An Israeli airstrike Sunday killed at least 50 people — more than half children — in a southern Lebanese village, the deadliest attack in 19 days of fighting. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice postponed a visit to Lebanon.
She said she was “deeply saddened by the terrible loss of innocent life” in Israel’s attack. But she did not call for an immediate cease-fire in the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah militias.
“We all recognize this kind of warfare is extremely difficult,” Rice said, noting it comes in areas where civilians live. “It unfortunately has awful consequences sometimes.”
“We want a cease-fire as soon as possible,” she added.
One of these days, Ms. Rice will hopefully deign to share with us how her definition of “sometimes” differs from her definition of “every time”.
I am sometimes tempted to think that her store of contempt for all of us who she’s speaking to when she makes statements like this — that would be some people in the world, I guess — is matched only by the balance in Dear Leader’s stupidity account.
WaPo adds:
At a hastily called news conference, Rice … insisted the United States was working harder than any party to try to achieve a ceasefire.
Every other party must be sitting on their hands, with their heads inserted deeply up their anuses, praying to the tooth fairy. Or maybe they are trying to figure out how to persuade Mel Gibson to step in to broker the peace?
WaPo again:
Rice denied that U.S. resistance to a ceasefire now was in any way responsible for the ongoing violence and death.
Not “in any way responsible“? I have pondered that long, and I have pondered that hard. So even if we had pressed for an immediate ceasefire, it would have had no effect on the ongoing violence and death? She can only mean that the U.S. has absolutely no influence left in the region, not with the Israelis, not with any of the Arabs. We used to have a little influence there sometimes before Rice took over as Secretary of State, right? So that’s another thing she can put on her resume when she runs for President—absolved the U.S. of responsibility for deaths in the Middle East, hopefully forever.
A senior U.S. official traveling with Rice told reporters that the United States is making “very clear to the Israelis our distress at this incident.” He said Rice was “looking to wrap things up and move things to New York,” where the United Nations Security Council is expected this week to try to pass a resolution on terms to end hostilities.
Earlier Sunday, Rice began her second day of talks with Israeli officials, as Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said his government is not in a rush to achieve a ceasefire after 19 days of hostilities.
Here’s how I think these talks go:
Olmert: Hey! Condi! Baby!
Rice: (stiffly) Mr. Prime Minister. Mr. Olmert.
Olmert: (grunt)
Rice: May I make very clear our distress at this incident?
Olmert: Yes, of course.
Having received permission, Rice’s attention wanders, and she completely forgets to actually do it. She’s looking down at her new shoes, lost in deep, deep Ph.D. thoughts, when Olmert continues…
Olmert: You remember that we’re in no hurry to stop retaliating, right?
Rice: Yes, of course (half her attention is still on her shoes.)
Silence for a while. They look at each other and shrug. Rice settles into her chair and pulls out a book of devilishly difficult crosswords. Olmert pulls a thick folder of briefing materials towards him. They work in silence till lunch.
Rice: May I remind you of our distress at this incident?
Olmert: Yes, of course.
Again, she forgets to continue.
Olmert: We’re still in no hurry, okay?
Rice: You got it. May I have my folder back now?
Olmert: Yes, of course.
And everyone adjourns for lunch.