Mere Rhetoric: Syria Sending Weapons To Hezbollah For The Next War. Of Course They Are.

In the words of a Disney cartoon character from our youth, we think we're going to have a heart attack from not surprise:

Syria has recently transferred large quantities of advanced antitank missiles to Hizbulla in Lebanon, going against a UN resolution on the subject, senior officials in Jerusalem recently learned. The shipments include Russian-made Kornet antitank guided missiles, of the same type used by Hizbullah against Israel during the war in Lebanon. A high ranking official reported that in wake of the war, the Shiite group realized it needs to stock up on substantial quantities of missiles that can target the Israeli armored forces.

So let's see if we understand this. Russia is giving nuclear tech directly to Iran. They're sending anti-tank missiles to Hezbollah through Assad. The press loves to call the sitting Lebanese government "US-backed". Why don't we ever see Hezbollah or Iran described as "Russian-backed" (no, no - don't tell us... we want to figure it out for ourselves!)

And now it's time for us to annoy you - yet again - with one of our favorite quotes from Lebanon II. Here's the Guardian's mindbendingly shameless whitewashing of Syria and Iran's connections to Hezbollah:

But western officials who claim that the Iranian and Syrian governments support Hizbullah say little is overt about the relationships between Hizbullah and the governments in Tehran and Damascus. Some senior officials have gone as far as accusing Iran of orchestrating the current conflict, pointing to Israeli claims that Iranian-made missiles have been used by Hizbullah and that Iran's elite revolutionary guards have assisted Hizbullah on the ground in Lebanon. Officials claim Tehran is trying to deflect international attention from its suspected nuclear weapons programme.

And as always, the best part is that they clearly expected people to not think that they just made up those "senior officials". Because if they didn't - if there were really senior US officials who didn't know that Syria and Iran were helping Hezbollah - then we are truly all screwed.

Previously: MR Asks: Yeah, Why Aren't We Bombing Syria?, Syria is Hiding Weapons in Civilian Aid Convoys. Of Course They Are., Juan Cole is Intellectually Dishonest, Part [Insert Big Number Here]

About

Omri Ceren is a PhD student studying Rhetoric at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication. He lives in downtown Los Angeles.
Email: omri@mererhetoric.com
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