Middle East 101, Week XVI

Hezbollah and the Second Lebanon War

An artillery battery shelling Hezbollah positions in the first days of the fighting of the Second Lebanon War. עודד בלילטי / IDF Spokesperson’s Unit via Wikipedia Commons

‼️ SCHEDULE CHANGE: Next week, May 12, we’ll be meeting two hours later than we usually do, at 18:30 pm Paris time as opposed to 16:30. We’ve rescheduled so that our guest, Michael Totten, can join us from Portland.

Reading

The Road to Fatima Gate: The Beirut Spring, the Rise of Hezbollah, and the Iranian War Against Israel, by Michael Totten. If you don’t usually come to class but you’re especially keen to hear what Michael has to say, this class open to everyone who’s read the book, but priority in the discussion goes to the students who’ve been attending every week.

If you have the time, you might find it interesting to watch this as you read the book. The director, Mai Masri, is a big deal among Palestinian filmmakers.

Please also read:

Primary documents (and commentary)

1985 “Open Letter”—Hezbollah’s original manifesto. You may prefer this translation. (The second one is abridged.) Like Hamas, Hezbollah subsequently published another manifesto without the Islamist rhetoric for the benefit of useful idiots at Columbia. If you have time, please also read, The “Rebirth” of Hizbollah: Analyzing the 2009 Manifesto.

• UNSC Resolution 1701

  • The UN Mideast Ceasefire Resolution Paragraph-by-Paragraph

  • The UN Mideast Ceasefire Resolution: A View from Israel

Summary of the findings of the Winograd Commission: Final and Interim Reports

• The Winograd Commission’s Findings

Books

• 34 Days: Israel, Hezbollah, and the War in Lebanon, by Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff. Here’s an online copy. (This is very short.)

Articles

• The Road to the Second Lebanon War, 2000-2006: Strategic Changes in Lebanon, the Middle East, and the International Theater, by Reuven Erlich

• The Israel-Lebanon War and its Implications for Regional Security, by Nazir Hussain

• The Aftereffects of the 2006 Israel–Hezbollah war, by Paul Salem