Blogging is balm in war-torn Lebanon

Beirut: Cell phones and Internet blogs are taking on a new role in the West Asia war. Both sides are using technology to keep in touch and in some cases to spread propaganda.

As bombs fall and rockets fly Lebanese engage in animated discussions of the situation but cell phone users are finding long-distance interlopers in their inbox.

The caller speaks Arabic but the anonymous message is likely straight from Israel.

“Who are those who fire rockets from your homes against your wishes and endanger your lives? Who are those who run to hide in your homes like mice?”

It's not certain the Israeli government is behind the message – a not-so-subtle assault on Hezbollah's tactics.

It concludes, "The gang is beginning to fall because its rats are running away."

Another example, text messages offer the chance to take part in a poll asking if Hezbollah is to blame for the current crisis.

Call it propaganda or even psychological warfare it probably has far less impact on the psyche than real life today in Lebanon.

The reality of bombs falling close by, the close-ups of victims on their television screens, have the Lebanese pouring out their fears and emotions on the Internet.

Fouad, 31-year-old blogger in Beirut writes, “I wish that the people of Lebanon and Israel, who stand against hatred and war, would all walk on a peace march towards the Lebanese-Israeli border.”

Tanya Traboulsi, a blogger says, “When the war started all of a sudden everyone was blogging out of nowhere, everyone has a blog now."

Perhaps, it is more like therapy. The Lebanese have put the crisis in the context of everyday lives.

If there are any parallels in this lop-sided war, they are among the bloggers on both sides of the border.

"Hezbollah bombing my city and most of my friends run away to the south of Israel but I am staying here with my family," says blogger Jamal Ghosn.

Ghosn adds, “Instead of having a monopoly over opinions and a monopoly over news sources, now everyone can tell their own story and if people are interested in it, they'll come and find."

What they may find is that while some are running north, others are running south. But they are all connected not just by the Internet but a conflict most will say they never wanted.