This reminded me of a major one that makes me think Israel does not have the time to win with heavy-handed operations:
"Israel must take the utmost care in avoiding civilian casualties," [State Department spokesman Sean ] McCormack said.
Early on in the conflict, I worried that the sight of our ally Israel killing Shias in Lebanon could be a problem for us in Iraq. Our continued concern for civilians there certainly in part reflects our concerns about the radical Shias in Iraq taking advantage of the conflict within Lebanon.
The Shia Iraqi 'street" may not have been much of a factor in spontaneously rising up to overthrow pro-American governments in the past, but in Iraq we don't face mass unfocused anger. We face organized radical Shias such as Sadr's goons who are backed by Iran and who want to harm us and wreck a democratic Iraq. They might spark focused anger that harms us or the Iraqi government.
The Soviets may not be pressuring us to end the fight inside Lebanon, but we may have to soon for our own reasons. We might like Israel to destroy Hizbollah now, but we must maintain the support of Iraq's Shias.
Time is our enemy in this, I think.
