Earth burning.
I reprint here, in full, a dispatch from Beirut, Lebanon, written by an Earlham professor. Obviously, barring a miracle, he will not be teaching this semester.
war and violence and to more sufferings and killings''>
dear dear friends...
It is the 18th day of war and aggression..Remember: in my first e-mail I
told you "it is only the beginning and it will be a long war"..and I still
think today that it will not end soon..I cannot say this to my family and
my neighbours and friends who hope and pray to go back to their homes and
towns and villages...yesterday ,and this morning, Beirut lived a calm
time..people went outside their buildings and houses to buy what they
need..every thing is very very expensive ..6 jordanian planes,one
egyptian,one american,one saoudian, landed since yesterday on the
international airport to deliver medical and humanitarian supplies and aid
to the civilians..this doesn't mean that the airport will work
soon..Israel will not permit its reopening until the end of the
war..meanwhile South Lebanon and Baalbak and the Southern suburb of Beirut
were still under fire and heavy bombings..we succeeded yesterday and today
in making food and medical aid enter some villages and towns in the south
under the UN flag..hundreds and thousands of citizens are still caught in
some villages in the south under the bombings and they couldn't move even
to bury their dead siblings or neighbours..in Tyre (my wife's native town)
and its neighbouring villages , we buried 140 bodies..there is still more
than 90 bodies under the wreckage of destroyed buildings..all of these
bodies were of civilians..70% of them were children..and this is only
Tyre..the old phoenician historical city..my wife went just now with her
sister to present condolences to a neighbour who lost her 2 sons and the
son of her sister...what can you say to her??and as you can see we still
make social contacts and solidarity gatherings even though it is dangerous
to wander outside your home or house.. The israelis didn't succeed in
occupying 3 small villages in the south after 5 days of heavy fighting
with Hizbullah..so they decided to withdraw back and to continue their
air-strikes on all what moves in the south..this is their "intelligent"
war supported by the "intelligent" bombs delivered to them yesterday by
the USA..believe me this is what they call them :"intelligent missiles or
bombs"???today Mrs Dr Rice is coming back to the ME to try to impose her
version of cease-fire...our government,and not only Hizbullah,didn't agree
on the USA plan for the cease-fire..you will not believe what Kondy told
our government: there will not be a cease-fire until you accept the
israeli conditions???? our government is asking for a package deal that
will solve the causes of the conflict..the Israelis will try today and
tomorrow to achieve some progress in their plan so Mrs Rice can speak from
a position of power and force ..but this will not succeed..I don't know
why the big powers don't learn anything from History?? How they think that
they can impose what they want by force and war?? why they forget that the
people of any oppressed nation will rise again and again in a struggle of
resistance and fight back...that war and violence will give birth to more
war and violence and to more sufferings and killings??? how they imagine
that they can solve problems and "spread Democracy" by killing civilians
and destroying villages and towns and making 1 million persons displaced
and homeless and frustrated??? Israel cannot win this war..but lebanon was
devastated and destroyed and the USA is seen as conspirator and supporter
in this destruction...How they will end terrorism?? they gave birth now to
hundreds and thousands of new suicide bombers and new Bin Laden
recruitees...(I don't know if recruitee is a good english word..but you
can use it here)..
Yesterday Johnny woke me up at 6 am..she was phoning from Boston to tell
me that she spoke with her congrssman and that he told her that the USA
will evacuate people like me who are not USA citizens but have some kind
of visa or document etc...I told her it is still a hope not a reality..I
am still working on this and I hope that we will be able to send my son
Rida next week..I am meeting with an official in the embassy next monday
morning..so wait and see..I want to tell my friends who are concerned by
this issue and who are working and trying to make me leave Beirut by a
special way?? that I CANNOT leave Beirut NOW as a special USA case..it
will harm my credibility and my work here..I thank them all for what they
are doing but urge them to understand my situation and my position..:I
cannot leave like this while my people is counting the USA bombs falling
on them and killing their children??? thank you again and again and
thousands of time...the best way to help is to continue to focus on the
sufferings of the poor homeless people who lost all what they have,
including the lives of their beloved ones, their human dignity and self
respect..
yesterday I visited with my father and brother and wife, refugees in the
christian mountain..we spent 3 hours with them..130 families in a
covenant..they were from Tyre (my wife's town , her brother's family is
among them) and Nabatieh (my brother's wife family among them)..yes my
brother's family and my brother-in-law family are among these refugees
because we couldn't accomodate them in our home since we already have 3
families living with us...My son Rida and my daughter Lama(16) as well as
their cousins and friends work with a NGO in providing shelter and food
and medicine to displaced and homeless people..they go at 7-8 am and come
back very late after midnight..usually this is not accepted in our
families..but these days all the Lebanese youngsters are doing the same..
