NationStates Jolt Archive


What UNIFIL did during the war?

Layarteb
27-08-2006, 03:37
They gave away the IDF.




What did you do in the war, UNIFIL?
You broadcast Israeli troop movements.
by Lori Lowenthal Marcus
09/04/2006, Volume 011, Issue 47



DURING THE RECENT month-long war between Hezbollah and Israel, U.N. "peacekeeping" forces made a startling contribution: They openly published daily real-time intelligence, of obvious usefulness to Hezbollah, on the location, equipment, and force structure of Israeli troops in Lebanon.

UNIFIL--the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, a nearly 2,000-man blue-helmet contingent that has been present on the Lebanon-Israel border since 1978--is officially neutral. Yet, throughout the recent war, it posted on its website for all to see precise information about the movements of Israeli Defense Forces soldiers and the nature of their weaponry and materiel, even specifying the placement of IDF safety structures within hours of their construction. New information was sometimes only 30 minutes old when it was posted, and never more than 24 hours old.

Meanwhile, UNIFIL posted not a single item of specific intelligence regarding Hezbollah forces. Statements on the order of Hezbollah "fired rockets in large numbers from various locations" and Hezbollah's rockets "were fired in significantly larger numbers from various locations" are as precise as its coverage of the other side ever got.

This war was fought on cable television and the Internet, and a lot of official information was available in real time. But the specific military intelligence UNIFIL posted could not be had from any non-U.N. source. The Israeli press--always eager to push the envelope--did not publish the details of troop movements and logistics. Neither the European press nor the rest of the world media, though hardly bastions of concern for the safety of Israeli troops, provided the IDF intelligence details that UNIFIL did. A search of Israeli government websites failed to turn up the details published to the world each day by the U.N.

Inquiries made of various Israeli military and government representatives and analysts yielded near unanimous agreement that at least some of UNIFIL's postings, in the words of one retired senior military analyst, "could have exposed Israeli soldiers to grave danger." These analysts, including a current high ranking military official, noted that the same intelligence would not have been provided by the U.N. about Israel's enemies.

Sure enough, a review of every single UNIFIL web posting during the war shows that, while UNIFIL was daily revealing the towns where Israeli soldiers were located, the positions from which they were firing, and when and how they had entered Lebanese territory, it never described Hezbollah movements or locations with any specificity whatsoever.

Compare the vague "various locations" language with this UNIFIL posting from July 25:

Yesterday and during last night, the IDF moved significant reinforcements, including a number of tanks, armored personnel carriers, bulldozers and infantry, to the area of Marun Al Ras inside Lebanese territory. The IDF advanced from that area north toward Bint Jubayl, and south towards Yarun.
Or with the posting on July 24, in which UNIFIL revealed that the IDF stationed between Marun Al Ras and Bint Jubayl were "significantly reinforced during the night and this morning with a number of tanks and armored personnel carriers."

This partiality is inconsistent not only with UNIFIL's mission but also with its own stated policies. In a telling incident just a few years back, UNIFIL vigorously insisted on its "neutral ity"--at Israel's expense.

On October 7, 2000, three IDF soldiers were kidnapped by Hezbollah just yards from a UNIFIL shelter and dragged across the border into Lebanon, where they disappeared. The U.N. was thought to have videotaped the incident or its immediate aftermath. Rather than help Israel rescue its kidnapped soldiers by providing this evidence, however, the U.N. obstructed the Israeli investigation.

For months the Israeli government pleaded with the U.N. to turn over any videotape that might shed light on the location and condition of its missing men. And for nine months the U.N. stonewalled, insisting first that no such tape existed, then that just one tape existed, and eventually conceding that there were two more tapes. During those nine months, clips from the videotapes were shown on Syrian and Lebanese television.

