least 40 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli raids.

Funny. Both Islamic Jihad and Hamas want to take the credit. But worse is that many Palestinians continue to die while Israel complains of a few deaths (still not cheap) and MINIMAL DAMAGE to their towns, while Palestinian homes get demolished almost weekly by Israeli missile fire, which continues to intensify daily.

Is Palestinian life really that cheap? How many Palestinians and Israelis have to die before peace is established in Palestine? Better yet, how many more bombs have to go off and how many more people have to die in Lebanon before Lebanon finally gets back on its feet? My hopes continue to wane, but my faith does not. Yesterday's firestarter made its mark today, and I can't see a way out of this. If Israel understands that all Palestinian parties involved should be spoken to, then a solution might be reached. But I doubt this could happen as there is no understanding between any one group in the Levant and Palestine, let alone the entire Middle East.

Salaam, from Saracen