Newsgroup: it.politica.internazionale
Titolo: I raid israeliani in Sudan sono solo un esercizio di propaganda?

Shhhhh, Israel has done it again. On the eve of the end of prime
minister Ehud Olmert's term, in what appeared like a suspicious
coincidence, we heard the report from distant America about another
covert, impressive Israeli operation. This time it was carried out by
planes or unmanned aerial vehicles. Israel had struck again.
The imagination-sparking report fit in well with Olmert's end-of-term
celebrations. Everyone, including Olmert himself, spread broad hints
about Israel's secret operations during his term, as a sign of his
prowess in office. The sweet memories of taking over the boat Karine A
at sea, assassinating Imad Mugniyeh (according to foreign sources, of
course) and the mysterious shelling in Syria have barely faded. And
suddenly we have Sudan.
A supply convoy, no less, with dozens of trucks carrying arms from
Iran, no less, including a boat at sea, no less, making their way to
Gaza were bombed, and several dozen people were killed.
Nobody knows for sure what was bombed, how much and why. Sudan, after
all, is far away. But we can rely on our fine young men in the Mossad
and air force to know what they're doing. We were right, it worked
again. All our forces returned safely, leaving only dust and ashes
from the dangerous convoy. The muttering of Sudan's government about
innocent fishing boats that were bombed is irrelevant. Fishermen or
terrorists, a la guerre comme a la guerre.
The military commentators and the entire Israeli nation in their
footsteps were beside themselves with admiration. The Israeli James
Bond is still here. An army that hasn't fought against another army
for decades finds its glory in such operations. So does the political
leadership. What did Olmert say with a wink after the Sudan incident?
"There is no place where Israel cannot operate." Hooray. With a
quarter of that imagination and daring we could have achieved peace
already, but let's not go into such trivia.
Due to the character of the operation in Sudan we were unfortunately
spared the regular spectacle: the first sergeant spreading a military
blanket, on which soldiers lay out the loot - rows and rows of
frightening guns. Countless reporters and photographers from Israel
and abroad are invited, while officers and commentators recite - from
a handed-down page - praises of the great achievement, descriptions of
the dangerous weapons captured, and details of the "dangerous and
complicated" operation.
They also show the public, which is ignorant in these matters, that
the war on terror is in full swing and its achievements are enormous.
They then reiterate the enormity of the danger facing us. Remember
their reports of Hamas getting new arms and equipment before Operation
Cast Lead? How they frightened us before the operation, which
resembled at best a military maneuver - with no combatant army or real
weapons facing us. The end is known: There was no war and no equipment
except the primitive Qassams and Grads.
This is how the propaganda machine intensifies the danger and enhances
the achievement. Thus it brainwashes everyone about the Israel Defense
Forces' great, never-ending feats.
Now that the Sudan operation is behind us, let's remember its
predecessor, Operation Noah's Ark. The story of seizing Karine A could
have been taken from an action movie. We were told of Squadron 13
combatants descending from helicopters, rubber boats in the water and
intelligence aircraft, photographs and refuelling in the sky. An F-15
Eagle fighter secured the operation and in a Boeing 707 sat - just
imagine - the chief of staff and commanders of the air force and navy.
The operation was sealed by the inevitable scene of the Israeli flag
hoisted on the boat, which was towed to Eilat. There its loot was
displayed - 50 tons of outdated guns and mortars. It was seen, of
course, as one of the IDF's greatest achievements in the past decade.
Some of these operations may be significant to security, others are no
more than propaganda and scaremongering exercises for internal and
external needs.
The new government, with two Sayeret Matkal elite commando unit
graduates in its leadership, raises fears that we have more escapades
in store. These operations may also fail from time to time, and their
contribution and price will be impossible to measure. Meanwhile, let's
raise a toast to the glorious bombers who returned from Sudan.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1076410.html

 The muttering of Sudan's government
Quella è la parte più interessante dell'intera vicenda. Il governo sudanese 
ha avuto una reazione estremamente misurata. Ha affermato che stava 
indagando sulla vicenda. E poi non ha più detto nulla. Denunce alle Nazioni 
Unite? all'opinione pubblica internazionale? Pubblicazione della 
documentazione raccolta sull'innocuo convoglio?
No. Almeno non per ora.
Ripeto, interessante.