Thursday, 17 August 2006, 14:26 GMT 15:26 UK
Lebanese troops have crossed the strategically important Litani river, moving into some areas of southern Lebanon for the first time in decades.
France has confirmed it is ready to head an expanded international force working alongside the Lebanese army.
But France and other UN contributors want their roles clearly defined, including any disarming of Hezbollah.
Israel, meanwhile, says it has passed control of half of its positions in the south to the current UN force there.
Dozens of Lebanese army trucks, armoured personnel carriers and jeeps crossed the Litani using temporary bridges set up to bypass bridges damaged by Israeli shelling.
The vanguard crossed at 0600 local time (0300 GMT), to be greeted by residents cheering and waving.
About 2,000 Lebanese troops are in the initial deployment, which will rise to the 15,000-strong force approved on Wednesday by the Lebanese cabinet, which includes two Hezbollah members.
Disarmament dilemma
Senior Hezbollah and other Lebanese figures have made it clear there is no question of the army disarming Hezbollah fighters.
Italy's foreign minister also said Italian troops, preparing to join the international force, were not expecting to be involved in disarming the group.
Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora has said that no weapons will be allowed outside the authority of the Lebanese state.
But the BBC's Jon Leyne says there seems to be a tacit agreement for the fighters to hide their weapons and go underground.
The disarmament question is sure to be high on the agenda of a UN troop contributors' meeting to be held in New York later on Thursday.
Handover
As the Israeli pullout continues, an Israeli military spokeswoman said the town of Marjayoun and its surrounding area were now in the hands of troops from Unifil, the 2,000-strong existing UN force.
The spokeswoman said the handover would continue gradually but it was too early to say how soon Israeli troops would be able to pull out of Lebanon entirely.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said: "If it takes time until the international forces are organised, it takes time until Israel withdraws. This is the equation."
French Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie has confirmed that France is ready to lead an expanded UN force in Lebanon but only with a clear mandate and sufficient resources.
France's Le Monde newspaper said on Thursday that Ms Alliot-Marie was planning to send only a small, symbolic French force and that UN officials were trying to persuade her to send a far greater contingent.
The expanded UN force's commander, Gen Alain Pellegrini, said he expected the first elements to start arriving early next week.
"This Unifil will be very different from the previous one. The old Unifil is dead," he told AFP news agency.
Hard road home
Israeli aircraft have been dropping leaflets warning refugees to stay away from southern Lebanon.
Despite these warnings, there has been a steady stream of displaced people heading home.
The UN says around a quarter of a million have already returned but hundreds of thousands are still believed to be on the move.
They face a tough journey with traffic jams and the threat of unexploded bombs, the BBC's Greg Morsbach reports.
The UN found 200 cluster bombs near a hospital, in the village of Tebnin.
Many of those who managed to escape days of heavy bombardment are now faced with rebuilding their villages and Hezbollah is offering assistance, our correspondent notes.
In another sign of a return to normality, a commercial flight from Amman in Jordan arrived at Beirut airport on Thursday - the first since Israel bombed the runway on 13 July.
CRISIS in the MIDDLE EAST
Moderators: Cell_Leader, ikaotiki, Julstar
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theone666
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theone666
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Hariri in bitter attack on Syria
Thursday, 17 August 2006, 15:47 GMT 16:47 UK
The leader of the parliamentary majority in Lebanon, Saad Hariri, has strongly criticised the president of neighbouring Syria, Bashar al-Assad.
Mr Hariri accused the Syrian president of inciting conflict in Lebanon.
Saad Hariri is the son of former PM Rafik Hariri who was assassinated in a huge bombing in February 2005.
Mr Hariri also angrily criticised Israel for its "black history" in Lebanon, saying that all the bombings would not break Lebanese unity.
In a no-holds-barred attack on the Syrian leader, Mr Hariri also accused Mr Assad of trying to sow "discord" in Lebanon.
