Shmuel Rosner in Ha'aretz:

"There is no green light" from America for the Israeli operation, David Welch managed to hiss, while answering the cellphone urging him to cut short his meetings with the press and get back to the office.

Here's an official who is not to be envied: On Monday he returned from a long Mideast trip, including a stop in Israel, and today he is departing for another one. Israel, Rome, and Israel again. "He's exhausted," says an Israeli colleague who knows him well. Is it any wonder that the Assistant Secretary of State for the Middle East is angry at Hezbollah? The folly of their action got the whole area jumping - Welch included. He gestures dismissively when asked if "the occupation" is responsible for the outbreak of violence. "I don't see how the occupation is connected to this," he states. After all - there is no Israeli occupation in Lebanon. Plain and simple. "And it's not me saying that, it's the UN."

Formally there may not be a green light, but it is hard to interpret the American approach otherwise. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice rejected without batting an eye the initiatives for an immediate cease-fire. If there's a crisis - then let it go all the way. Let it do some good. The U.S., from the get-go, spotted the potential inherent in the outbreak, and decided to grab the bull by the horns and has not backed down. Not when faced by the French, nor UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. As of the weekend, the U.S. seems to have succeeded. The world grasped that without American, it will not be able to stop the Israeli operation, and changed course - from complaining to talking. ...

This whole piece is worth reading. This too: US looking for ways to shape new order in Lebanon.

Posted by Laura at July 23, 2006 09:11 AM