A very big fish indeed
If it is true, as Hezbollah is claiming, that its deputy chief Imad Mughniyah has been killed by the Israelis, this is an immensely significant development — a real blow against Iran and almost certainly an astounding coup for the Mossad.*
As Amir Oren writes in Ha’aretz, Mughniyeh was at the top of the FBI’s most wanted list, second only to Osama bin Laden and more important even than Hassan Nazrullah, Hezbollah’s leader.
Iran saw Mughniyah as a crucial asset. Along with the Iranian ambassador and the commander of the Revolution Guard Corps, Mughniyah served as the Iranian presence in Lebanon. All of the Iranian-planned terrorist attacks carried out by Hezbollah were masterminded by Mughniyah himself.His significance was not merely that he was held responsible for a long list of atrocities, including the bombings of the Israeli embassy and the Jewish community centre in Buenos Aires in 1992 and 1994, a wave of abductions of Westerns in Lebanon in the 1980s, the 1983 bombing of the US Embassy and marine barracks in Beirut which killed over 350, and many more outrages. He was probably the most cunning, audacious and strategic terrorist in the world. Because of his outstanding demonic prowess and the fact that he was linked to al Qaeda (all those who labour under the delusion that Iran and al Qaeda could not be in alliance please note) there are those in the intelligence world who believe that 9/11 could not have taken place without his input. As the Jerusalem Post reports:
He also apparently had strong ties with Al Qaida and according to the testimony of Ali Mohammed, a senior Al Qaida operative who was arrested for involvement in the attacks on American embassies in Africa, Mughniyeh met with Bin Laden in Sudan in 1993. Hizbullah, Mohammed said, provided explosives training for Al-Qaida fighters. This relationship and the fact that Mughniyeh was Hizbullah's liaison to Al Qaida, has led western intelligence agencies to raise the possibility that he was also involved in the 9/11 attacks.The blow to Iran from his death is severe — a rare and serious setback for the godfathers of terror in Tehran. It is therefore a great victory in the war for civilisation. But for Jews worldwide, it must also be a source of renewed anxiety. Iran may well want to take its revenge and, as we saw in Buenos Aires, Jews around the world are considered to be legitimate targets. As ever, we now hold our breath.
*UPDATE: A number of conspiracy theories are beginning to circulate around the question of who actually killed him. Time magazine carries a piece about the speculation.
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Melanie Phillips is a Daily Mail columnist. She also writes for the Jewish Chronicle and is a panellist on BBC Radio Four's Moral Maze. Her most recent book is 'Londonistan', published by Encounter and Gibson Square.
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Alan Stoddart
February 13th, 2008 7:31pmShocked that the only way to deal with this man was to kill him, surely sitting him down and having a good chat with him along with a reading from the Declaration of Independence would have made him realise the wasted life he had led? or a spot of water-boarding. Which brings me to Ed Husain...the Islamist. Is he still one? Praised by many but a close reading of his book leads you to feel he still has Islamist tendencies. He is a supporter of Hamza Yusuf Hanson in the USA, a firebrand preacher who suddenly 'converted' to moderate views after 9/11. Is Ed Husain really so moderate..or something else. And why does the BBC find itself able to pronounce 5 'Muslims' innocent but never guilty.
Bob
February 13th, 2008 9:30pmCouldn't have happened to a nicer guy...
Austin Barry
February 13th, 2008 9:53pmThe clinical, ruthless and relentless efficiency of Mossad will, I suspect, become a template for other democracies as we combat the Islami..., whoops, sorry Gordon, er, criminal, that's it, yes, criminal elements.
George Steiner
February 13th, 2008 10:38pmAs they say in the vernacular, the Americans owe them one.
YA
February 13th, 2008 11:03pmPlease always wear your seat belt when driving, and never engage in acts of terrorism, otherwise your life might be in danger.
Sounder
February 14th, 2008 12:37amThis has certainly nothing to do with Islamic terrorism. Far be it. It was simply taking care of a 'criminal element'. Everyone should be satisfied with that.