Mr Hariri said a speech on Tuesday by Mr Assad which suggested that anti-Syrian forces in Lebanon were aligning themselves with Israel, was damaging to both Lebanon and Syria.
'Threat'
"There is a neighbouring president who is threatening to destroy the political regime in Lebanon because he could not digest the Lebanese people's decision to throw out his corruption and troops from Lebanon," he said.
Mr Hariri was referring to the Syrian troop pullout from Lebanon in 2005 which followed strong domestic and international protests triggered by the assassination of Rafik Hariri.
Syria has denied any role in the assassination, but the continuing UN investigation has implicated high-level Syrian and Lebanese officials and Lebanese allies in the murder.
In his most bitter criticism, Saad Hariri said: "The regime in Syria is trading with the blood of the children of Qana, Gaza and Baghdad."
Mr Hariri, a strong backer of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's government, called on Lebanese to rally behind the government of Lebanon.
The leader of the parliamentary majority in Lebanon, Saad Hariri, has strongly criticised the president of neighbouring Syria, Bashar al-Assad.
Mr Hariri accused the Syrian president of inciting conflict in Lebanon.
Saad Hariri is the son of former PM Rafik Hariri who was assassinated in a huge bombing in February 2005.
Mr Hariri also angrily criticised Israel for its "black history" in Lebanon, saying that all the bombings would not break Lebanese unity.
In a no-holds-barred attack on the Syrian leader, Mr Hariri also accused Mr Assad of trying to sow "discord" in Lebanon.
Mr Hariri said a speech on Tuesday by Mr Assad which suggested that anti-Syrian forces in Lebanon were aligning themselves with Israel, was damaging to both Lebanon and Syria.
'Threat'
"There is a neighbouring president who is threatening to destroy the political regime in Lebanon because he could not digest the Lebanese people's decision to throw out his corruption and troops from Lebanon," he said.
Mr Hariri was referring to the Syrian troop pullout from Lebanon in 2005 which followed strong domestic and international protests triggered by the assassination of Rafik Hariri.
Syria has denied any role in the assassination, but the continuing UN investigation has implicated high-level Syrian and Lebanese officials and Lebanese allies in the murder.
In his most bitter criticism, Saad Hariri said: "The regime in Syria is trading with the blood of the children of Qana, Gaza and Baghdad."
Mr Hariri, a strong backer of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's government, called on Lebanese to rally behind the government of Lebanon.
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theone666
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UN set for crunch peace meeting
Thursday, 17 August 2006, 19:01 GMT 20:01 UK
The United Nations is set for a key meeting on the terms and make-up of its expanded Lebanon peace force.
At special talks in New York, the UN's deputy chief will seek pledges for an initial 3,500-strong force, which the UN hopes to deploy within two weeks.
But France, which has agreed to lead the new force, has said it will send only 200 extra troops immediately.
Paris has expressed concern that the mission and mandate of the force are not yet sufficiently clear.
Under the terms of the UN ceasefire resolution which ended the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the expanded UN force should work alongside the Lebanese army in the south to keep the peace.
Each force should eventually number 15,000.
Early on Thursday, the Lebanese troops began their deployment to the south, crossing the Litani river into areas previously controlled by Hezbollah.
It was the army's first move back into some parts of the south since the 1960s.
Israel says it has passed control of half of its positions in the area to the UN.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said the speed of its full military withdrawal was dependent on how quickly the international force arrived in the border region.
French concerns
French President Jacques Chirac announced the 200 new troops, but in a conversation with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, reportedly left open the possibility that 1,700 extra troops could also be sent later.
France had been tipped to provide significant numbers of troops.
Mr Chirac repeated concerns that strict and precise rules of engagement needed to be drawn up, his office said.
Of particular concern is thought to be the issue of disarming Hezbollah. The UN resolution makes clear that no militants' weapons should remain south of the Litani, but the question of who will bring this about has not been resolved.
Israel, Hezbollah and the Lebanese government have, however, all pledged to uphold the resolution.
