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http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/A5A...250249FD172.htm
Israeli troops enter Lebanon
Wednesday 12 July 2006, 17:46 Makka Time, 14:46 GMT
Israel carried out a series of air strikes in southern Lebanon
Israeli troops have entered Lebanon to search for two soldiers captured by Hezbollah fighters during a cross-border raid.
Lieutenant-General Dan Halutz, the Israeli Army Chief of Staff, warned the Lebanese government that Israel would attack its infrastructure and "turn back the clock in Lebanon by 20 years" if the soldiers were not returned, Israeli TV reported.
Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, described the Hezbollah raid as an "act of war" by Lebanon and promised a "very painful and far-reaching response".
The Israeli military carried out air attacks, and used tanks and gunboats in retaliatory strikes.
Two Lebanese civilians were killed in an Israeli air strike on a coastal bridge in Qasmiyeh.
Four other bridges in the south were hit and five Lebanese were wounded, Lebanese security sources said.
Seven killed
"What happened proves to the enemy that there is only one way, which is to release Palestinian, Arab and Lebanese prisoners"
Hamas spokesman
Up to seven Israeli soldiers were killed during the Hezbollah raid and Israel's response.
Hezbollah and the Lebanese authorities said Israeli forces had not crossed far into Lebanese territory.
Israeli troops have not struck far into Lebanon since they withdrew from the southern border area in 2000 after Hezbollah's Shia fighters waged an 18-year campaign against them.
Further action
Olmert called a special cabinet session for 1700 GMT to discuss further military action.
"It is an act of war by the state of Lebanon against the state of Israel in its sovereign territory," he said.
The Israeli army shelled towns in
southern Lebanon
"We are already responding with great strength ... The cabinet will convene tonight to decide on a further military response by the Israel Defence Forces."
The Palestinian Hamas government praised Hezbollah's capture of the soldiers.
"This operation, which comes two weeks after the capture of an Israeli soldier in Gaza, shows the weakness of the Israeli army which boasts that it is an invincible army," the group said in a statement.
Prisoner releases
Hamas's representative in Lebanon, Osama Hamdan, said that the release of the Israeli soldiers would happen only if Israel freed all Arab prisoners.
"What happened proves to the enemy that there is only one way, which is to release Palestinian, Arab and Lebanese prisoners. All prisoners without any exemptions," he said in an interview with Aljazeera.
Hezbollah said it had captured the pair to secure the release of detainees held in Israeli prisons.
"The two captives were transferred to a safe place," it said, without stating what condition the soldiers were in.
The group's supporters set off fire crackers and distributed sweets in the streets of Beirut after the Islamist group issued its claim. Similar scenes were reported across Lebanon.
Full Version: Israeli troops cross into Lebanon
Common Ground Common Sense > Issues that Affect Our Lives > Foreign Policy and National Defense > Foreign Policy & National Defense Issues Archive
This is not sounding good at all:
Israel sends tanks into Lebanon after Hezbollah attack
Israel denounces 'act of war'
JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Hezbollah guerrillas killed seven Israeli soldiers and captured two more Wednesday, prompting Israeli airstrikes and military raids inside southern Lebanon, Israeli officials said.
Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah told reporters that "direct negotiations" would be the only way to return the soldiers and their capture was "our natural, only and logical right."
He demanded the soldiers be swapped for jailed Palestinians held by Israel. (Watch gunfire and smoke as Israeli troops enter southern Lebanon -- 2:55)
Nasrallah said the two soldiers had been taken to "a faraway place."
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said the Hezbollah attacks were an "act of war" by Lebanon.
He promised a "very painful and far-reaching" response, The Associated Press reported.
There have been only sporadic border clashes since Israel withdrew its forces from southern Lebanon in 2000 after 22 years of occupation.
Another Israeli soldier was captured last month and is believed to be held by Palestinian militants in Gaza, where Israel has also launched military operations. (Full story)
Hezbollah is demanding a prisoner exchange for the release of the soldiers taken Wednesday. In a later claim on its television network, Hezbollah said it had "destroyed" an Israeli tank crossing into southern Lebanon.
