The July War Series, Part IV – Hizbullah’s Strategic Victory

"During the July war, "Israel's" first goal was to destroy Hizbullah, and the second alternative one was to take away all its arms," said Hussein Hajj Hassan, a Lebanese Hizbullah MP, to the McClatchy Newspapers network. "For us, victory was Hizbullah remaining and keeping our arms. And I swear to God, Hizbullah will remain and so will our arms. No one can destroy Hizbullah," he said. "The "Israelis" faced their classic problem: They could not punish Hizbullah, which has no physical structure to destroy," said Mustafa Alani, a military analyst with the Dubai-based Gulf Research Centre, to Associated Press.

From the military point of view, the fierce and heroic resistance of some thousands of Hizbullah highly disciplined fighters, who were capable of forcing a fully-armed army of 30,000 men to withdrawal, electrified the Muslim world and horrified the "Israeli" political and military establishment, who had worked for decades to make the world believe that their army was "invincible".

"Israel", wary of getting sucked into a new disastrous occupation of south Lebanon, decided against a full-scale invasion, sticking with a strategy of air raids and limited ground attacks. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told troops during a visit to Hatzor air force base in southern "Israel" that "in every combat situation, the preference is to act from the air and not on the ground." Actually, "Israeli" military commanders feared the power of Hizbullah fighters. "Israel" lost about 1,000 soldiers, many of them to Hizbullah attacks, in its 18-year occupation of south Lebanon after 1982.

The air campaign, however, failed to reduce Hizbullah rocket fire into northern "Israel" and was also incapable of pulling Hizbullah's fighters out of border areas. The bodies of the two "Israeli" prisoners, who served as pretext for the war, were not released either as a consequence of the "Israeli" assault. They returned to the Zionist entity only as a result of an exchange of prisoners, exactly as Hizbullah's Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah had proposed before the war.

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said that the further "Israel's" army pushed into Lebanon, the more it would expose itself to guerrilla warfare. "It will give us a wider and bigger chance for direct confrontation and to bleed the forces of this enemy," he said. Hizbullah fighters enjoyed a native knowledge of the territory, which allowed them to successfully elude and ambush the "Israeli" army. Many of them are local youths who know the terrain and, in ordinary times, work and live among the population.

Hizbullah used their weapons, especially anti-tank missiles, with lethal efficiency. Hizbullah apparently employed Russian Kornet and Metis and European Milan anti-tank missiles against "Israeli" armor. "They (Hizbullah guerrillas) have some of the most advanced anti-tank missiles in the world," said Yossi Kuperwasser, a senior "Israeli" military intelligence officer. Besides the anti-tank missiles, Hizbullah is also known to have a powerful Russian rocket-propelled grenade known as the RPG29.

According to some sources, more than 156 "Israelis", including 117 soldiers, among them 35 Golani elite troopers, were killed. Most of them were targeted in their Merkava tanks, by Hizbullah's gunfire and anti-tank missiles. The reports indicate that the injured have exceeded 400. Moreover, more than 100 Merkava tanks, 46 bulldozers and 34 armored vehicles were destroyed. Hizbullah also shot down at least four Apache helicopters and destroyed one warship -a fast-speed Super Dvora patrol- with a missile. As a result, "Israel" restricted its use of helicopters, particularly the Apache gun ships. The helicopters were used to hit coastal targets, but not in the inland valleys and hills for fear of Hizbullah anti-aircraft weapons. Meanwhile, Hizbullah continued firing scores of missiles on "Israeli" territory during all the conflict.

Hizbullah's ability to regroup quickly in places that had been previously attacked also shocked "Israelis". The Washington Post claimed that Hizbullah's loose structure, with at least three regional commands in the South helped prevent "Israel's" intensive bombing over the last two weeks from disrupting communications or lines of command and control. With guerrillas fighting in their home villages and arms cached in tunnels and underground shelters, there were few vital command lines to attack.

The most famous victory of Hizbullah in the war was the battle of Bint Jbeil, where Lebanese fighters who appeared from tunnels, bunkers and houses ambushed "Israeli" soldiers killing 18 of them. "Israeli" troops surrounded the town, but they were unable to capture it immediately. The Hizbullah ambush inside Bint Jbeil was at times so intense that "Israeli" soldiers were pinned down and could not return fire. The fight for Bint Jbail, according to political analysts, symbolized "Israel's" failure to force Hizbullah fighters retreat from the border, whether by air bombardment or ground battles.