The BBC's Jon Leyne says there seems to be a tacit agreement for the fighters to hide their weapons and go underground.
As the Lebanese army headed south on Thursday, using temporary bridges to cross the Litani, they received a warm welcome from some residents.
People in the town of Marjayoun, scene of heavy fighting, waved Lebanese flags, threw rice and held an official ceremony to welcome the troops.
"Today is a new beginning for us in south Lebanon. We'll need some time to feel safe but it's a great start," George Najm, 23, told the Associated Press news agency.
Palestinian militants, an Israeli occupation and Hezbollah fighters have by turns dominated southern Lebanon over the past four decades.
Elsewhere, the first commercial flights in more than a month landed at Beirut's international airport, which was bombed early in the conflict.
Two passenger flights from the Jordanian capital, Amman, landed at the airport, as well as a British aid flight.
In the south, Israeli aircraft have been dropping fresh leaflets warning refugees to stay away.
Despite these warnings, there has been a steady stream of displaced people heading home.
The World Food Programme said trucks carrying aid packages were heading into the worst-hit regions, such as Tyre, Sidon and the town of Bint Jbeil, near the Israeli border.
Thousands of Lebanese returning home are finding their homes destroyed by bombing, as well as the threat of unexploded bombs.
The United Nations is set for a key meeting on the terms and make-up of its expanded Lebanon peace force.
At special talks in New York, the UN's deputy chief will seek pledges for an initial 3,500-strong force, which the UN hopes to deploy within two weeks.
But France, which has agreed to lead the new force, has said it will send only 200 extra troops immediately.
Paris has expressed concern that the mission and mandate of the force are not yet sufficiently clear.
Under the terms of the UN ceasefire resolution which ended the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the expanded UN force should work alongside the Lebanese army in the south to keep the peace.
Each force should eventually number 15,000.
Early on Thursday, the Lebanese troops began their deployment to the south, crossing the Litani river into areas previously controlled by Hezbollah.
It was the army's first move back into some parts of the south since the 1960s.
Israel says it has passed control of half of its positions in the area to the UN.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said the speed of its full military withdrawal was dependent on how quickly the international force arrived in the border region.
French concerns
French President Jacques Chirac announced the 200 new troops, but in a conversation with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, reportedly left open the possibility that 1,700 extra troops could also be sent later.
France had been tipped to provide significant numbers of troops.
Mr Chirac repeated concerns that strict and precise rules of engagement needed to be drawn up, his office said.
Of particular concern is thought to be the issue of disarming Hezbollah. The UN resolution makes clear that no militants' weapons should remain south of the Litani, but the question of who will bring this about has not been resolved.
Israel, Hezbollah and the Lebanese government have, however, all pledged to uphold the resolution.
The BBC's Jon Leyne says there seems to be a tacit agreement for the fighters to hide their weapons and go underground.
As the Lebanese army headed south on Thursday, using temporary bridges to cross the Litani, they received a warm welcome from some residents.
People in the town of Marjayoun, scene of heavy fighting, waved Lebanese flags, threw rice and held an official ceremony to welcome the troops.
"Today is a new beginning for us in south Lebanon. We'll need some time to feel safe but it's a great start," George Najm, 23, told the Associated Press news agency.
Palestinian militants, an Israeli occupation and Hezbollah fighters have by turns dominated southern Lebanon over the past four decades.
Elsewhere, the first commercial flights in more than a month landed at Beirut's international airport, which was bombed early in the conflict.
Two passenger flights from the Jordanian capital, Amman, landed at the airport, as well as a British aid flight.
In the south, Israeli aircraft have been dropping fresh leaflets warning refugees to stay away.
Despite these warnings, there has been a steady stream of displaced people heading home.
The World Food Programme said trucks carrying aid packages were heading into the worst-hit regions, such as Tyre, Sidon and the town of Bint Jbeil, near the Israeli border.