The valleys along the Israeli-Lebanese border thundered with artillery fire and clouds of blue-gray smoke could be seen rising above Lebanese positions.
Israeli forces, observers said, were bombing roads, bridges and guerrilla positions in southern Lebanon in an attempt to prevent guerrillas from moving the troops deeper into Lebanon.
Israeli forces are also responding to rocket attacks fired by Hezbollah into northern Israel, according to the army.
Israeli military sources confirmed a troop buildup on the northern border and said preparations were being made for possible call-up of reserve soldiers.
"This morning there was an attack on civilians and soldiers in the north. At this moment there are Israeli security forces operating inside Lebanon," Olmert told reporters.
"The government will convene this evening for a special Cabinet meeting. I want to make clear that the events this morning are not a terror attack but an operation of a sovereign state without any reason or provocation."
The Israeli Cabinet is scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. (noon ET), according to Olmert's office.
"The Lebanese government, which Hezbollah is part of, is trying to undermine the stability of the region, and the Lebanese government will be responsible for the consequences," Olmert said.
The abduction of the soldiers opens a second front after Israel sent tanks and troops into the Palestinian territory of Gaza following the capture of Israeli Cpl. Gilad Shalit, 19, who was taken in a raid on an Israeli military post in southern Israel on June 25.
The militants holding him have demanded the release of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel in exchange for Shalit. Israel has flatly refused.
'We will turn Lebanon's clock back 20 years'
Responding to the most recent incident along the Israel-Lebanon border, Israeli Defense Minister Amir Peretz said in a statement: "The State of Israel sees itself free to use all measures that it finds it needs, and the [Israeli Forces] have been given orders in that direction.
"If the soldiers are not returned we will turn Lebanon's clock back 20 years," Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Dan Halutz to Israeli Channel 10.
Four Israeli civilians and six soldiers have been wounded in the fighting so far, according to the Israeli military.
The IDF instructed citizens in northern villages to take shelter as the violence escalated.
It is the latest skirmish between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, whose forces traded cross-border fire in late May following the assassination of an Islamic Jihad official in the southern Lebanese city of Sidon.
Mahmoud Majzoub, also known as Abu Hamza, was killed in a car bombing, which Islamic Jihad blamed on Israel. Israel denied any involvement in the incident.
Hezbollah is designated a terrorist group by the United States and Israel but is a significant player in Lebanon's fractious politics.
Israel set up a security buffer zone in southern Lebanon from 1978 until 2000.
Copyright 2006 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.
Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/07/12/mideast/index.html
Israel sends tanks into Lebanon after Hezbollah attack
Israel denounces 'act of war'
JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Hezbollah guerrillas killed seven Israeli soldiers and captured two more Wednesday, prompting Israeli airstrikes and military raids inside southern Lebanon, Israeli officials said.
Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah told reporters that "direct negotiations" would be the only way to return the soldiers and their capture was "our natural, only and logical right."
He demanded the soldiers be swapped for jailed Palestinians held by Israel. (Watch gunfire and smoke as Israeli troops enter southern Lebanon -- 2:55)
Nasrallah said the two soldiers had been taken to "a faraway place."
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said the Hezbollah attacks were an "act of war" by Lebanon.
He promised a "very painful and far-reaching" response, The Associated Press reported.
There have been only sporadic border clashes since Israel withdrew its forces from southern Lebanon in 2000 after 22 years of occupation.
Another Israeli soldier was captured last month and is believed to be held by Palestinian militants in Gaza, where Israel has also launched military operations. (Full story)
Hezbollah is demanding a prisoner exchange for the release of the soldiers taken Wednesday. In a later claim on its television network, Hezbollah said it had "destroyed" an Israeli tank crossing into southern Lebanon.
The valleys along the Israeli-Lebanese border thundered with artillery fire and clouds of blue-gray smoke could be seen rising above Lebanese positions.
Israeli forces, observers said, were bombing roads, bridges and guerrilla positions in southern Lebanon in an attempt to prevent guerrillas from moving the troops deeper into Lebanon.
Israeli forces are also responding to rocket attacks fired by Hezbollah into northern Israel, according to the army.
Israeli military sources confirmed a troop buildup on the northern border and said preparations were being made for possible call-up of reserve soldiers.
