It's a strategy that works. Over and over again. As brutal as it sounds, it's a strategy whose effectiveness is going to have to be neutralized in order to win this war. And by "this war," I don't mean just Israel against Hezbollah, but the West against the jihadists who mean to bring us down.
In April, 2002, Israel lost 23 soldiers in the Operation Defensive Shield battle against terrorists in Jenin. It didn't have to happen. The IDF easily had the capability to take out the threat using air power, without risking a single soldier's life. But that victory would have been at the expense of the lives of civilian residents of Jenin, and this price Israel was not willing to pay. The terrorists knew that. They counted on it. And in their equation, the score at the end of the battle wasn't measured by a comparison of casualties or even who was left standing, but only by how many Israeli lives were taken. From that perspective, odd as it may seem, the battle of Jenin was a victory for the terrorists, despite their defeat.
Yesterday, eight Israeli soldiers (z"l) were killed in a battle against Hezbollah terrorists in Bint Jbeil. It didn't have to happen. The IDF had the capability to take out the threat using air power, without risking a single soldier's life. But that victory would have been at the expense of the lives of civilian residents of Bint Jbeil, and this price Israel was not willing to pay. The terrorists knew that. They counted on it. 50 of their operatives were killed in the battle, and the IDF is calling that a hard hit. But in Hezbollah's equation, the score is measured only by the Israeli lives taken. That is, after all, the purpose of their offensive here.
Human shields work. And as long as they do, they'll continue to be used and more lives will be lost, both by soldiers put unnecessarily in harm's way and by civilians deliberately placed in the heart of the fight in spite of best efforts to avoid them. Yes, Israel does have to worry about both international and internal criticism and can't simply abandon all concern for civilian casualties. But sooner or later, the forces battling the terrorists, both in Israel and elsewhere, are going to have to eliminate the human shield factor if we are to prevail. Sooner would be better.
