Hell Is Breaking Loose in Lebanon”: Israel Rejects Ceasefire Proposal as U.N. Chief Calls for Peace

Key Points from the Interview:

1. Ongoing Conflict and Casualties: Israel's bombardment of Lebanon has displaced about 500,000 people. On Wednesday alone, 72 people were killed, bringing the death toll in recent days to over 620. Israel has rejected an international call for a 21-day ceasefire.

Mahdi Amel, who was a Marxist intellectual. And he wrote this a few months after the 1982 invasion of Beirut. And he writes:
"They said that the war in Lebanon would be swift and that in a few days those who have not knelt and who understand only the language of force would kneel. They declared that there would be no salaam, but shalom, and that Israel is the Rome of our modern times. To the kings of Israel, to the scum of our nation and our foul Arab regimes, to the petty fascists and to their imperialist masters, we say: It pleases us to spit in your faces. We will fight you even with our nails. Our fists are the compass of history. And the bullet of our freedom will pierce your hearts. To them, we say, brick by brick, we build a world on your graves. You are the dustbin of history, and Beirut is the city of the free. We have vowed that we will resist you.”

2. Possible Ground Invasion:

Israel is preparing for a potential ground invasion of Lebanon, having deployed two brigades to the Lebanese border.

3. Widespread Suffering:

Journalist Lara Bitar, based in Beirut, reports on the extreme hardships faced by displaced people, especially the elderly, who have endured previous invasions. Despite the suffering, there is a strong attachment to the land.

4. Historical Context:

Bitar highlights Israel’s repeated invasions and occupations of Lebanon, referencing invasions in 1978, 1982, and 2006. She emphasizes that the current violence is part of a long history of Israeli aggression in the region.

5. Ceasefire Skepticism:

Bitar expresses deep skepticism about the potential for a ceasefire, citing past broken promises and the failure of the Biden administration to follow through on red lines in Gaza.

6. Hezbollah's Response:

Hezbollah, so far, has tried to de-escalate the situation, targeting military infrastructure rather than civilians. Bitar suggests that an Israeli ground invasion would be deeply traumatizing for Israeli soldiers.

7. UN Resolutions:

U.N. Resolutions 1701 and 1559, meant to address peace and security in Lebanon, are regularly violated by Israel. The Lebanese population does not place much faith in international resolutions or the U.N. Security Council.

8. Global Responsibility:

Bitar argues that global citizens should act by boycotting and divesting from Israel. She believes international pressure is necessary to make Israel's actions too costly to continue.

9. International Manipulation:

Bitar is critical of the U.S. and other Western nations, accusing them of manipulating public opinion and failing to take serious steps toward achieving a ceasefire. She questions the sincerity of U.S. diplomatic efforts.

10. Call for Global Action:

In her closing remarks, Bitar calls for grassroots action, urging people worldwidesà to pressure their governments and institutions to isolate Israel economically and diplomatically to end the violence.

Source:

https://www.democracynow.org/2024/9/26/lebanon_israel_hezbollah_ceasefire

Comments

Ana Kasparian: The Voice That Won’t Be Silent — A Call for Truth in an Age of Power

Ana Kasparian is one of the most recognized and outspoken voices in contemporary political media. As a co-host of The Young Turks — a trailblazing online news and commentary program — she has spent nearly two decades dissecting U.S. politics, media, power, and foreign policy with unapologetic clarity and fierce conviction. She is not just a commentator — she is a truth-seeker who challenges power at every turn , refusing to soften her words for comfort. Schooled in journalism and political science, Ana’s commentary continues to mobilize millions, especially younger generations who feel unheard in mainstream discourse. A Voice Against the Status Quo Ana’s rhetoric can be bold, controversial, and deeply passionate — because she refuses to accept narratives that obscure the underlying truth about power and influence. On American democracy and foreign policy, she strikes at the heart of what many hesitate to articulate: “ We don’t actually live in a true democracy here in t...

Dr. Randa Abdel Fattah. De-Invited by Association: When Grief Becomes a Pretext and Palestinian Identity a Liability

How Dr. Randa Abdel-Fattah Was Silenced in the Name of “Sensitivity” In a remarkable feat of moral gymnastics, Australia’s literary establishment has once again demonstrated how grief can be weaponised, principles suspended, and Palestinian identity rendered dangerously “inappropriate ” —all in the name of cultural sensitivity. Dr. Randa Abdel-Fattah , a respected author, academic, and public intellectual, was quietly de-invited from Adelaide Writers’ Week following the Bondi Junction massacre. Not because she had any connection—real, implied, or imagined—to the atrocity. Not because she endorsed violence. Not because she violated any law or ethical standard. But because, apparently, the mere presence of a Palestinian Muslim woman who speaks about justice is now considered culturally unsafe during national mourning . One wonders: unsafe for whom? The Logic of the Absurd Festival organisers were careful—almost impressively so—to state that Dr. Abdel-Fattah had nothing to do wi...

Gaza and the Collapse of World Order: When the Guardian of Human Rights Sounds the Alarm

There are moments when the language of diplomacy fails, when caution becomes complicity, and when silence becomes an accomplice to destruction. On January 9, 2026, Agnès Callamard—Secretary General of Amnesty International—crossed that threshold. Her words were unambiguous, unprecedented, and devastating: The United States is destroying world order. Israel has been doing so for the last two years. Germany, through complicity and repression, is helping govern its demise. This was not activist rhetoric. It was a diagnosis from the very institution tasked with guarding the moral and legal architecture of the modern world. The Collapse of the Post-War Moral Architecture The international order that emerged after World War II was built on a promise: never again . Never again genocide. Never again collective punishment. Never again impunity for powerful states. That promise was codified in international law, human rights conventions, and multilateral institutions. But Gaza has...

Rebranding Genocide: When Killing Learns New Words

There are moments in history when crimes do not end — they simply learn new language. Gaza is living inside such a moment. The bombs have not stopped falling. The children have not stopped dying. The displaced have not stopped freezing in tents pitched atop rubble that was once their homes. What has changed is the vocabulary . And in the modern age, vocabulary is power . If you can rename atrocity, you can anesthetize conscience. First, it was called self-defense — a phrase emptied of meaning by its repetition. Then it became a war , despite the grotesque imbalance: one side armed with one of the most advanced militaries on earth, backed by the world’s most powerful empire ; the other a besieged civilian population without an army, navy, air force, tanks, or safe shelter. Now it is branded a ceasefire — a word invoked not to stop violence, but to conceal it. This is not peace. It is genocide with a quieter soundtrack. The Illusion of Restraint A slowed rate of killing is not m...

Citizens on Paper, Expendable in Practice Arab Israelis, October 7, and the Failure of International Law Inside the “Only Democracy”

Israel tells the world it is the only democracy in the Middle East . Democracies, we are reminded, protect all citizens equally—especially minorities—especially in times of crisis. Now look at Palestinian citizens of Israel , roughly 20% of the population , in the months following October 7 . Then ask: what exactly does citizenship mean when the state will not protect your life? The Forgotten Fifth of the Population Arab citizens of Israel vote. They hold passports. They pay taxes. They are citizens in the narrow, bureaucratic sense. But international law does not define citizenship by paperwork. It defines it by: Equal protection Non-discrimination The right to life Equal access to justice On those measures, Israel is not merely failing—it is structurally violating its obligations . A Murder Epidemic the State Chooses Not to Stop Long before October 7, Arab towns inside Israel were drowning in violence: Illegal weapons proliferated Organized crime flourished ...

Ainnbeen

Search This Blog