"This morning there was an attack on civilians and soldiers in the north. At this moment there are Israeli security forces operating inside Lebanon," Olmert told reporters.
"The government will convene this evening for a special Cabinet meeting. I want to make clear that the events this morning are not a terror attack but an operation of a sovereign state without any reason or provocation."
The Israeli Cabinet is scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. (noon ET), according to Olmert's office.
"The Lebanese government, which Hezbollah is part of, is trying to undermine the stability of the region, and the Lebanese government will be responsible for the consequences," Olmert said.
The abduction of the soldiers opens a second front after Israel sent tanks and troops into the Palestinian territory of Gaza following the capture of Israeli Cpl. Gilad Shalit, 19, who was taken in a raid on an Israeli military post in southern Israel on June 25.
The militants holding him have demanded the release of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel in exchange for Shalit. Israel has flatly refused.
'We will turn Lebanon's clock back 20 years'
Responding to the most recent incident along the Israel-Lebanon border, Israeli Defense Minister Amir Peretz said in a statement: "The State of Israel sees itself free to use all measures that it finds it needs, and the [Israeli Forces] have been given orders in that direction.
"If the soldiers are not returned we will turn Lebanon's clock back 20 years," Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Dan Halutz to Israeli Channel 10.
Four Israeli civilians and six soldiers have been wounded in the fighting so far, according to the Israeli military.
The IDF instructed citizens in northern villages to take shelter as the violence escalated.
It is the latest skirmish between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, whose forces traded cross-border fire in late May following the assassination of an Islamic Jihad official in the southern Lebanese city of Sidon.
Mahmoud Majzoub, also known as Abu Hamza, was killed in a car bombing, which Islamic Jihad blamed on Israel. Israel denied any involvement in the incident.
Hezbollah is designated a terrorist group by the United States and Israel but is a significant player in Lebanon's fractious politics.
Israel set up a security buffer zone in southern Lebanon from 1978 until 2000.
Copyright 2006 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.
Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/07/12/mideast/index.html
QUOTE
The Mideast death dance
Hamas and Hezbollah, Lebanon and Palestine, Syria and Iran, the U.S. and Israel: Unless these four pairs of actors turn away from their failed policies, the Middle East will sink further into violence and despair.
By Rami G. Khouri
Jul. 15, 2006 | You need to understand the relationship among four pairs of actors to grasp the meaning of the escalating attacks by Hamas, Hezbollah and Israel in recent days. The four pairs are Hamas and Hezbollah; the Palestinian and Lebanese governments; Syria and Iran; and Israel and the United States.
Simplistically, President George W. Bush has depicted this latest round of war as a clash between good and evil, while the Israeli government has tried to blame Palestinians and Lebanese who only want to make war against a peace-loving Israel. The more nuanced and complex reality is that, collectively, these four pairs of actors play roles in the ongoing fighting, as we witness the culmination of four decades of failed policies that have kept the Middle East tense, angry and violent.
Hezbollah and Hamas emerged in the past decade as the main Arab political forces that resist the Israeli occupations in Lebanon and Palestine. They enjoy substantial popular support in their respective countries, while at the same time eliciting criticisms for their militant policies that inevitably draw harsh Israeli responses. We see this in Lebanon today as the Lebanese people broadly direct their anger at Israel for its brutal attacks against Lebanese civilian installations and fault Palestinians, other Arabs, Syria and Iran for perpetually making Lebanon the battleground for other conflicts -- but more softly question Hezbollah's decision to trigger this latest calamity.
It is no coincidence that Israel is now simultaneously bombing and destroying the civilian infrastructure in Palestine and Lebanon, including airports, bridges, roads, power plants, and government offices. It claims to do this in order to stop terror attacks against Israelis, but in fact the past four decades have shown that its policies generate exactly the opposite effect: They have given birth, power, credibility and now political incumbency to the Hamas and Hezbollah groups whose raison d'être has been to fight the Israeli occupation of their lands. Israeli destruction of normal life for Palestinians and Lebanese also results in the destruction of the credibility, efficacy and, in some cases, the legitimacy of routine government systems, making the Lebanese and Palestinian governments key actors in current events -- or non-actors in most cases.