Neil Turner
February 14th, 2008 8:28amHow long will Israel wait before it hits the Iranian Nuclear facilities ? The clock is ticking I think.....
Gary Luke
February 14th, 2008 12:06pmIt could be an internal Hezbolla job. They lost a strategic advantage last year. The small war was initiated at a time chosen by Israel, and it revealed Hezbolla's style of defences. Israel acted stupidly and lost the battle, but everyone knows that's not the end of the war. Hezbolla's public statements are full of bravado but internally they know it has left them more vulnerable. Someone must be blamed for that. On the other hand, it was so precisely targetted that it doesn't seem like the Hezbolla method of expoloding everyone and everything in the district. If Israel has penetrated possibly the most protected person in Damascus with such precision, after recently bombing the Syrian "factory" - that would worry all those psychopathetic ratbags.
Manuel
February 14th, 2008 2:55pmDamascus traffic wardens have their own particular style - they don't just give you a ticket, they give you a rocket!! What a pity!!
Scipio
February 14th, 2008 3:24pmI suspect the Syrians got rid of him. Syria is a totalitarian Stalinist style police state with informers everywhere and I doubt that the even the Israelis could pull something like this off in the heart of Damascus.
Dr. Mabuse
February 14th, 2008 3:32pmAs Ambrose Bierce said, "Hell's full of such." Continued good hunting, fellows!
Rob
February 14th, 2008 8:23pmThis significant victory is being all but ignored in the U.S. media.
YA
February 14th, 2008 9:17pmGuardian's masterpiece of the title: "..Two protests in Beirut over two slain leaders expose Lebanese divisions..". In the best traditions of impartiality, Guardian pushes factual context before and instead of the moral one - in the end, he was "just a leader", and this is up to you, my dear multicultural user, how you interpret this leadership. Actually, this "leader" was a monster who organized mass murders of unarmed civilians, took hostages, and personally shot and tortured them. And very likely he was the one who designed Hariri's death. Conclusion? Impartiality - I mean genuine not engineered impartiality - stinks. Never demand impartiality of media. Demand morality. Demand humanism.
phil
February 15th, 2008 12:02amHow amazing that a culture can hold up a mass killer of civilians as a martyr -what a world we live in-personally Sadat was my idea of a martyr and he really acheived something
kate b
February 15th, 2008 8:57amThe media cannot ignore this, the masses with their fists shaking were begging Nasrallah to give orders to commit 'criminal activity'.....or is it 'anti-islamic' activity. The repercussions can occur world-wide as Dar-al-Islam is worldwide. It will be unfair, as the Lebanese war was. Israel did not start that. Israel said they would go to the Litani river, but the Lebanese left all their citizens in with the terrorists to be killed, they know their terrorists use their own civilians as shields, against international law. We don't know who killed Mughniyeh, but it is said Israel did, Nasrallah is a real threat, jihad camps are even in Britain; our anti-terror units are stretched to the limit; I, for one am expecting something to happen from this.
Al Ramy
February 16th, 2008 5:15amDead men cannot talk. It is more likely that Iran's experts pulled this job on its Sunni colony in order to assure that he takes his story with him. Anyone who followed the numerous debacles of both American and Israeli agencies, understands that they did not have adequate operational assets in-country, nor could they have a pointed fix on such an elusive target. The beast boys of Assad did not even know that he entered their capital. For more: http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=74385AC5-CDFA-4CDC-B61E-4BECC622FA40
Viewer
February 17th, 2008 4:59amThe BBC TV World News (as seen in Toronto 8:00AM Thurs 14) covered the Mughniyeh funeral. The newsreader described him as a "Hero" and "Martyr". Nasrullah's eulogy was simultaneously translated. NOT A SINGLE WORD was ssaid of his terrorist, violent background, or the fact hat he was wanted by several western agencies. It was a fawning, adulatory tribute. Not in the least balanced, and totally pro-terrorist.