Hizb'Allah. And Nasrallah
YVONNE RIDLEY
Friday, August 25, 2006
HAVE you ever tasted Humble Pie. I usually try and avoid it but I have had to eat huge slices of the stuff all this week.
OK! I surrender! The Israeli soldiers did fight like a load of big girls' blouses and I was wrong to suggest they deliberately threw in the towel.
Ever since I suggested otherwise I've been bashed up by the Zionists, lambasted by brothers and sisters from across the globe and I'm not sure if I dare set foot in Lebanon again ... well, not Hizb'Allah country anyway.
I suppose that means I've managed to unite everyone, but the trouble is AGAINST me.
I'm now in the Arabian peninsula and since everyone, and I mean everyone, is talking about 'THAT victory' it is hard to go anywhere without bumping in to a Hizb'Allah supporter.
Everyone has a story and most of them have come from Lebanese who sought refuge over here when the war started.
My new best friend from Beirut informed me about some vital tittle tattle which pours new light on the reason behind Ehud Olmert's invasion and war.
It is simply too delicious to ignore and does have a sad ring of truth about it that I must share it with you immediatley, dear readers.
The whole invasion happened in the first place, according to my man on the peninsula, after a rather humiliating broadcast made by the hero of the hour Hassan Nasrallah.
The offending broadcast was made some weeks before the war and is said to have really upset the leader of Israel Ehud Olmert.
Now despite the erroneous claptrap of some US journalists who insist Nasrallah is virulently anti-Jewish (his fight is with Zionists and not all Z people are Jews) his swipe at Olmert had nothing to do with politics.
Apparently he took part in a broadcast on al-Manar - the tv station of resistance - in which he literally made fun of 'little' Olmert.
In a vulgar gesture involving his thumb and forefinger, the man regarded as the most dangerous Muslim in the world today, called Olmert a "little man".
May be this uncouth act was something he picked up in his days in the slums of Sharshabouk in Beruit proving that you can take the man out of the slums but perhaps not Sharshabouk out of the man!
I know, I know. It is difficult to believe but in a moment of madness (Israeli leaders are always in denial over the truth) Olmert decided he was going to take out the Hizb'Allah leader for making such humiliating fun of him.
So there you go. Size does matter!
OK, so it is difficult to believe an uncouth gesture propelled Nasrallah to the ranks of Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro, but he has deservedly earned the accolade of becoming an overnight sensation and one of the world's most charismatic revolutionary leaders.
Despite his humble origins, his eloquent grasp of the Arabic language is said to be sheer poetry, but sadly his superb oratory is easily lost in English translation. He does have a wee bit of a lisp, but it would take a brave person to point it out at the moment.
Nasrallah is certainly no one's fool and I am not convinced either that he is totally in the grip of Iran , although much of the support he receives does come from Tehran as well as Syria .
Like many great leaders, he came from a poor or working class background but excelled in knowledge. As the leader of the greatest fighting force in the Arab world circa 2006, he wears modest clothes which doesn't reflect his status as a 24 carat leader of statesmanlike class. Of course when you're a bit of a rolypoly then it can be difficult to wear a tailored suit, but his present gear befits a revolutionary leader.
Did you know he is the son of a grocer - just like Iron lady Margaret Thatcher, or perhaps not?
I reckon he has now edged himself ahead of Usama bin Ladin by becoming the most significant Muslim to emerge in the last 100 years, but it is a precarious position to be in
...Olmert is madder that a bulldog chewing a wasp. He still hasn't got his revenge over being publicly humiliated and now, on top of that insult, he has been exposed as perhaps Israel 's worst ever military leader.
And let's face it, despite my initial (foolish) misgivings, the boys from Hizb'Allah have done something no Arab army has ever done before - they out-witted, out-manoevered, out-smarted, out-braved and out-fought the Israeli Army.
Olmert reckons Hizb'Allah is irreparably damaged and there'll be no more home-made rockets winging their way into northern Israel ... I reckon he's got a touch of sour grapes, don't you?
A new benchmark has now been set by the guerilla fighting force and the man at the head of this army has become the stuff of legend. He towers above the Arab leaders ... not too difficult since most are still on their knees.
Oh, how I wish they would stand up and fear no one but Allah (swt) for it is that steadfastness which helped Nasrallah triumph.
Israel 's outgoing head of military intelligence, Brigadier General Yossi Kuperwasser, has begrudgingly admitted that his adversary won by restoring and regaining "lost pride ... by readiness to sacrifice, readiness to suffer."
On the Arabian Peninsula I can tell you now that the Muslims here are walking around with an extra spring in their step and a livelier gait. Their shoulders are back and their heads are being held aloft ... it is an all too rare sight over here but I know it is down to Nasrallah and the boys from the Hizb'Allah.
Do you know, I can almost smell revolution in the air
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