First, say you’re sorry [Archives:2006/973/Viewpoint]

Editor
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the cease-fire won't go into effect immediately and that United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan will consult Israel and Lebanon in the coming days to set a date for the cessation of hostilities. More than 1,000 Lebanese and 124 Israelis have been killed in this war while the international community still is taking its time in enforcing the cease-fire. No wonder Annan acknowledged that world faith in the U.N. has been shaken badly. “I'd be remiss if I didn't tell you how profoundly disappointed I am that the council didn't reach this point much, much earlier,” he said.

The resolution doesn't include an immediate end to the attacks, it doesn't ensure transportation of supplies and medicine to troubled areas in Lebanon and, most of all, it doesn't carry any consolation for the victims and their families on either side.

As children, when we got into fights and then were caught by our guardians or parents, the first thing we were asked to do is to say we're sorry. It was so much harder to confess the mistake than be punished for it. It used to take a lot of convincing and an iron grip on my arm for me to admit my mistake and say sorry to my opponent before anyone even began thinking about the problem, who was wrong and what was the suitable punishment. I was told then that I was apologizing for getting into the fight and causing trouble. Perhaps it's the lesson I learned in childhood because although the Security Council finally came out with a resolution to intervene in Lebanon, I would like an apology first.

I believe all the parties involved in the war – even those in power who remained idle while the massacres took place – owe us an apology. They owe it to the whole world and to Lebanese and Israeli civilians especially.

The problem is that, although a simple press conference wherein the concerned governments and authorities could declare their regret isn't very difficult to achieve technically, it sounds far-fetched, considering the egos involved.
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