The FT’s mercantilist view of Israel’s war

Israeli strikes have killed more than 300 Hizbollah fighters and dozens of civilians. Hizbollah’s attacks have killed more than two dozen soldiers and civilians. Tens of thousands have been displaced on both sides (FT editorial)

The FT editorial does not mention human suffering, expressing concern about the two foes’ rhetoric: “The threats may be bluster, but they raise the risk of a miscalculation that could lead to all-out war”.

It fears Israel’s failure, saying that Hizbollah is a far more daunting foe than Hamas: “It is the world’s most heavily armed non-state actor with a vast arsenal of rockets, drones and missiles aimed at Israel”.

Hezbollah has unveiled new types of weaponry which can fly undetected under Israel’s Iron Dome.

The editorial makes the dubious and unsourced claim that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing pressure from the people of Israel to expand the military campaign against Hizbollah, But Netanyahu’s own words earlier this month show that this is actually his own policy – many of the Israeli public regularly demonstrate against his domestic and military policies.

It concludes that the last thing Israelis need is to be sucked into another, deeper conflict.

In the absence of any reference to the prospect of further human suffering, the sub-text suggests  only a concern about the disruption of trade and commerce by “all-out war”.

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