Enjoy It While It Lasts

Most Israelis see the war with Hizbullah as a failure.
But some Israelis are very pleased with the results.

And who can blame them.

...along Israel's border with Lebanon, farmers are quite pleased with
the way the war has turned out. Associated Press reporter Matti
Friedman writes of farmers in the northern city of Metulah who no
longer take their rifles with them to work in their orchards, and of
farmers in Moshav Zar'it who "are beginning to return to orchards they
abandoned" when Hizbullah terrorists controlled the Lebanese side of
the line.

Though not necessarily confident that the situation will last for very
long, they are enjoying the new situation while it lasts. "The war
erased a threat we lived with for years," a Metulah man said. "We
aren't afraid of snipers or kidnappings anymore. We can breathe."

According to the Washington Post, it's not just the citizens who feel the change.

Lt. Col. Ishai Efroni, a senior army officer in an Israeli border unit, said his men along the fence also feel a marked change for the better, now that Hezbollah men with grenade launchers are no longer a few yards from Israeli tanks.

Efroni said Israeli soldiers trade pleasantries with UNIFIL troops along the border, and that even the Lebanese soldiers sometimes wave. "They're still hesitant _ this is new for them," he said.

Both Arutz Sheva and the Washington Post conclude with a quote from an apple grower, who is more wary:

The yellow flags are gone, but they'll be back

Technorati Tag: Israel and Hezbollah and Hizbollah.