Robert Fisk: Once again, truth is the first casualty of war

The exchange rate for Lebanese vs Israeli deaths now stands at 10 to one

Published: 22 July 2006

As many lies are now falling upon Lebanon as bombs. The explosions are easy to count – three on the southern suburbs of Beirut yesterday morning and many on the main highway to Syria, destroying more of the great viaduct at Mdeirej along with three passengers buses which were returning to Lebanon after carrying foreigners to Damascus. The lies were less obvious but just as powerful.

The first whopper came from Ehud Olmert. Hours after UN Secretary General Kofi Annan had asked for a ceasefire and appealed for "corridors" to allow the movement of humanitarian aid to civilians, the Israeli prime minister said he would allow just such a "humanitarian corridor" – between Cyprus and Lebanon. And that, of course, made the morning headlines. But there already is free sea passage between Cyprus and Beirut, What Mr Annan was asking for were "corridors" between Beirut and the heavily bombed villages of southern Lebanon – and only hours later, the Israeli army demanded the removal of all civilians within 20 miles of the Israeli border, an act regarded by the Lebanese as 'ethnic cleansing' but one of which Mr Olmert of course made no mention.