Q&A: Middle East crisis

BBC World Affairs Editor John Simpson is in Jerusalem and Middle East Editor Jeremy Bowen is in Beirut reporting from the different sides of the conflict.

Here, Jeremy Bowen answers some of your questions on the crisis.

Click here to read John Simpson's response to more of your questions

Q: Is this the start of a major international conflict or simply an internal Middle Eastern conflict?
Simon, Tunbridge Wells

Let's hope it stays in the Middle East. Trouble here though has a nasty way of affecting other places.

Q: How international do you foresee this conflict becoming? What would cause Syria or Iran to become militarily involved, and do you think such involvement will happen?
Andrew Matthews, Calgary, Canada

It may not cause direct fighting but the conflict is already having regional consequences. The worst case scenario being talked about here in Lebanon is one that results in the government of Fouad Siniora being toppled or marginalised, a slide down into civil conflict, and an open border with Syria that could be crossed easily by extremists from across the region. There is another dark scenario where the war somehow includes Hezbollah's sponsors, Iran and Syria.

Those scenarios may be extreme. The important thing is that this war is hardwired into some of the most dangerous conflicts in the Middle East, and could increase the level of instability here.

Q: Do you see Hezbollah as having sparked off this conflict in an attempt to regain the influence they have lost in Lebanese politics over the last year?
Bert Preast, Malaga

Hezbollah has not lost influence in Lebanon. If anything they have increased it. Their patrons in Syria lost influence when they were forced to pull their troops out last year. If they are asked to influence Hezbollah to stop fighting, they may demand some of their lost influence back.

Q: In your view, reporting from the hothouse of the Middle East - where every comment, choice of visual coverage, reporting nuance and even on-screen gesture is analysed - in the digital age (with bloggers and instant comment etc) has become easier? Or more difficult?
Eamonn O'Neill, Innerleithen, Scotland

It is no more easy or difficult now than it was 15 years ago when I first reported from the Middle East. There is a great deal more background noise, but I tune it out.

Q: Why is the US keeping quiet about the situation in the Middle East?
Nduta, Nairobi

It is not keeping quiet. It says that it is pushing urgently for a sustainable ceasefire. Anything else, according to Condoleezza Rice, is a "false promise."

Q: What is the military strength of Hezbollah? And, if left undefeated, is Hezbollah able to be an even stronger and better equipped foe in future?
Mike Ungersma, Cardiff

No one outside Hezbollah knows how many fighters they have. Estimates go from hundreds into thousands. The ones I have seen in the past were well trained and equipped and looked like proper soldiers, not a rag tag army. Israel is damaging it, but is probably also acting as its recruiting sergeant. Israeli attacks damage its equipment, but so far don't appear to have broken its will, which is based on strong political and religious beliefs.

Q: Why doesn't Israel build a buffer zone on the Israeli side of the border?
Mack, Halifax

They believe that their territory is sovereign, should not be attacked and certainly that they should not give up their land as a result of Hezbollah action.

Q: Is it inevitable that any UN or NATO-led peacekeeping force in Lebanon would become a target for Hezbollah and other radical groups?
Pete, Bath

Yes if they are deployed without Hezbollah's consent.

Q: Does the international community really not understand how complex the destruction of Lebanon is?
Dan Sideldeen, Fox Creek, Alberta

Fouad Siniora, the Lebanese PM, has been trying to get out the message that Lebanon is fragile politically and that the war is affecting its stability. The Americans are concerned about that, but are more concerned about eliminating Hezbollah.

Q: How frustrated are the people on the streets of Lebanon that you have spoken to, with the lack of pressure on Israel by the US and the UK to stop the bombing?
Shiraz Shariff, Toronto

Very.

Q: Are the Israeli public aware of the reported numbers of Lebanese civilian deaths? How are the Israeli media portraying this aspect of the conflict?
Bridget, Slough

They do get reports of what is happening, but the greatest concentration is on their own dead and wounded.

Q: What similarities do you see between the present situation on the ground in southern Lebanon between Israel and Hezbollah and the situation in 1982 when Israel invaded Lebanon against the PLO?
Manizeh Syed Ali, Karachi

1982 was an all out invasion - it is not on that scale as yet for Israel. Another major difference is that now the vast majority of the Israeli public is behind the war, and in 1982 they were not.

Click here to read John Simpson's response to more of your questions

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