"The "Israelis" took some bad losses," said Mahmoud Qomati, a member of Hizbullah's political bureau, adding that "Israeli" tanks penetrated Bint Jbeil but were quickly enveloped by Hizbullah fighters lying in ambush and armed with the antitank weapons. Qomati said that this battle proved that Hizbullah guerrillas could hold their own against "Israeli" soldiers on the ground. Even with "Israeli" control of the air, he said, the group had the munitions, equipment and morale to continue fighting "for months."

The New York Times also said that the "Israeli" army was also incapable of taking over Kafr Kila although it brutally bombed the village, unleashed tank fire against it and launched phosphorus shells onto groves and orchards to burn the hill and force people out. Some residents stayed in Kafr Kila despite the destruction. Others preferred to left the village, which was held on by local fighters with Hizbullah and allied factions. "Israeli" attacks, some of them with tanks, failed. "Israeli" forces also attacked Taibe, located 4 kilometers from the border, where they encountered fierce resistance and, therefore, they were unable to enter. At least three "Israeli" Merkava tanks were knocked out by Hizbullah killing several "Israeli" soldiers.

On August 9, 15 "Israeli" soldiers were killed and 25 were wounded in a series of firefights across the front in the southern Lebanon villages of Ayta al-Shaab and Debel, in the central sector. In the most serious incident, nine reserve paratroopers were killed and 11 wounded by antitank missiles fired on a house in the village of Debel. Four reservists from an armored brigade were killed in a tank explosion, apparently caused by antitank missiles, in the town of Ayta al-Shaab. An infantryman was killed late Wednesday when he was hit by a mortar in Marjayoun. On August 10, eight "Israeli" tanks were destroyed in different parts of southern Lebanon.

However, the "Israeli" army's persistence to push deep into Southern Lebanon ended with more catastrophic consequences. In the midst of August, the humiliated "Israeli" army was determined to achieve "something on the ground", which it had remarkably failed to achieve in the previous 31 days, for domestic consumption back at home. However, on August 12 it suffered the highest toll in a single day. Twenty-four "Israeli" soldiers were killed that day, including 5 soldiers killed in a helicopter shot down by Hizbullah. Several soldiers died they were hit by anti-tank missiles and others in fierce gunbattles with the Lebanese fighters.

Hizbullah fighters had a high motivation because they knew they were defending their homeland from a brutal aggression. "The most important element about this war is its moral dimension. Hizbullah has prepared itself for this war, its fighters have been indoctrinated to fight until victory," said Nizar Abdel Kader, a military analyst and retired Lebanese army general. Many Hizbullah fighters were leading a normal and peaceful life with their families but as soon as they heard of the "Israeli" onslaught on their homeland, they were quick to join the Lebanese resistance to fight the "Israeli" occupation forces. "I left my wife and son behind to take up arms to defend my homeland and dignity," a Hizbullah fighter, who identified himself as Haidar, told IslamOnline.net in the Lebanese bastion of resistance Bint Jbail on August 18.

"Hizbullah has given a lesson to the whole world that our honor is not for sale and we are ready to sacrifice everything to defend it," added Haidar. He was holed up in a position in the Bint Jbail town as the "Israeli" planes flew overhead while pounding the southern Lebanese villages to make a space for "Israeli" commando operations against the resistance fighters. But the "Israeli" tactics always hit a dead end due to steadfastness of the Lebanese resistance fighters. "They ("Israelis") sought to terrify us by pounding the southern villages," Haider said. "But once their troops are on the battle ground, their true nature is revealed. Once we meet them face to face, they run in panic and implore air support," he said.

Haidar said he joined the Lebanese resistance in 1996 when he was still a student. "I was brought up in the occupied south Lebanon where we were evacuated by "Israel"," he said. "The "Israelis" used to kill our families and kill our brothers in the south and used the proxy southern Lebanese army (SLA) to horribly torture us," he added. "These "Israeli" practices left us with no option but to join the resistance."

