The danger of an unequal struggle

The danger of an unequal struggle

By Ehsan Ahrari

"We know well where the asymmetric war between the US is heading: an unmitigated disaster in Iraq. The question now is where will the asymmetric war between Israel and the Arabs (Palestinians and Lebanese) lead? It seems like another disaster in the making.

One side fights with awesome high-tech weapons; while the other side fights with whatever it can get its hands on. The Iraqis (and now the Afghans) did not invent the art of asymmetric warfare, but they seem to be writing a new chapter. In the process, Iraq and Afghanistan are steadily sliding toward mayhem. The "victor" in this war will be the one that has the political capability and resolve to outlast the other side.

Like the US in Iraq, the Israeli response was aimed at creating shock and awe. Like the US's "war strategies" that were focused in the 1991 and 2003 military campaigns in Iraq on destroying its civilian and military infrastructure, Israel is concentrating on the destruction of the most primitive infrastructure in the occupied territory and relatively well-developed civilian infrastructure in Lebanon.

In the case of the Palestinians as well the Lebanese, the past has proven that they have the capacity to absorb misery and continue their struggle. That reminds one of the third rule of the post-September 11 era. The Arab side is convinced that there is such a thing called the "Vietnam syndrome" in the US. That describes a psychological fear of remaining involved in a protracted and ostensibly losing war. It also describes a low to very low quotient for absorbing human losses in a war.