The Lebanese and Palestinians have responded to Israel's persistent and increasingly savage attacks against entire civilian populations by creating parallel or alternative leaderships that can protect them and deliver essential services. With every new Israeli attack against the Hamas and Hezbollah leadership or the civilian populations, four important things happen, and will probably happen during this round of war: The Lebanese and Palestinian governments lose power and impact; Hamas and Hezbollah garner greater popular support, which enhances their effectiveness in guerrilla and resistance warfare; they expand their military technical capabilities (mainly longer-range missiles and better improvised explosive devices); and the anti-Israel, anti-U.S. resistance campaign led by Hamas and Hezbollah generates widespread political and popular support throughout the Middle East and much of the world.
This is linked to the third pair of actors, Syria and Iran, who have carefully and patiently positioned themselves as allies, patrons, hosts, financiers, armorers and ideological brothers of Hamas and Hezbollah. While these two Islamist groups are primarily driven by local resistance to Israel, and are Palestinian and Lebanese in their basic identity, they both play important roles in the foreign policies of Iran and Syria. We now witness strong convergence between two parallel but linked trends: The sovereign state actors, Iran and Syria, are fighting deadly political battles against Israel, the United States and, increasingly, Europe, while Hamas and Hezbollah fight similar battles against the same foes. It makes eminent sense, from the perspective of Damascus and Tehran, to foment greater troubles now for the United States and Israel along the Lebanon-Israel border. This is an opportune time to strike because Israel is deeply perplexed about how to handle Hamas' resistance in Palestine, and the United States seems unable to offer any policy other than to support Israel's right to defend itself while withholding the same right from Lebanese and Palestinian civilians.
The fourth pair of actors, the United States and Israel, find themselves in the bizarre position of repeating policies that have consistently failed for the past 40 years. Israel has this to show for its track record of being tough: It is now surrounded by two robust Islamist resistance movements with greater striking power and popular support; Arab populations around the region that increasingly vote for Islamist political movements whenever elections are held; immobilized and virtually irrelevant Arab governments in many nearby lands; and determined, increasingly defiant, ideological foes in Tehran and Damascus who do not hesitate to use all weapons at their means however damaging these may be to civilians and sovereignty in Lebanon and Palestine.
The United States for its part is strangely marginal. Its chosen policies have lined it up squarely with Israel. It has sanctioned and thus cannot even talk to Iran, Hezbollah and Hamas, and it has pressured and threatened Syria for years without any real success. The world's sole superpower is peculiarly powerless in the current crisis in the Middle East.
As long as these four pairs of main actors persist in their intemperate policies, the consequences will remain grim. The way to break this cycle is for all actors to negotiate a political solution that responds to their legitimate grievances and demands. Everyone involved seems prepared to do this, except for Israel and the United States, who rely on military force, prolonged occupations, and diplomatic sanctions and threats. What will Israel and the United States do when there are no more Arab airports, bridges and power stations to destroy? The futility of such policies should be clear by now, and therefore a diplomatic solution should be sought seriously for the first time.
Hamas and Hezbollah, Lebanon and Palestine, Syria and Iran, the U.S. and Israel: Unless these four pairs of actors turn away from their failed policies, the Middle East will sink further into violence and despair.
By Rami G. Khouri
Jul. 15, 2006 | You need to understand the relationship among four pairs of actors to grasp the meaning of the escalating attacks by Hamas, Hezbollah and Israel in recent days. The four pairs are Hamas and Hezbollah; the Palestinian and Lebanese governments; Syria and Iran; and Israel and the United States.
Simplistically, President George W. Bush has depicted this latest round of war as a clash between good and evil, while the Israeli government has tried to blame Palestinians and Lebanese who only want to make war against a peace-loving Israel. The more nuanced and complex reality is that, collectively, these four pairs of actors play roles in the ongoing fighting, as we witness the culmination of four decades of failed policies that have kept the Middle East tense, angry and violent.