Hizbullah achieved an important strategic victory. Firstly, it kept the control of Lebanese border areas and prevented the "Israeli" army to take them over. It also kept its arsenal and forces intact. Secondly, it broke the long-established conventional deterrence of "Israel". This fact was a critical part of the conflict and had a profound effect on the outcome. The July war exposed the "Israeli" army's weaknesses despite all US support. The best proof of the "Israeli" failure was in the indiscriminate destruction scattered on the ground. In the Lebanon war the "Israeli" army destroyed dozens of buildings and killed hundreds of civilians but achieved nothing of strategic importance. The Hizbullah rockets continued to fall on Haifa and "Israelis" were helpless to stop them. The Hizbullah resistance showed that the "Israeli" army could be defeated and real damage could be inflicted on its soldiers and hardware, including its sophisticated tanks, helicopters and ships.

Thirdly and in contrast to US and "Israeli" plans, the continuing "Israeli" bombing of south Lebanon and south Beirut strengthened the Hizbullah and the leadership of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. The plan of "Israel" to strangle Lebanon by bombing its infrastructures and blocking it from land, sea and air and to turn Christians and Sunnis against Hizbullah was a failure. Hizbullah managed to resist the "Israel" assault and Lebanese people remained united against the invaders. A survey by the Center for Research and Information in Beirut showed that 87% of all Lebanese supported Hizbullah's resistance against "Israel", including 80% of Christians, 80% of Druze and 89% of Sunnis.

The IPS journalist Dahr Jamail pointed out that "Hizbullah has over the years gained a strong following in Lebanon primarily on the back of its engagement in social services, taking on infrastructure projects, and looking after its followers. The "Israeli" assault is giving Hizbullah scope to gain more such power. Hizbullah now controls, for example, several schools in Beirut that have been converted into refugee shelters." Jamail added that "support for the Hizbullah appears to be stronger among younger people. And some Christians too are speaking in support of Hizbullah. Ramzi Semaan, a 21-year-old Christian, told IPS that "Hizbullah is defending this country, and the "Israeli" offensive was planned months in advance." Moreover, the widespread destruction of infrastructure has been decisive in turning popular anger against "Israel", rather than Hizbullah.

Hizbullah won over the hearts and minds of Arabs, Muslims and other people from all over the world. Throughout the Arab and Muslim worlds, Hizbullah is now highly regarded as a legitimate resistance movement since it was set up in 1982 to fight against "Israeli" invasion of Lebanon. People recall that Hassan Nasrallah and his party achieved a historical victory over "Israel" on May 25, 2000, forcing the "Israelis" to withdraw from southern Lebanon.

""Israel" is responsible for this war. It is constantly attacks and occupies Arab territories. Hizbullah are heroes and should be supported by all Arabs," Mohammed Abdullah, a bread vendor in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, told Associated Press in a comment that was typical in those days in the streets of any Arab or Muslim country. Therefore, the contrast with the attitude of Arab governments was clear on the street, pushing the peoples of some Arab and Islamic countries further away from their dictatorial and unrepresentative regimes.

Hizbullah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah claimed that Hizbullah fighters had achieved a "strategic, historic victory" against "Israel" - a declaration that prompted celebratory gunfire across the Lebanese capital, Beirut. "We came out victorious in a war in which big Arab armies were defeated (before)," he said. He pointed out that it was not the time to debate the disarmament of his guerrilla fighters. "Who will defend Lebanon in case of a new "Israeli" offensive?" Sayyed Nasrallah asked. "The Lebanese army and international troops are incapable of protecting Lebanon." He added that the massive destruction inflicted by "Israel" was an expression of its "failure and impotency." And he promised Hizbullah would help the Lebanese people rebuild.

"The goal of Hizbullah was to make the "Israeli" assault fail and protect Lebanon's national interests, sovereignty and independence. Our real and basic motto is dignity.... the buildings were destroyed and they will be rebuilt and the infrastructure was hit and it will be reconstructed," stated Sayyed Nasrallah. "Our destiny is to stand with all nationalists and honest people to face this (Zionist) project in Lebanon."

After the war, many fighters became workers. Hanady Salman, an editor at Assafir, one of the country's major newspapers, told The Washington Times that Hizbullah had encouraged many Lebanese to work in the reconstruction. "Hizbullah is doing a great job paying compensation," he said. "Also, they have lots of people volunteering - architects, civil engineers or people who just go there and offer to move the rubble. People who have trucks are helping move the rubble and paying for their own petrol. We are witnessing something we had never witnessed before, this whole atmosphere in which university students, housewives, Christian and Muslims donate and volunteer.