Israel / Lebanon - can someone give me the basics

[Pennies]

I know I should know this but am always in bed by the 10pm news and missed what kicked it all off and haven't really got up to speed since it all really got going.

Can someone give me the bare bones of it all please as feel like a prize thicky not having a scooby about it all.

Bump? Anyone?

Two Israeli journalists were kidnapped by Hezbollah.

Or soldiers? Sorry!

OK so Israel then goes in to get them back but uses OTT tactics in a slege hammer to crack a nut stylee? US siding with Israel coz of Jewish link and Israel's military force?

Am I anywhere near right?

basically

Hurrah. DH asked me for the low down on it yesterday adn that was what I said and have been worried I got it all wrong and that he's going to talk to someone else about it and come up with a load of rubbish about it all.

We can hold our heads up high that we are urbane women of the world with a good handle on current affairs.

Hurrah to us all!

I would dispute the bit about US siding with Israel. It's my take that the US pushed for solid long term plan before backing an immediate cease fire.

I also think it's important to point out the Hezbollahs mission is the destruction of Israel and they been firing missiles into Israel for a ver long time.

Then, Israel rose up like Hezbollah had woken a sleeping giant. Many peopl believe Israels response was disproportional.

This struggle goes a long way back and it did not begin when those two soldiers were kidnapped.

Speaking of which, have those two soldiers been returned? (now I'm the thick one)

Don't think they have been returned. That's Israel's point.

All middle east tensions go back a long, long time...

Israel haven't got back the soldiers they wanted, Hizbollah wants to swap them for the couple hundred women and children Israel have been holding prisoner for about twenty years now.

Israel tried to kidnap someone of hizbollahs during the begining of the current cease fire, they managed to kill a few people in Lebanon I think they also lost a couple of soldiers too.. and nobody was kidnapped.

The US were backing Israel, they were sending them arms during the conflict, the planes carrying them were bieng re-fuelled in the UK somewhere (think Scotland but not sure).

Hopefully the ceasefire will last (please let it be so)

Uh oh

Yes, planes carrying weapons from the US for the Israelis (how kind of them!) refuelled here in Scotland, at Prestwick Airport. Caused a ruckus (how do you spell that?)

and now it is alleged that Hizbollah has been using British-made equipment, which would likely have made its way via Iran, to whom it was sold by us. And so it goes on....