Proportionality

There has been much talk about Israel's disproportionate use of force in its fight against Hezbullah. Accusations go something like this: "Hezbullah only killed a few Jews, whereas Israel is killing dozens, perhaps hundreds of Arabs. This is disproportionate and therefore outrageous."

I agree with this observation. I think Israel should commit to this fight with the same intensity and intentions that Hezbullah is harbouring. Hezbullah is fighting this war with everything it's got, and its intention is to hurt Israel as much as possible. It wants to hit every major population area, and kill as many Jews as it can. It is using every weapon in its arsenal, and using every tactic, "allowed" or otherwise, in its quest to damage and destroy Israel.

Israel should be no less committed.

Which means that Israel should stop fighting with kid gloves on, and use as its only criterion for the application of force, the number of bombs and missiles left in inventory, the amount of fuel needed to deliver them, and the effort and expense to replenish both as quickly as possible.

Israel is a sovereign state. So is Lebanon. Israel was attacked by Lebanon, without any provocation whatsoever. Israeli military personnel were ambushed, killed and kidnapped, and are now being held hostage.

This is by any measurement a declaration of war.

Hezbullah is a Shiite muslim organization. Approximately 1/3 of all Lebanese are Shia muslims, and support Hezbullah unconditionally. The rest of Lebanon does not have the will or the power to stop Hezbullah from attacking Israel from Lebanese soil. Responsibility for combating Hezbullah would fall on the Lebanse themselves, but clearly, this never did happen, and it is never going to happen. So it is left to the victims of Iran's proxy to take action, and the action should be appropriate, and proportionate.

This can only mean the complete and total destruction of the terrorist infrastructure in Lebanon. The complete and total eradication of every single terrorist. Regardless of the cost on Israeli side, or on the Arab side.

Make Syria and Iran take notice. This war is not a war of conquest. It is not fought to effect the release of the kidnapped soldiers (no matter how important this is).
This war should be a war of annihilation, the annihilation of Israel's most urgent enemy. Pacify Southern Lebanon so that the Lebanese have a chance to show they want to live in peace with Israel. And let Iran see the effect of its genocidal aspirations, and regard it as a taste of what is to come.