Last update - 21:50 12/07/2006 By Amos HarelBy Amos Harel
On the 18th day since the abduction of Corporal Gilad Shalit, the picture has become all the more complex. From limited fighting on a single front (the Gaza Strip), the Israel Defense Forces is now approaching what might evolve into a near outright war on two fronts.
This is the most complex crisis Israel has faced since Operation Defensive Shield in 2002, when Israel successfully curbed Hezbollah's bid to spark a confrontation on the northern border in response to the IDF occupation of West Bank cities. The winning formula for resolving the crisis consisted of military actions combined with diplomatic pressure. |
by Nayla Razzouk
AFP July 13, 2006 BEIRUT - Israeli warplanes bombed Beirut's international airport before dawn and killed at least 27 Lebanese civilians in a series of raids after Israel vowed a harsh response to the killing and capture of its soldiers by Hezbollah guerrillas.
An Israeli woman was also killed when Hezbollah fired off a barrage of rockets across the volatile border, sending panicked residents of communities in northern Israel into bomb shelters. Israeli fighter jets slammed missiles into two runways, forcing the closure of the brand new airport and the diversion of flights to Cyprus, the day after Israeli troops went back into Lebanon for the first time in six years. |
BBC
13/07/2006 Israel is imposing an air and sea blockade on Lebanon as part of a major offensive after two soldiers were seized by the militant group Hezbollah.
Israeli warships have blocked Lebanese ports, and its international airport was closed after Israeli bombing. A Lebanese cabinet minister said the Israeli response was disproportionate, and called for a ceasefire. Raids on targets across south Lebanon have killed at least 35. Two have died in Hezbollah attacks on Israel. The operation comes as Israel continues a separate offensive in the Gaza Strip. An Israeli soldier was captured there last month. Haifa threat The offensive in Lebanon follows a day of heavy fighting in which the Israelis suffered their worst losses on the border for several years. Eight soldiers were killed and two were injured, in addition to the two captured in a Hezbollah ambush. The captured men have now been named as Ehud Goldwasser, 31, and Eldad Regev, 26. Hezbollah guerrillas also fired volleys of rockets at the northern Israeli coastal town of Nahariya, killing one Israeli and injuring 14 others. They also fired seven rockets at the town of Safed, 15km (9 miles) inside the Israeli border, injuring 11 people. One woman later died of her wounds. Hezbollah has threatened to attack the Israeli port city of Haifa if Israel bombs Beirut. Israel has warned people in the Lebanese capital's southern suburbs to evacuate. But it is not clear whether Haifa, which is 30km (19 miles) from the Israeli border, is within range of Hezbollah's rockets. The Israeli army says several rockets have landed more than 20km (12 miles) south of the border, suggesting that Hezbollah has managed to extend their range. Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev told the BBC that Israel was responding to "an unprovoked act of aggression" by Lebanon. But Lebanese minister Naila Mouawad said Israel had responded disproportionately. The Lebanese government wanted a ceasefire, she said, calling for the two captured soldiers to be returned to Israel. US President George Bush described Hezbollah as a "group of terrorists who want to stop the advance of peace". Comment: Just so you know, Lebanon is a soverign nation, larger than Israel. Israel attacked Hizballah targets in Lebanon 2 days ago, in order to provoke a response. 2 Israels soldiers were captured by Hizballah, and in response Israel has blocked Lebanese ports and bombed its airport and is ordering citizens in Beirut, a city of 2 million people, to evacuate, because Israel is going to bomb it.
And Israel wants us to believe this is all about ONE Israeli soldier?? Or three?? |
Last Updated Thu, 13 Jul 2006 11:05:32 EDT
CBC News |
Thursday 13 July 2006, 19:35 Makka Time, 16:35 GMT
Israeli air strikes in Lebanon have killed 53 civilians as Hezbollah fighters fired rockets at towns across northern Israel.
Israel struck Beirut airport early on Thursday and began enforcing a naval blockade of Lebanon, expanding reprisals since Hizbollah captured two Israeli soldiers a day earlier. |
Created: 13.07.2006 15:06 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 15:06 MSK
MosNews Paris and Moscow on Thursday sharply condemned Israeli strikes in Lebanon as a dangerous escalation of the Middle East conflict but Washington, while urging restraint, said Israel had the right to self defense, Reuters reports.
French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy called Israel's bombardment of Beirut's international airport "a disproportionate act of war," adding the risk of a regional war "absolutely" existed. |
Brussels, July 13, IRNA
|
By Kerstin Gehmlich
Reuters July 13, 2006 PARIS - Russia and France condemned Israel's strikes in Lebanon on Thursday as a dangerous escalation of the Middle East conflict but the United States said Israel had the right to defend itself.
President Bush defended Israel's attack on Beirut airport, but warned the Israelis they should be careful not to weaken the fragile Lebanese government. |
By TERENCE HUNT
AP White House Correspondent Wed Jul 12, 2006 ROSTOCK, Germany - The United States blamed Syria and Iran on Wednesday for the kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah militants and an eruption of violence along the southern border of Lebanon.
The White House called for the immediate and unconditional release of the two soldiers. "We condemn in the strongest terms Hezbollah's unprovoked attack on Israel and the kidnapping of the two Israeli soldiers," National Security Council spokesman Frederick Jones said as President Bush flew here for a visit. He said Hezbollah had also launched unprovoked rocket attacks on civilian targets in Israel as part of its offensive. Israel sent troops, warplanes, tanks and gunboats in a military offensive into southern Lebanon after Hezbollah militants crossed into Israel and captured two Israeli soldiers. Israel said seven of its soldiers had been killed in the violence. Comment: Israel seems to be starting a conflagration that will consume the entire Middle East all because of three missing soldiers.
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