| By israelinsider staff and partners August 12, 2006 |
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| Lacking leadership? IDF reservists walk along the northern border. (AP) |
| Ehud Olmert's office said late Friday that the expanded incursion into Lebanon would continue "for the time being," despite agreeing to a cease-fire resolution drafted by the United Nations Security Council, Haaretz reported. Israel will press ahead with its military offfensive in south Lebanon until Israel's Cabinet approves the deal, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev said early Saturday. "The logic would be that even in the framework of this successful outcome, if you hand over to the Lebanese army a cleaner south Lebanon, a south Lebanon where you have Hezbollah removed from the territory, that makes their [the Lebanese] troubles a lot easier," Regev said. Senior Israel Defense Forces officers quoted by Haaretz said that the IDF is "continuing forward at full power," and that all forces in the expanded incursion have assumed forward positions in the field. Olmert will ask his cabinet on Sunday to accept the resolution, but will press the military offensive against Hezbollah until then, a political source said, saying that Olmert, Defense Minister Amir Peretz and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni agreed to the resolution presented on Friday following last-minute changes to the text. "The various key ministers have voiced satisfaction at the amendments made over the last few hours," the source said. "For implementation by Israel, this now requires a cabinet vote. The idea is that the military offensive will continue until then." It was unclear which amendments were thought to have improved the resolution, which leaves all of Israel's war aims unfulfilled. The Bureaus of the Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and Defense Minister expressed satisfaction over the text of the Resolution, and a government statement confirmed that Olmert will recommend to the Government that the Resolution be accepted by Israel. Olmert spoke early Saturday with US President George W. Bush, and thanked him for the concern he showed for Israel's interests in the Security Council. Israeli drone fires on convoy An Israeli drone fired at a convoy of refugees fleeing southern Lebanon on Friday night, killing at least seven people and wounding 22, an Associated Press photographer said. The Israeli military said it was investigating the incident. Early Saturday, Israeli warplanes struck several targets in north, east and south Lebanon, killing at least two people and wounding several others in the village of Kharayeb, security officials said, hours after the U.N. Security Council adopted a resolution calling for an end to the war. Security officials said warplanes destroyed a power station in the southern port city of Sidon. There was no immediate word on casualties. Local media also reported airstrikes in Akkar province, 60 miles north of Beirut, and in Tyre. The attack on the convoy was the most dramatic on a day of fighting Friday that saw Israeli airstrikes pound south Beirut and border crossings to Syria, killing at least 15 others as ground fighting picked up intensity in the south of the country. An Israeli soldier was killed in fighting in southern Lebanon, the army said. Hezbollah on Friday sent another barrage of more than 150 rockets toward northern Israel. Rescue workers said eight people in the port of Haifa were wounded by shrapnel. The ongoing clashes have killed more than 800 people -- including at least 741 Lebanese and 123 Israelis. Lutfallah Daher, the photographer, was with the convoy when it was hit near the Bekaa Valley town of Chtaura, about 30 miles north of the Litani River. Israel has said it would attack any vehicle on roads south of the Litani, assuming it was carrying Hezbollah weapons or fighters. The photographer said that when the convoy left the Israeli-occupied town of Marjayoun in southern Lebanon, it was made up of more than 600 civilian vehicles in addition to vehicles carrying 350 Lebanese soldiers and police. A few vehicles had left the convoy before it was hit, the photographer said. Two armored U.N. peacekeeping vehicles were to have accompanied the convoy, Daher said, but were not present when Israeli forces in Marjayoun gave the convoy permission to head north. Israeli tanks and infantry took control of Marjayoun on Thursday. Israel's military said no convoys had been coordinated with the army. The region around Marjayoun, a mainly Christian town, was hit by Israeli warplanes and artillery during and after the Israeli advance. Polls indicated that the Israeli government is losing domestic support for its conduct of the conflict against Hezbollah, and doubt is growing among Israelis that they are winning the war. According to a recent poll, only one in 5 Israelis now believe their nation is winning the war. |
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Magal
Acesse: http://hebreu.blogspot.com
