ELON MOREH - Members of an Israeli tank brigade waging an offensive in the West Bank found a unique way to show how they felt about the United States President - they adopted a stray dog and named it George W. Bush.
"He's a cowboy," one soldier said as the brown pit-bull terrier prowled an Israeli hilltop encampment overlooking the city of Nablus.
"He barks a lot," said a second.
"But he's useless," another chimed in.
Bush's ever more strident demands for an end to Israel's 12-day-old military campaign in Palestinian areas have struck a sour note among Army commanders and their troops - a reflection of growing resentment among the Israeli public.
"If the US had this problem of terrorism, they wouldn't ask for permission. They would finish the job like they did in Afghanistan," said Commander Oran Ben Goya, head of Israeli forces in the eastern part of Nablus.
Opinion polls show an overwhelming majority of Israelis support the operation, which the Army has depicted as an effort to crush a "terror infrastructure" behind a recent spate of suicide attacks in a Palestinian uprising against occupation.
Many Israelis believe Bush has turned against the Israeli campaign because he wants to mollify Arab states to shore up his global anti-terror alliance before possible military action against Iraq.
Since the Jewish state can ill afford to alienate its chief ally and provider of US$3 billion ($6.8 billion) in annual aid, most commentators believe a pull-out will be well under way by the time US Secretary of State Colin Powell arrives at the end of the week.
Israeli commanders expressed deep frustration that they were running out of time to complete their mission.
"I don't think we will be able to do all we wanted to do," Ben Goya said. "That means we may have to come back again."
Israelis, including Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, seem to have been caught off guard by the Texas-raised President's uncompromising demands for a withdrawal from all Palestinian-ruled cities and towns.
"The Texans, as any American knows, are a breed of their own," political commentator Hemi Shalev wrote in the Israeli daily Maariv.
- REUTERS
Feature: Middle East
Map
History of conflict
UN: Information on the Question of Palestine
Israel's Permanent Mission to the UN
Palestine's Permanent Observer Mission to the UN
Middle East Daily
Arabic News
Arabic Media Internet Network
Jerusalem Post
US Department of State - Middle East Peace Process
Bush's bark has little bite for angry Israeli soldiers
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.