and the parents are praying to God that He protects and helps them..I will
be interviewed tomorrow Sunday between 9 and 11 am (Beirut's time)on LBC
(a lebanese famous important channel broadcasting also on sattelite)..I am
working on Rida's travel via Jordan to Indiana..Tickets are becoming very
very expensive..even the taxi which usually takes 20$ for a person is
asking today for 1000$ and sometimes more..people who fled the South
yesterday said that they paid 1000$ to reach Beirut (80 kms only)..fuel
and bread are becoming rare (expensive then)..many people will profit from
the war (as usual and as in any war in history)..Until now the internet is
still working... so we are still connected to the world..but we cannot use
it as much as we need or want to ,because the electricity goes and comes
and the lines are very busy as you can imagine..shortage of water is the
most sensitive thing that can harm civilians..thanks God water is still
supplied every 3 days..but we are fearing the worse in this case...Beirut
is still supplied with electricity (not 24 hours but between 12 and 18: it
depends on the bombings)..but the southern suburb and South lebanon are
not supplied at all..they are under a total black out...Israel is
SYETEMATICALLY bombing all the south (they finished with the southern
suburb of Beirut which was totally destroyed)..they are bombing all the
villages and towns and roads..this is because they cannot occupy again
south Lebanon: they know that if they occupy they will be forced to face
again a new polpular resistance...so their plan is to destroy the south as
a way to force hizbullah out of it and then the international forces can
come and stay in the south to defend Israel's borders ?? this is what Mrs
Rice is saying clearly and Mr Bush said their will not be a cease-fire
until we are sure that hizbullah is pushed 40kms north and
disarmed...Israel and Mr Bush do not know that they cannot defeat a
political popular party (hizbullah is not a regular army)and that the Shii
are today more supportive of hizbullah which is becoming the ONLY Shii
party that represents them and defends them...how strange that all the big
think tank intellectuals and strategists of the New-conservatives didn't
learn anything from the political science courses and books that they are
fond of....from Plato till Mao-Ze Dong...
Just now the BBC called and they want me "live" at 3 pm (8 am Indiana
time...I don't know if anybody is awake now and can see it and record it
for the others to watch later??)..
war and violence and to more sufferings and killings''>
dear dear friends...
It is the 18th day of war and aggression..Remember: in my first e-mail I
told you "it is only the beginning and it will be a long war"..and I still
think today that it will not end soon..I cannot say this to my family and
my neighbours and friends who hope and pray to go back to their homes and
towns and villages...yesterday ,and this morning, Beirut lived a calm
time..people went outside their buildings and houses to buy what they
need..every thing is very very expensive ..6 jordanian planes,one
egyptian,one american,one saoudian, landed since yesterday on the
international airport to deliver medical and humanitarian supplies and aid
to the civilians..this doesn't mean that the airport will work
soon..Israel will not permit its reopening until the end of the
war..meanwhile South Lebanon and Baalbak and the Southern suburb of Beirut
were still under fire and heavy bombings..we succeeded yesterday and today
in making food and medical aid enter some villages and towns in the south
under the UN flag..hundreds and thousands of citizens are still caught in
some villages in the south under the bombings and they couldn't move even
to bury their dead siblings or neighbours..in Tyre (my wife's native town)
and its neighbouring villages , we buried 140 bodies..there is still more
than 90 bodies under the wreckage of destroyed buildings..all of these
bodies were of civilians..70% of them were children..and this is only
Tyre..the old phoenician historical city..my wife went just now with her
sister to present condolences to a neighbour who lost her 2 sons and the
son of her sister...what can you say to her??and as you can see we still
make social contacts and solidarity gatherings even though it is dangerous
to wander outside your home or house.. The israelis didn't succeed in
occupying 3 small villages in the south after 5 days of heavy fighting
with Hizbullah..so they decided to withdraw back and to continue their
air-strikes on all what moves in the south..this is their "intelligent"
war supported by the "intelligent" bombs delivered to them yesterday by
the USA..believe me this is what they call them :"intelligent missiles or
bombs"???today Mrs Dr Rice is coming back to the ME to try to impose her
version of cease-fire...our government,and not only Hizbullah,didn't agree
on the USA plan for the cease-fire..you will not believe what Kondy told
our government: there will not be a cease-fire until you accept the
israeli conditions???? our government is asking for a package deal that
will solve the causes of the conflict..the Israelis will try today and
tomorrow to achieve some progress in their plan so Mrs Rice can speak from
a position of power and force ..but this will not succeed..I don't know
why the big powers don't learn anything from History?? How they think that
they can impose what they want by force and war?? why they forget that the
people of any oppressed nation will rise again and again in a struggle of
resistance and fight back...that war and violence will give birth to more
war and violence and to more sufferings and killings??? how they imagine
that they can solve problems and "spread Democracy" by killing civilians
and destroying villages and towns and making 1 million persons displaced
and homeless and frustrated??? Israel cannot win this war..but lebanon was
devastated and destroyed and the USA is seen as conspirator and supporter
in this destruction...How they will end terrorism?? they gave birth now to
hundreds and thousands of new suicide bombers and new Bin Laden
recruitees...(I don't know if recruitee is a good english word..but you
can use it here)..