Explaining their eventual about-face, U.N. officials said the decision had been made by the on-site commanders that it was not their responsibility to provide the material to Israel; indeed, that to do so would violate the peacekeeping mandate, which required "full impartiality and objectivity." The U.N. report on the incident was adamant that its force had "to ensure that military and other sensitive information remains in their domain and is not passed to parties to a conflict."

Stymied in its efforts to recover the men while they were still alive, Israel ultimately agreed to an exchange in January 2004: It released 429 Arab prisoners and detainees, among them convicted terrorists, and the bodies of 60 Lebanese decedents and members of Hezbollah, in exchange for the bodies of the three soldiers. Blame for the deaths of those three Israelis can be laid, at least in part, at the feet of the U.N., which went to the wall defending its inviolable pledge never to share military intelligence about one party with another.

UNIFIL has just done what it then vowed it could never do. Once again, it has acted to shield one side in the conflict and to harm the other. Why is this permitted? For that matter, how did the U.N. obtain such detailed and timely military intelligence in the first place, before broadcasting it for Israel's enemies to see?

Lori Lowenthal Marcus is president of the Zionist Organization of America, Greater Philadelphia District.



© Copyright 2006, News Corporation, Weekly Standard, All Rights Reserved.


http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/012/622bqwjn.asp

Good job UN...
Super-power
27-08-2006, 03:38
No wonder France doesn't want to send troops under UN banner to Lebanon.........
Tactical Grace
27-08-2006, 03:43
Oh please. I could read stuff like that in any newspaper I cared to purchase.

A number of APCs moving from one village to another on a particular morning? It's not something you can hide from anyone in the area - which was swarming with a far greater number of Western journalists than UN personnel.

Do Hezbollah move in armoured columns visible for miles? :rolleyes:

Think it's actually bias, or maybe no actual movements to report?

Classic case here of looking for reasons to bash the UN.
Psychotic Mongooses
27-08-2006, 03:44
Meanwhile, UNIFIL posted not a single item of specific intelligence regarding Hezbollah forces. Statements on the order of Hezbollah "fired rockets in large numbers from various locations" and Hezbollah's rockets "were fired in significantly larger numbers from various locations" are as precise as its coverage of the other side ever got.

Good job UN...

Kinda hard to report the exact location of launchers that are there for 1-2 mins and then moved again....

UNIFIL sat on its ass as their mandate allowed them to do diddly squat.

Blame Russia, China, France, UK and the United States for that weak mandate.
Tactical Grace
27-08-2006, 03:45
Oh yeah and as you yourself quoted:

"Lori Lowenthal Marcus is president of the Zionist Organization of America, Greater Philadelphia District."

And he talks about partiality. :rolleyes:
Layarteb
27-08-2006, 03:51
Just reproducing a magazine article here.
Psychotic Mongooses
27-08-2006, 03:53
Just reproducing a magazine article here.

So, this is just cut and paste then?
Layarteb
27-08-2006, 03:56
So, this is just cut and paste then?

Yep. That's all I posted it for. Naturally there would be commentary but it isn't to intice a war. I have far better things to do than get involved in an NS General "debate," which is about as weak as a wet paper bag.
Tactical Grace
27-08-2006, 04:46
Yep. That's all I posted it for. Naturally there would be commentary but it isn't to intice a war. I have far better things to do than get involved in an NS General "debate," which is about as weak as a wet paper bag.
Erm. What's the point of posting an article if you don't want to get involved in the debate? Is it because you don't like us? :(
Slaughterhouse five
27-08-2006, 04:47
its a draw back of having the press at the front lines. (i realize this isnt the press but the press does similar) while the press brings the war to everyones "living room" that also includes the living room of those that are against the side the press is reporting (which oddly enough tends to be the side of the United States or Israel) and from broadcasting all this information it is giving anyone who is planning on attacking our millitary a good amount of intel.
Wilgrove
27-08-2006, 05:09
So, what does UNIFIL stand for?
Tactical Grace
27-08-2006, 05:13
So, what does UNIFIL stand for?
Google is your friend.

