Munaeem's Blog : US, Israeli rhetoric about Iran-Syria-Hezbollah 'alliance' might herald conflict

An editorial in Lebanon's Al Shark warned against what it said was a US-Israeli escalation in rhetoric, which might herald military action.

The daily, which describes itself as independent, but with pro-government trends, was referring to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's call to form an alliance of regional "moderates" to confront the "Syrian-Iranian alliance," and to Olmert's description of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's meeting with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah as part of an "axis of evil."

"We don't understand who, exactly, are the moderate forces in the region according to the Israeli prime minister," it noted, "but we believe he means to indicate there are Arabs who are ready to align themselves with Israel, which is blatantly untrue, considering the Arabs want a just solution to the Palestinian cause."

It blasted Israel for trying to convince international public opinion that it was a tiny, weak state, surrounded by extremist forces with huge military capabilities - which, it added, had proved to be unfounded.

The daily said Washington had also been using the same rhetoric as Israel's when speaking of a Syrian-Iranian-Hezbollah alliance and their missile force that threatened Israel.

If there had been a genuine Israeli and US desire for achieving peace, it remarked, there would have been no need to divide the region into extremists and moderates.

"If Olmert [truly] wanted to fight extremism, he would have quickly supported the Arab peace initiative, and agreed to return to the negotiating table for an honorable solution to the Palestinian issue," argued the daily.