Yesterday Johnny woke me up at 6 am..she was phoning from Boston to tell
me that she spoke with her congrssman and that he told her that the USA
will evacuate people like me who are not USA citizens but have some kind
of visa or document etc...I told her it is still a hope not a reality..I
am still working on this and I hope that we will be able to send my son
Rida next week..I am meeting with an official in the embassy next monday
morning..so wait and see..I want to tell my friends who are concerned by
this issue and who are working and trying to make me leave Beirut by a
special way?? that I CANNOT leave Beirut NOW as a special USA case..it
will harm my credibility and my work here..I thank them all for what they
are doing but urge them to understand my situation and my position..:I
cannot leave like this while my people is counting the USA bombs falling
on them and killing their children??? thank you again and again and
thousands of time...the best way to help is to continue to focus on the
sufferings of the poor homeless people who lost all what they have,
including the lives of their beloved ones, their human dignity and self
respect..
yesterday I visited with my father and brother and wife, refugees in the
christian mountain..we spent 3 hours with them..130 families in a
covenant..they were from Tyre (my wife's town , her brother's family is
among them) and Nabatieh (my brother's wife family among them)..yes my
brother's family and my brother-in-law family are among these refugees
because we couldn't accomodate them in our home since we already have 3
families living with us...My son Rida and my daughter Lama(16) as well as
their cousins and friends work with a NGO in providing shelter and food
and medicine to displaced and homeless people..they go at 7-8 am and come
back very late after midnight..usually this is not accepted in our
families..but these days all the Lebanese youngsters are doing the same..
and the parents are praying to God that He protects and helps them..I will
be interviewed tomorrow Sunday between 9 and 11 am (Beirut's time)on LBC
(a lebanese famous important channel broadcasting also on sattelite)..I am
working on Rida's travel via Jordan to Indiana..Tickets are becoming very
very expensive..even the taxi which usually takes 20$ for a person is
asking today for 1000$ and sometimes more..people who fled the South
yesterday said that they paid 1000$ to reach Beirut (80 kms only)..fuel
and bread are becoming rare (expensive then)..many people will profit from
the war (as usual and as in any war in history)..Until now the internet is
still working... so we are still connected to the world..but we cannot use
it as much as we need or want to ,because the electricity goes and comes
and the lines are very busy as you can imagine..shortage of water is the
most sensitive thing that can harm civilians..thanks God water is still
supplied every 3 days..but we are fearing the worse in this case...Beirut
is still supplied with electricity (not 24 hours but between 12 and 18: it
depends on the bombings)..but the southern suburb and South lebanon are
not supplied at all..they are under a total black out...Israel is
SYETEMATICALLY bombing all the south (they finished with the southern
suburb of Beirut which was totally destroyed)..they are bombing all the
villages and towns and roads..this is because they cannot occupy again
south Lebanon: they know that if they occupy they will be forced to face
again a new polpular resistance...so their plan is to destroy the south as
a way to force hizbullah out of it and then the international forces can
come and stay in the south to defend Israel's borders ?? this is what Mrs
Rice is saying clearly and Mr Bush said their will not be a cease-fire
until we are sure that hizbullah is pushed 40kms north and
disarmed...Israel and Mr Bush do not know that they cannot defeat a
political popular party (hizbullah is not a regular army)and that the Shii
are today more supportive of hizbullah which is becoming the ONLY Shii
party that represents them and defends them...how strange that all the big
think tank intellectuals and strategists of the New-conservatives didn't
learn anything from the political science courses and books that they are
fond of....from Plato till Mao-Ze Dong...
Just now the BBC called and they want me "live" at 3 pm (8 am Indiana
time...I don't know if anybody is awake now and can see it and record it
for the others to watch later??)..