Another casualty of a conflict that makes a mockery of precision warfare. A Lebanese turtle conservationist, name still unconfirmed by press time, has been killed in an Israeli airstrike. The attack, which reportedly targeted a vehicle in southern Lebanon, has drawn sharp condemnation from British environmental groups who are suddenly experts in military targeting.
They call it a civilian tragedy. I call it the cost of doing business in a war zone where the human (and animal) capital is often written off as collateral damage. The Bank of England would call this an 'unforeseen liability' on the ledger of conflict, but the markets have no provision for good intentions.
The yield on human life remains high, and fiscal responsibility is a distant echo when rockets fly. Israel, of course, defends its right to self-defence. The turtles, I suspect, will not be filing a lawsuit.
The real story here is not the tragic death of an environmentalist, but the moral hazard of Western NGOs who think their outrage can arbitrage a peace deal. Until the cost of war exceeds the cost of peace in real terms, this will remain a recurring loss on the balance sheet of human suffering.