Thousands of Lebanese returning home are finding their homes destroyed by bombing, as well as the threat of unexploded bombs.
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theone666
- Major [O-4]
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States pledge troops for Lebanon
Friday, 18 August 2006, 04:16 GMT 05:16 UK
A number of countries meeting at the UN have offered troops for the expanded peace force for Lebanon.
Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia and Nepal have pledged troops, while Germany offered a maritime task force.
The UN hopes to deploy an initial 3,500-strong force within two weeks. The UN deputy chief warned earlier that delay may threaten the ceasefire.
France, which agreed to lead the force, said it will send only 200 extra troops immediately, far fewer than expected.
The French government has expressed concern that the mission and mandate of the force are not yet sufficiently clear and has been seeking clarification.
Under the terms of the UN ceasefire resolution which ended the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the expanded UN force should work alongside the Lebanese army in the south to keep the peace.
Each force should eventually number 15,000.
Early on Thursday, the Lebanese troops began their deployment to the south, crossing the Litani river into areas previously controlled by Hezbollah.
It was the army's first move back into some parts of the south since the 1960s.
Israel says it has passed control of half of its positions in the area to the UN.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said the speed of its full military withdrawal was dependent on how quickly the international force arrived in the border region.
French concerns
The pledges came at talks in New York between UN deputy chief Mark Malloch Brown and representatives of some 49 countries, to discuss potential contributions.
In addition to those offering troops, Britain and the US said they would provide logistical support and Italy and Belgium also indicated a willingness to contribute.
"I would say the show is on the road," Mr Malloch Brown said after the talks.
"We're in business, but [there is] a lot of work to be done in the coming days to meet the deadline."
Mr Malloch Brown said earlier that the situation on the ground in Lebanon was tenuous and any delay in the deployment could lead to renewed fighting.
He said he was disappointed at France's offer.
"We had hoped - we make no secret of it - that there would be a stronger French contribution," he said.
French President Jacques Chirac announced the 200 new troops, but in a conversation with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, reportedly left open the possibility that 1,700 extra troops could also be sent later.
Of particular concern is thought to be the issue of disarming Hezbollah. The UN resolution makes clear that no militants' weapons should remain south of the Litani, but the question of who will bring this about has not been resolved.
Israel, Hezbollah and the Lebanese government have, however, all pledged to uphold the resolution.
As the Lebanese army headed south on Thursday, using temporary bridges to cross the Litani, they received a warm welcome from some residents.
Palestinian militants, an Israeli occupation and Hezbollah fighters have by turns dominated southern Lebanon over the past four decades.
Thousands of Lebanese returning home are finding their homes destroyed by bombing, as well as the threat of unexploded bombs.
A number of countries meeting at the UN have offered troops for the expanded peace force for Lebanon.
Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia and Nepal have pledged troops, while Germany offered a maritime task force.
The UN hopes to deploy an initial 3,500-strong force within two weeks. The UN deputy chief warned earlier that delay may threaten the ceasefire.
France, which agreed to lead the force, said it will send only 200 extra troops immediately, far fewer than expected.
The French government has expressed concern that the mission and mandate of the force are not yet sufficiently clear and has been seeking clarification.
Under the terms of the UN ceasefire resolution which ended the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the expanded UN force should work alongside the Lebanese army in the south to keep the peace.
Each force should eventually number 15,000.
Early on Thursday, the Lebanese troops began their deployment to the south, crossing the Litani river into areas previously controlled by Hezbollah.
It was the army's first move back into some parts of the south since the 1960s.
Israel says it has passed control of half of its positions in the area to the UN.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said the speed of its full military withdrawal was dependent on how quickly the international force arrived in the border region.
French concerns
The pledges came at talks in New York between UN deputy chief Mark Malloch Brown and representatives of some 49 countries, to discuss potential contributions.
In addition to those offering troops, Britain and the US said they would provide logistical support and Italy and Belgium also indicated a willingness to contribute.
"I would say the show is on the road," Mr Malloch Brown said after the talks.
