Focus. In an act of insipid appeasement, Biden-Harris continue demanding that Israel lighten up on Hezbollah, Iran’s arm in Lebanon. Hezbollah showered Israel with rockets, tried destroying their (defensive) Iron Dome, and planned a second October 7 attack. Israel has had enough. They blew up terrorist pagers and then killed Hezbollah’s infamous leader, Hassan Nasrallah. What next?
What comes next depends on Iran –a full-out war with Israel and the US, triggering internal tumult and a bad ending for their leadership, or something lesser. While Biden-Harris just want some little diplomatic victory to announce, they are picking clovers in the outfield, out of the game.
First, Biden-Harris thinks Israel and Lebanon should declare peace – which misses the whole point. This is not about Lebanon, except Hezbollah victimizing the Jews and Lebanese both.
Still Biden-Harris-Blinken behave like schoolmarms, telling Israel to get to a “timeout corner,” telling them to apologize to the world, and just make up. Seriously, in the Mideast? Get real.
Second, Lebanon is a victim of this conflict, not a party to it. Iran runs Hezbollah, which has crushed Lebanon, turning a once lovely, beautiful, thriving Lebanese society into a terror haven, awash with refugees trying to escape anti-Hezbollah responsive attacks by Israel.
Third, as Biden-Harris pretends to broker a ceasefire, asking Australia, France, and Canada for cover, Lebanon has no power to stop Hezbollah and Israel no reason to spare Hezbollah.
Fourth, Biden-Harris have – let’s be honest – lost control over the Middle East, abandoning and criticizing Israel with billions for Iran, running away from Afghanistan’s Taliban, and allowing 20,000 US allies to die at the hands of Afghan terrorist leaders. No one takes them seriously.
Fifth, Biden-Harris are throwing a “Hail Mary” pass, asking anyone, someone, Israel or any other ally to broker a 21-day ceasefire with Hezbollah, not because they care about Lebanon or Israel, or peace across the region, but to show they can do something before November.
Sixth, Harris – who wants to be President – has no clue about the Middle East, has only been to tidy UAE (twice) as vice president, and never visited Israel, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, Bahrain, Kuwait, Afghanistan, or any other country of note in the region.
Having been in all of those countries, and more, as Colin Powell’s Assistant Secretary of State, let me say they all matter, and no one there takes Harris seriously. They think she is phony and lost.
Seventh, let’s get painfully real. Hezbollah is the largest surrogate for Iran in the region, well-armed, highly destructive, and a terrorist organization on our Terror List. They are Iran, in fact.
To call upon Lebanon, a victim country, and Israel, defending its right to exist against Iran’s regional surrogates, for a ceasefire to help Harris get elected – is pathetic. Even if Lebanon nodded and signed something with Israel, it would not stop Hezbollah, just kill the signatories.
In the end, the belligerent bully of the Middle East and the largest threat to regional and world peace, short of China and Russia, is Iran. They are the “but-for cause” of terrorism in this region, promoting the Hamas assault on Israel last October, arming, financing, and directing Hezbollah.
If anyone wants peace in the region, they have to – as Trump did – stick it to Iran, create deterrence, offer credible steps to peace in the region, motivate all to come to terms by making clear US support for Israel and peace-focused Arab countries, like Saudi, Jordan, and Egypt.
To pretend a ceasefire without Iran means anything is nonsense, believing in phantoms and peace fairies, is complete hokum. Worse, any foreign policy analyst worth their salt knows that. They know Iran is a religiously radical, openly terrorist state, intent on attacking the US and our allies.
What does that, in turn, mean? Contrary to the Biden-Harris make-believe, Iran’s word is worth nothing. So, on one hand, Iran is the real protagonist, on the other even deals with them are fake.
Bluntly, Biden-Harris let the kite string go, pushed the Middle East near oblivion, gave Iran billions for nuclear weapons, and pushed terror. A ceasefire with Lebanon … solves anything.
Bottom line: Iran is at war with Israel, using Hezbollah as they used Hamas – against Israel. Biden-Harris are non-players, with no clue about game theory or foreign relations. Iran calls the shots.
Final irony: Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, just told the UN he wants a “constructive role” in the world while condemning the US and Israel. This sounds like Hitler offering “peace in our time.” Here is a fresh idea: How about Iran disband Hezbollah, stop the terror, accept Israel?
Biden-Harris needs to grow up and focus on Iran. Everything else is talk. These two officeholders are not leaders, just clumsy politicians, with no grasp of the stakes, playing with matches in the barn. Focus.
Robert Charles is a former Assistant Secretary of State under Colin Powell, former Reagan and Bush 41 White House staffer, attorney, and naval intelligence officer (USNR). He wrote “Narcotics and Terrorism” (2003), “Eagles and Evergreens” (2018), and is National Spokesman for AMAC.
