Fateful Triangle

Peace for Galilee455Fairlie—does not tell us where the Palestinians had a “right to be.” *Others did, for example, historian Barbara Tuchman, who explained thatalthough “the invasion of Lebanon seems to me out of proportion” andmay not be “the wisest course,” nevertheless: “Let us put theresponsibility for a solution where it lies... Let the Arabs solve theproblem of the Palestinians,” not those who occupy their formerhomes. 212 Since the Palestinians were the “aggressors” when Israelinvaded Lebanon, it must be that Israel was acting in a “peaceproducingrole”—and so we are informed by ex-Senator Jacob Javits,who also points out that once before Israel had “serve[d] in this peaceproducingrole” in Lebanon, namely, in 1958, when Israel providedlogistical support at the Haifa port for the landing of U.S. marines inLebanon. 213Michael Walzer, the noted social democratic theorist of “just wars,”explained that “I certainly welcome the political defeat of the PLO, and Ibelieve that the limited military operation required to inflict that defeatcan be defended under the theory of just war.” Under his concept of“just war,” with its special provisions for the State of Israel discussedabove (see pp. 100-1), his conclusion is surely correct. Walzer alsoassures us that Israel’s military practice in the south “was a goodexample of proportionate warfare”—the proof is that Israeli soldiers soinformed him—and if later operations in Beirut put civilians “at risk,” wemust understand that “the responsibility for the risks lies with thePLO,” 214 the official position of the Begin government and yet anothernotable contribution to contemporary moral doctrine by this highly-*He also avoids mention of the fact that Syria was present under an Arab Leaguemandate that was to expire in July 1982, and that the U.S. and Israel at leasttacitly supported the original Syrian intervention in opposition to the Palestiniansand their Muslim allies.Classics in Politics: The Fateful TriangleNoam Chomsky