"We're in business, but [there is] a lot of work to be done in the coming days to meet the deadline."
Mr Malloch Brown said earlier that the situation on the ground in Lebanon was tenuous and any delay in the deployment could lead to renewed fighting.
He said he was disappointed at France's offer.
"We had hoped - we make no secret of it - that there would be a stronger French contribution," he said.
French President Jacques Chirac announced the 200 new troops, but in a conversation with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, reportedly left open the possibility that 1,700 extra troops could also be sent later.
Of particular concern is thought to be the issue of disarming Hezbollah. The UN resolution makes clear that no militants' weapons should remain south of the Litani, but the question of who will bring this about has not been resolved.
Israel, Hezbollah and the Lebanese government have, however, all pledged to uphold the resolution.
As the Lebanese army headed south on Thursday, using temporary bridges to cross the Litani, they received a warm welcome from some residents.
Palestinian militants, an Israeli occupation and Hezbollah fighters have by turns dominated southern Lebanon over the past four decades.
Thousands of Lebanese returning home are finding their homes destroyed by bombing, as well as the threat of unexploded bombs.
-
theone666
- Major [O-4]
- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
Troops A Welcome Sight in South Lebanon
By LAUREN FRAYER, AP
QLEIA, Lebanon (Aug. 18) - Villagers throhe country's army to south Lebanon on Thursday after a nearly 40-year absence, and the first airliner landed at Beirut airport since fighting began more than a month ago.
Four days into a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah, there was still no firm date for a deployment of an enhanced international force that is supposed to expand to 15,000 troops and join an equal number of Lebanese soldiers.
The United Nations got pledges Thursday of 3,500 troops for the force, with Bangladesh making the largest offer of up to 2,000 troops. But France offered just 400, and Germany - uneasy given its Nazi past of any possible military confrontation with Israeli soldiers - said it wouldn't send any.
France was expected to lead the U.N. force, and its announcement of such a small number focused attention on its demands for a more explicit mandate, including when to use firepower, and could affect contributions by other countries.
Even though the Israel withdrawal and handover to U.N. forces has gone well thus far, some potential contributors are believed to be concerned about avoiding confrontation with Hezbollah or being caught in the middle of a future conflict.
The U.N. cease-fire resolution called for the force to keep the peace and disarm Hezbollah fighters south of the Litani River. However, the Lebanese government adopted a mandate Wednesday that requires confiscation of Hezbollah arms only if carried in public. It said nothing about the network of Hezbollah rocket bunkers across the 18-mile stretch between the river and the Israeli border.
The deep political divisions in Lebanon resurfaced with the head of the largest parliamentary bloc blasting both Israel and Syria in a fiery nationalistic speech to hundreds of supporters.
Saad Hariri, the leader of an independent, secular bloc that has opposed Syrian domination of Lebanon and is seen as an opponent of Hezbollah, accused Israel of "living off the blood" of Arabs and said Syrian President Bashar Assad was trying to sow strife in Lebanon. Syria and Iran are the main international backers of Hezbollah, a Shiite Muslim guerrilla group opposed to Israel.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev, when asked about Hariri's speech, said: "Too often in the Arab world, people think that political legitimacy is attained by bashing Israel."
At least 845 Lebanese were killed in the 34-day war: 743 civilians, 34 soldiers and 68 Hezbollah. Israel says it killed about 530 guerrillas. On the Israeli side, 157 were killed - 118 soldiers and 39 civilians, many from the 3,970 Hezbollah rocket strikes. The figures were compiled by The Associated Press, mostly from government officials on both sides.
In Beirut, the international airport reopened to commercial traffic for the first time since July 13 when it was attacked by Israeli warplanes and gunboats. A Middle East Airlines passenger jet touched down from Amman, Jordan, ending a 36-day Israeli blockade, and a Royal Jordanian flight followed soon after.
