Sounds Familar

Saudi Arabia is blockading areas along Yemen's coast (they've also constructed a wall through contested territory on the Yemen/Saudi border), in response to activity by Shi'ite militants in Northern Yemen. Officials fear the emergence of a proxy war between the Saudis and Iran.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka -- darling of the UNHRC -- is keeping Tamil refugees in internment camps indefinitely, while "disappearing" military aged men at random intervals.

Okay, One More

I promised to stop comparing international reactions to Sri Lanka vs. Israel. But I couldn't resist one more plug after Kevin Jon Heller posted the UNHRC's fawning resolution effusively praising how Sri Lanka conducted itself during the war.

Now They Talk

I had noted that the international community seemed to give Sri Lanka far more leeway in its civil war with the Tamil Tigers than they ever did to Israel, culminating in their final epic victory this month. I wasn't the only one who noticed.

But fair is fair: The UN has stepped up its rhetoric dramatically in recent days, with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon saying that "I have traveled around the world and visited similar places, but this is by far the most appalling scenes [sic] I have seen." Of course, by the time the condemnations reached anything approaching a meaningful level, the damage had been done.

In any event, I think the rhetorical comparative point has been made. It's time to focus our attention on Sri Lanka qua Sri Lanka -- that is, making sure that, however we got here, this end to the conflict is the end, and manifests itself in a just and enduring peace for all inhabitants of the country.

A Rare Pair

I feel like there are few more incongruous groupings than Lubavitcher Hasidim and Tamil Tiger sympathizers. But there you go.

Tiger Down

It looks like the Sri Lankan government has managed to completely crush the Tamil Tiger insurgency. It did so with a ruthlessness and disdain for civilian casualties that makes Cast Lead look like a training exercise, but such is the world we live in. For all the talk about how we step so lightly around Israel, there is almost no doubt that the global community keeps it on a shorter leash than any other nation engaging in counter-insurgency operations. Whether we should loosen our standards on Israel, or tighten them everywhere else, is an open question. Sri Lanka does seem to be a point in favor of Give War a Chance, but, much like with torture or the suicide bombings of the Tamils and Hamas, "it works" isn't always a good enough reason to let things fly.

But what's done is done. Robert Farley gives his military perspective -- he really seems to think this could be the end for the LTTE in its current form (though he doesn't rule out a reorganization stemming from the Tamil diaspora). At the very least though, it may give the Sri Lankan government the breathing space it needs to negotiate a settlement. Hopefully, it will take the chance, rather than re-entrenching the grievances that led the Tamils to revolt in the first place.

So What Is Different About Sri Lanka?

Harry's Place is comparing the situation in Israel with that of Sri Lanka, and wondering why the former gets so, so much more attention than the latter. The parallels do strike me (and they did before I read this post), but I will freely admit that my knowledge of the conflict there is limited (though not non-existent).

So I am curious. What do people think accounts for the difference in the relative attention?

Potential candidates, which of course may mix and match (feel free to add others):

1) Israel is more closely associated with the United States and the West, making it an easier target.

2) The Sri Lankan conflict is seen as "intra-mural", that is, between two "native" groups (Tamil and Sinhalese), whereas in Israel/Palestine one side (the Jews) are seen as foreign interlopers.

3) Anti-Semitism: People prefer to yell about Jews more than other groups.

But again -- I concede my knowledge is limited, and I am quite open to hearing why others think the disparity exists.