The U.N. is at it again.
All week, the international peacekeeping mission in Lebanon — referred to as UNIFIL — has accused Israel of firing on its positions. Israel says it repeatedly warned UNIFIL to withdraw before it took military action in its vicinity. Nevertheless, the glaring irony is that UNIFIL, an outfit ostensibly dedicated to ensuring Hezbollah demilitarization in the south, is chiding Israel for . . . engaging Hezbollah in the south.
Like in economics, effective policies fail to materialize when an issue is outsourced to a third party that is immune to the consequences of its own actions. What motivation could the Cambodian contingent of UNIFIL, for example, possibly have in deterring — let alone confronting — Hezbollah, the most heavily armed non-state actor in the world?
U.N. advocates value theoretical conceptions inspired by the “international community” over reckoning with on-the-ground realities. Like the guy more interested in mapping out his team’s off-season than watching the actual games, the U.N. fawns over the idea of peace yet lacks interest in effectuating it. Sometimes, peace must be fought for.
David Ben-Gurion said that history is not written but made. The Jewish state understands that self-preservation takes precedence over edicts emanating from Midtown Manhattan. Security Council votes won’t deliver Israel from danger. Its air force will.
Israel can and should work to empower Lebanese sovereignty by degrading Hezbollah — if only the U.N. would get out of its way.