We turn our heads around and take a look, at the border, at the mother's
eyes, the children, the fresh graves and with courage, at the questions.
The war doesn't take place with just machine guns, missiles, booby-traps
and weary bombers.  It takes place every day deep in our hearts.  A moral
war.  Psychological and almost psychiatric in its political definitions..

The dead are truly dead.  Those that remain are fighting to justify the
essence of these deaths.  It must be admitted - the war justifying the war
is no less important than the war itself, nor less than "defending the
settlements in the north".

So turn your head around, look back and decide.  Turn your head back with
the knowledge that the hearts of the entire nation are behind you in order
to fight together.

The decision is made to fight from the border.  Al l the forces in the
security zone are spread along the international border; army strongholds,
fences, mines and early warning systems, tanks, helicopters and everything
necessary for a strong defense line.  All of this so visible that the
mothers are aware of it every day as well as the travelers coming from the
center of the country...

Later, the security zone is declared as a "border zone."  From the moment
the decision is made to leave Lebanon, the rules can be made with or
without compliance.

The date of withdrawal and the agreement are declared.  If the agreement is
made with Lebanese or Syrian approval, all the better, if not, conditions
are stated regarding the border area.

It is prohibited for any force to deploy in the border zone to be in order
to attack Israel.

The Israeli army will fight any show of force if there is movement in  the
identified border zone.

Any military activity is considered an act of war and will not be
considered a terrorist act.  Declarations are made as to who is responsible
for absorbing responsibility should there be attacks in the north within
the "border zone".  The governments  of Lebanon  and Syria are to be held
responsible.

It will be declared that from now on the Golan Heights are the Golan
Heights, the Litani River is the Litani River, Mt. Hermon is Mt. Hermon and
Gezine is Gezine.  Every area and its solution.

Statements and declarations will be made in Hebrew and Arabic in a concise
manner with  no room for misinterpretation.  This will be the manner for
all further negotiations.

Leaving, at a designated date - leaving with courage and confidence that
after withdrawing, approval and willingness to fight a justified war will
be clear to all..

And now the situation is evaluated according to the position at the time -
fighting  in order to reach a peace agreement.

If the worst should happen and fighting renews - because Katyusha rockets
fall or terrorists infiltrate or explosives were left on security roads, no
one will rush to return the forces to Lebanon.

Lebanon is not an extension of the Upper Galilee.  We are fighting on the
border for our homes.   This does not prevent us from flooding the area
with special forces and carrying out special tasks every evening.  Our
fighting helicopters can cross the skies over the international border,
over the cities and capitol of Lebanese government as well as the bridges
and the roads of Beirut-Damascus.  We will guard over the main roads and
therefore the money of the President of Syria, on the main arteries whose
cut-off would be harmful financially and would clearly define the limits of
our war.

And now war is war, cease-fire is cease-fire.  The agreement to separate
forces is connected with peace as true peace.

The Army of our Southern Lebanese neighbors is not ignored, neither it's
leaders, nor its citizens.  Shelter is found for those who need it and the
skills to cope for those who remain.  Courage is also needed to tell our
neighbors we cannot remain indefinitely for them.  They must learn how to
live with their new conditions.
We leave.  We turn our heads around and with our backs and our bodies, we
load our heavy burdens; our fixations, and our fears, the opinions of our
experts, the magical prophecies and we cope with the new reality.   We
extricate ourselves from the reality we have also created for ourselves.

Army and political speculators have nothing to lose by gambling on "what
will happen if we get out" when they lose, they don't pay the price anyway.
 

   Etai Landsberg  - Reserve Officer - IDF (Israel Defense Forces)