The Israeli military said it was coordinating the arrivals, and that the air blockade had not been lifted. But Middle East Airlines Chairman Mohammed Hout said the blockade was partially lifted to allow flights between Amman and Beirut. Airport officials said full commercial traffic could resume next week.
In southern Lebanon, about 2,500 Lebanese soldiers from the 10th Brigade set up camps within a half-mile of the Israeli border - a key step toward taking control of the whole country for the first time since 1968 and a major demand of the U.N. resolution that so far has halted the fighting.
The deployment marks the first time the Lebanese army has moved in force to a region that was held by Palestinian guerrillas in the 1970s and by Hezbollah since Israeli troops withdrew from the area in 2000.
As the Lebanese troops began spreading out along the frontier at the north end of Israel's Galilee panhandle, a convoy of eight U.N. peacekeeping trucks rumbled into Kfar Kila, just south of here, to take up positions that were held by Israelis before they began withdrawing. Those posts were to be transferred to Lebanese forces, mostly likely by early Friday.
Abu Hussein Awad, a 58-year-old Shiite, claims the distinction of being the Lebanese civilian who lives closest to Israel. His house backs up against the Fatima Gate where Israeli troops withdrew in 2000, ending an 18-year occupation of south Lebanon.
"The army is good, I'm glad they're here," said Awad, who has lived here for 50 years - most of the time Israel has been in existence.
He was asked if he supported Hezbollah.
"I'm Lebanese. I don't like Hezbollah ... . I love Lebanon only - not America, not Iran and not Syria - just Lebanon," he said, listing the key backers of the combatants in the war.
The area of Lebanon's border with Israel was in ruins. In the towns of Adaisse and Taibeh, south and west of Kfar Kila respectively, it was difficult to find a building that was not blackened, pockmarked by artillery or flattened altogether.
Wreckage was strewn through the streets, but new Hezbollah flags flapped in the wind over piles of rubble. In Kfar Kila, young men hung giant yellow banners above intersections. They read: "Rice, they will not see your new Mideast" and "The Great Lebanon has defeated the murderers." Both were signed, Hezbollah.
The only traffic in the towns was young bearded men zipping around piles of wreckage on motorcycles. They spoke quietly into two-way radios, occasionally dismounted to kiss one another on both cheeks, then zipped away. One had a handgun tucked into his belt. Another threw an AK-47 rifle into the back of a pickup truck when a reporter approached.
"I am a Hezbollah fighter, and this is my town," proclaimed 35-year-old Ahmed, who declined to give his full name because he feared retribution from Israel. His voice echoed off the shells of vacant, gnarled buildings in Adaisse's main square.
Ahmed pointed to one charred building after another. "That is where 18 of them (Israeli soldiers) died, and five more there," he said, pointing to buildings off the town square. "That over there is my business, a bookshop."
"Why did they (the Israelis) come? Why did they do this?" Ahmed screamed, his cement block house in shambles. "Next time the Israelis come, we'll fight again for sure." He broke open a 6-pack of mineral water he said he snatched from next to the bodies of Israeli soldiers killed days ago here.
Among the soldiers who will be taking up positions in villages like Adaisse and Taibeh was Cpl. Muhammed Abdul Rahim. The 42-year-old Lebanese army ranger from Tripoli, in the far north of the country, said he felt "like a new man today."
"It's a difficult mission, and the times now are still dangerous. I think we have one more week of danger in this country," he said.
The arrival of Adbul Rahim and his comrades was welcomed.
"We've been waiting for 30 years for this army to come," said George Najm, a 23-year-old wedding singer from Qleia. "Today is a new beginning."
"Lebanon is a beautiful country," Najm said as he looked over the valley toward Israel. "But it's been a pretty difficult place to live for the past month."
08-18-06 03:05 EDT
QLEIA, Lebanon (Aug. 18) - Villagers throhe country's army to south Lebanon on Thursday after a nearly 40-year absence, and the first airliner landed at Beirut airport since fighting began more than a month ago.
