Lebanese Church Damage & Viral Soldier Photo Prompt Calls For Pope's Intervention

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Lebanese Church Damage & Viral Soldier Photo Prompt Calls For Pope's Intervention Authored by Jason Ditz via AntiWar.com Since invading Lebanon in early March, Israeli officials have tried to frame the war as primarily targeting Lebanon’s Shi'ite population - as a result of attacks by Hezbollah on northern Israel. From early on, the war was about destroying Shi’ite villages, displacing Shi’ite locals, and at times threatening to annihilate the Lebanese Shi’ite community outright. And certainly, the Shi’ites have borne the brunt of the destruction in Lebanon, as they were the largest population in the south at the time of the invasion. But the damage spreads well beyond their community, as images from Israeli soldiers often show. One such photo is making the rounds, showing a smiling Israeli soldier in the village of Qouzah, in the Bint Jbeil District. That village is, or rather was, overwhelmingly Maronite Christians, and the soldier is smiling in front of the badly damaged village church. Viral photo of SMILING ISRAELI SOLDIER in front of south Lebanon CHURCH WITH ENTRANCE BLOCKED by rubble sparks outrage Mayor of Israeli-occupied Al-Qaouzah appeals to Lebanese