United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon

Although really it sounds like an all-purpose cement for filling in cracks in masonry.
Wilgrove
27-08-2006, 05:14
Google is your friend.

United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon

Although really it sounds like an all-purpose cement for filling in cracks in masonry.

Google and me had a fight. Apparently it can't find some good porn and I hurt its feeling, so we're not on speaking terms right now.
German Nightmare
27-08-2006, 05:18
And here I am, thinking that copy & paste was frowned upon?
Nodinia
27-08-2006, 10:12
Yep. That's all I posted it for. Naturally there would be commentary but it isn't to intice a war. I have far better things to do than get involved in an NS General "debate," which is about as weak as a wet paper bag.


So now you've attemtped to jusify attacks on the UN, you reckon you'll just head to the hills because you can't take the heat. Great.
Layarteb
27-08-2006, 16:19
So now you've attemtped to jusify attacks on the UN, you reckon you'll just head to the hills because you can't take the heat. Great.

I don't recall saying that at all. All I've said so far, aside from the copy & paste is:

Good job UN...
Just reproducing a magazine article here.
Yep. That's all I posted it for. Naturally there would be commentary but it isn't to intice a war. I have far better things to do than get involved in an NS General "debate," which is about as weak as a wet paper bag.

It doesn't look like I've said anything about justifying attacks on the UN...Nice job dude, way to go...
Allers
27-08-2006, 16:24
there is something wrong with this .
The french helping the UN .....
The UN Helping the Axis of good,
Are we beeing set up?
the french knows they will sink.
So what is up?
Nodinia
27-08-2006, 19:17
I don't recall saying that at all. All I've said so far, aside from the copy & paste is:

Good job UN...
Just reproducing a magazine article here.
Yep. That's all I posted it for. Naturally there would be commentary but it isn't to intice a war. I have far better things to do than get involved in an NS General "debate," which is about as weak as a wet paper bag.

It doesn't look like I've said anything about justifying attacks on the UN...Nice job dude, way to go...


hmmmm....Take note..to self...Layarteb.... t.o. .....1 or 2 or s'?
Layarteb
27-08-2006, 19:45
hmmmm....Take note..to self...Layarteb.... t.o. .....1 or 2 or s'?

Whatever that means.
The SR
27-08-2006, 19:49
Lori Lowenthal Marcus is president of the Zionist Organization of America, Greater Philadelphia District justifies murder because UNIFIL did their jobs and observed military activity?

Seriously pathetic stuff....
The Lone Alliance
27-08-2006, 20:39
Lori Lowenthal Marcus is president of the Zionist Organization of America, Greater Philadelphia District justifies murder because UNIFIL did their jobs and observed military activity?

Seriously pathetic stuff....

If they're only able to post info on one side, then it's better not to post at all. I thought as observers they're just supposed to watch, not tell the entire freaking world!

I don't see anything about justifying murder though.
Dobbsworld
27-08-2006, 20:48
I thought as observers they're just supposed to watch, not tell the entire freaking world!

What's the point in sending people in as observers if they don't report their observations? You might as well send in a busload of blind deaf-mutes, the way you apparently see things.
Tactical Grace
27-08-2006, 20:58
I thought as observers they're just supposed to watch, not tell the entire freaking world!
UN observers are supposed to tell the whole world. They are not paid to be silent witnesses.

And the journalists? There were far more of them there, than the UN. And they reported the exact same stuff, often in greater detail - unlike the UN, they drove around and interviewed Israeli soldiers, and were under no particular obligation to refer to anything as an "undisclosed unit of an undisclosed size, of an undisclosed type, at an undisclosed location, with movement orders that are secret, and they think the equipment they were issued is of censored quality".

Let's not pretend an armoured column moving through a shallow dusty valley is going to escape anyone's notice, especially after they just gave an interview to some guys with 'TV' painted on an SUV with a satellite dish stuck on top.

Keep things in perspective.