Preparations for a day of infamy

Nasrallah's 'Arc de Triumph' (Photo: AFP)

Maybe it is just me, but there is something explicitly obscene about a group of people who would celebrate and laud a man returning home whose only real claim to fame was cracking open the skull of a four year old girl with a rifle butt. Ynet News:

Hizbullah members set up a "triumphal arch" near the Rosh Hanikra (Naquora) crossing, where the exchange is scheduled to take place – Hizbullah fighters and terrorists' bodies in return for kidnapped IDF soldiers Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser. The yellow arch, which bears the pictures of assassinated Hizbullah commander Imad Mugniyah, has been erected in several places in southern Lebanon.

Israel fears that after the deal is implemented, Hizbullah will attempt to carry out its promise to avenge the death of Mugniyah, who was responsible for a series of terror attacks in the region and worldwide. But the Shiite organization will not settle for the arch. Hizbullah flags and victory photos have been hung along the Lebanese coastal highway connecting between Naquora and Sidon.

Lebanese media have reported that the celebrations will be held in three places – in Naquora, upon receiving the bodies of some 200 terrorists to be handed over by Israel; in Beirut's international airport, where five Lebanese prisoners – including terrorist Samir Kuntar – will arrive via helicopter; and in Beirut's Dahiya quarter, which will host a mass rally including a speech by Hizbullah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah.

Hizbullah's leaders are counting the minutes until the deal is implemented and have already sent many of the group's members to southern Lebanon to work on the logistic preparations for the "popular" celebrations expected to be held in Lebanon. Lebanon is expected to hold a state ceremony at the Beirut airport, which will be attended by heads of the government and senior politicians. Hizbullah's al-Manar network has begun celebrating with militant, festive video clips, marking "the 33 days of victory" (referring to the Second Lebanon War).

Of course, Kuntar's mother doesn’t believe he killed anyone while Kuntar claims the little girl was killed in the crossfire. The autopsy and crime scene photos put rest to that boldfaced lie. Meanwhile, the IDF readies funerals for Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev.