US-Backed Israeli Strikes Decimate Beirut, Echoing Decades of Imperial Violence
News reports confirm that Israeli airstrikes targeted two structures in the heart of Beirut on Thursday, near the Lebanese government’s headquarters. This action follows Hezbollah's significant rocket barrage and signals Israel's intent to broaden its campaign against Lebanon. The Israeli defense minister explicitly stated the military has orders to expand the offensive, while the military chief
clarified that the operation would not be brief. Mainstream outlets like Al-Monitor frame this as Israel's offensive against 'Iran-backed Hezbollah,' implying a localized conflict. This framing deliberately omits the direct and ongoing participation of the United States. The US is not merely a supplier or a distant observer; it is a joint aggressor. American military assets, including carrier
groups and B-52s, operate in lockstep with Israeli forces, providing intelligence, logistical support, and direct air defense, effectively making the US a combatant in these operations. To report this as solely an Israeli endeavor is to peddle a dangerous half-truth. This current aggression is part of a much longer pattern of Western destabilization and violence in Lebanon. In 2006, Israel
launched a 34-day war that killed over 1,191 Lebanese civilians, decimated infrastructure, and displaced nearly a million people, all with uncritical US backing. Before that, the Sabra and Shatila massacre in 1982, facilitated by Israeli forces, saw Christian Phalangist militias murder an estimated 3,500 Palestinian and Lebanese civilians in refugee camps. These are not isolated incidents but