Israeli jets struck villages in south Lebanon again this week. The Lebanese health ministry counted the dead, three of them children. Somewhere in an office with good carpet, a photocopier warmed up out of habit.
The Standing Committee on Deep Concern has now stopped drafting fresh statements on the subject. It has laminated one instead. A dry-wipe marker hangs on a string beside it, for the date and the name of the village.
"We reviewed a year of our own language and found we had already said all of it," a committee clerk explained. "Twice, in places."
The card carries tick-boxes for restraint, proportionality, both sides and urgent de-escalation. The space for the village is ruled to fit fourteen characters. Ansar fits comfortably, with room left over.
Readers may recall that we filed the last round under an existing heading rather than opening a new folder. That folder is now a drawer. The drawer does not close properly, which staff describe as a storage issue.