Hezbollah and Hamas emerged in the past decade as the main Arab political forces that resist the Israeli occupations in Lebanon and Palestine. They enjoy substantial popular support in their respective countries, while at the same time eliciting criticisms for their militant policies that inevitably draw harsh Israeli responses. We see this in Lebanon today as the Lebanese people broadly direct their anger at Israel for its brutal attacks against Lebanese civilian installations and fault Palestinians, other Arabs, Syria and Iran for perpetually making Lebanon the battleground for other conflicts -- but more softly question Hezbollah's decision to trigger this latest calamity.
It is no coincidence that Israel is now simultaneously bombing and destroying the civilian infrastructure in Palestine and Lebanon, including airports, bridges, roads, power plants, and government offices. It claims to do this in order to stop terror attacks against Israelis, but in fact the past four decades have shown that its policies generate exactly the opposite effect: They have given birth, power, credibility and now political incumbency to the Hamas and Hezbollah groups whose raison d'être has been to fight the Israeli occupation of their lands. Israeli destruction of normal life for Palestinians and Lebanese also results in the destruction of the credibility, efficacy and, in some cases, the legitimacy of routine government systems, making the Lebanese and Palestinian governments key actors in current events -- or non-actors in most cases.
The Lebanese and Palestinians have responded to Israel's persistent and increasingly savage attacks against entire civilian populations by creating parallel or alternative leaderships that can protect them and deliver essential services. With every new Israeli attack against the Hamas and Hezbollah leadership or the civilian populations, four important things happen, and will probably happen during this round of war: The Lebanese and Palestinian governments lose power and impact; Hamas and Hezbollah garner greater popular support, which enhances their effectiveness in guerrilla and resistance warfare; they expand their military technical capabilities (mainly longer-range missiles and better improvised explosive devices); and the anti-Israel, anti-U.S. resistance campaign led by Hamas and Hezbollah generates widespread political and popular support throughout the Middle East and much of the world.
This is linked to the third pair of actors, Syria and Iran, who have carefully and patiently positioned themselves as allies, patrons, hosts, financiers, armorers and ideological brothers of Hamas and Hezbollah. While these two Islamist groups are primarily driven by local resistance to Israel, and are Palestinian and Lebanese in their basic identity, they both play important roles in the foreign policies of Iran and Syria. We now witness strong convergence between two parallel but linked trends: The sovereign state actors, Iran and Syria, are fighting deadly political battles against Israel, the United States and, increasingly, Europe, while Hamas and Hezbollah fight similar battles against the same foes. It makes eminent sense, from the perspective of Damascus and Tehran, to foment greater troubles now for the United States and Israel along the Lebanon-Israel border. This is an opportune time to strike because Israel is deeply perplexed about how to handle Hamas' resistance in Palestine, and the United States seems unable to offer any policy other than to support Israel's right to defend itself while withholding the same right from Lebanese and Palestinian civilians.
The fourth pair of actors, the United States and Israel, find themselves in the bizarre position of repeating policies that have consistently failed for the past 40 years. Israel has this to show for its track record of being tough: It is now surrounded by two robust Islamist resistance movements with greater striking power and popular support; Arab populations around the region that increasingly vote for Islamist political movements whenever elections are held; immobilized and virtually irrelevant Arab governments in many nearby lands; and determined, increasingly defiant, ideological foes in Tehran and Damascus who do not hesitate to use all weapons at their means however damaging these may be to civilians and sovereignty in Lebanon and Palestine.
The United States for its part is strangely marginal. Its chosen policies have lined it up squarely with Israel. It has sanctioned and thus cannot even talk to Iran, Hezbollah and Hamas, and it has pressured and threatened Syria for years without any real success. The world's sole superpower is peculiarly powerless in the current crisis in the Middle East.
As long as these four pairs of main actors persist in their intemperate policies, the consequences will remain grim. The way to break this cycle is for all actors to negotiate a political solution that responds to their legitimate grievances and demands. Everyone involved seems prepared to do this, except for Israel and the United States, who rely on military force, prolonged occupations, and diplomatic sanctions and threats. What will Israel and the United States do when there are no more Arab airports, bridges and power stations to destroy? The futility of such policies should be clear by now, and therefore a diplomatic solution should be sought seriously for the first time.
http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2006/...s/index_np.html
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