2024-09-08 01:09:30
Orientalist Aviram Blaish has analyzed Hezbollah’s behavior and its response to recent failures, highlighting the Muslim cultural drive to avenge and conceal one’s own shame.
In his article, published on the website of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs (JCPA), he points out that Hezbollah’s actions over the past month clearly illustrate this observation.
Blaish explains that in the Western value system, those responsible must apologize and be punished. However, in analyzing Hezbollah’s behavior after the failure of a planned massive attack on Israel, he emphasizes that in Muslim culture, things are different. The reaction to failure is not to admit mistakes, but to lie and try to hide the real state of affairs.
The researcher recalls that 12 children were killed in a rocket attack by Hezbollah in Majdal Shams. In response, Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, made a speech blaming Israel for the tragedy. However, this statement was immediately perceived as a lie, as the cause of the tragedy was seen as a failed attack initiated by Hezbollah itself. The report of the UN forces in southern Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the evidence provided by Israel confirmed that Hezbollah was responsible for what happened, and Nasrallah’s words were just an attempt to cover up the failure.
In analyzing Hezbollah’s subsequent failure to plan a massive strike against Israel, Blaish also points to the outright lies in Nasrallah’s statements. The Hezbollah leader claimed that the militants’ drones had reached the Israeli military intelligence base 8200 near the Glilot junction. However, this claim was so far from the truth that even Nasrallah’s supporters did not take it seriously. Blaish emphasizes that this deception has damaged the reputation of Nasrallah, who had managed to gain an image of a truth-teller during the Second Lebanon War.
In addition, the article notes that a Telegram channel associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps published a plan for a large-scale attack on Israel involving all Iranian proxies. This plan envisaged strikes on decision-making centers and important infrastructure facilities. However, faced with a possible Israeli response with US support, Iran abandoned this idea, blaming the attack on Hezbollah, which failed to successfully carry out the task.
Bleish notes that Iran responded quickly to the failure of its proxy, but their response was a failure, leading to even more embarrassment. Iran tried to portray the attack as a success, claiming that a Hezbollah missile hit an Israeli naval boat, killing a soldier. However, the tragedy was actually caused by an untimely explosion of an Israeli missile. Hezbollah also tried to portray the launch of a drone, which was shot down by Israeli air defenses, as a success.
The situation was complicated by the fact that Iranian officials began talking about a new strike on Israel that was supposedly planned, but Nasrallah did not mention anything of the sort in his speeches. As a result, contradictory reports began appearing in the Iranian media about Israel’s preemptive attack on Hezbollah.
Bleish emphasizes that Iran and Hezbollah’s attempts to pass off their failures as victories have provoked a wave of criticism and ridicule in both Lebanon and Iran. The public has expressed distrust of their leaders, which has been a serious blow to the reputation of these organizations. Support for Hezbollah in the Shiite areas of Beirut has also been perceived as a piece of propaganda that has failed to convince the masses.
In conclusion, Bleish notes that Iran and Hezbollah followed a pre-conceived plan of attack, which included missiles and drones. However, the attempt to cover up the failure led to an even greater crisis of confidence. In his opinion, Iran can take a break and continue to prepare for revenge, but for now it is clear that the failures have led to a vicious cycle of lies and shame that has only made their situation worse.
Earlier, Cursor reported that Israel is threatened by several other terrorist organizations besides Hezbollah.