Four days into a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah, there was still no firm date for a deployment of an enhanced international force that is supposed to expand to 15,000 troops and join an equal number of Lebanese soldiers.
The United Nations got pledges Thursday of 3,500 troops for the force, with Bangladesh making the largest offer of up to 2,000 troops. But France offered just 400, and Germany - uneasy given its Nazi past of any possible military confrontation with Israeli soldiers - said it wouldn't send any.
France was expected to lead the U.N. force, and its announcement of such a small number focused attention on its demands for a more explicit mandate, including when to use firepower, and could affect contributions by other countries.
Even though the Israel withdrawal and handover to U.N. forces has gone well thus far, some potential contributors are believed to be concerned about avoiding confrontation with Hezbollah or being caught in the middle of a future conflict.
The U.N. cease-fire resolution called for the force to keep the peace and disarm Hezbollah fighters south of the Litani River. However, the Lebanese government adopted a mandate Wednesday that requires confiscation of Hezbollah arms only if carried in public. It said nothing about the network of Hezbollah rocket bunkers across the 18-mile stretch between the river and the Israeli border.
The deep political divisions in Lebanon resurfaced with the head of the largest parliamentary bloc blasting both Israel and Syria in a fiery nationalistic speech to hundreds of supporters.
Saad Hariri, the leader of an independent, secular bloc that has opposed Syrian domination of Lebanon and is seen as an opponent of Hezbollah, accused Israel of "living off the blood" of Arabs and said Syrian President Bashar Assad was trying to sow strife in Lebanon. Syria and Iran are the main international backers of Hezbollah, a Shiite Muslim guerrilla group opposed to Israel.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev, when asked about Hariri's speech, said: "Too often in the Arab world, people think that political legitimacy is attained by bashing Israel."
At least 845 Lebanese were killed in the 34-day war: 743 civilians, 34 soldiers and 68 Hezbollah. Israel says it killed about 530 guerrillas. On the Israeli side, 157 were killed - 118 soldiers and 39 civilians, many from the 3,970 Hezbollah rocket strikes. The figures were compiled by The Associated Press, mostly from government officials on both sides.
In Beirut, the international airport reopened to commercial traffic for the first time since July 13 when it was attacked by Israeli warplanes and gunboats. A Middle East Airlines passenger jet touched down from Amman, Jordan, ending a 36-day Israeli blockade, and a Royal Jordanian flight followed soon after.
The Israeli military said it was coordinating the arrivals, and that the air blockade had not been lifted. But Middle East Airlines Chairman Mohammed Hout said the blockade was partially lifted to allow flights between Amman and Beirut. Airport officials said full commercial traffic could resume next week.
In southern Lebanon, about 2,500 Lebanese soldiers from the 10th Brigade set up camps within a half-mile of the Israeli border - a key step toward taking control of the whole country for the first time since 1968 and a major demand of the U.N. resolution that so far has halted the fighting.
The deployment marks the first time the Lebanese army has moved in force to a region that was held by Palestinian guerrillas in the 1970s and by Hezbollah since Israeli troops withdrew from the area in 2000.
As the Lebanese troops began spreading out along the frontier at the north end of Israel's Galilee panhandle, a convoy of eight U.N. peacekeeping trucks rumbled into Kfar Kila, just south of here, to take up positions that were held by Israelis before they began withdrawing. Those posts were to be transferred to Lebanese forces, mostly likely by early Friday.
Abu Hussein Awad, a 58-year-old Shiite, claims the distinction of being the Lebanese civilian who lives closest to Israel. His house backs up against the Fatima Gate where Israeli troops withdrew in 2000, ending an 18-year occupation of south Lebanon.
"The army is good, I'm glad they're here," said Awad, who has lived here for 50 years - most of the time Israel has been in existence.
He was asked if he supported Hezbollah.
"I'm Lebanese. I don't like Hezbollah ... . I love Lebanon only - not America, not Iran and not Syria - just Lebanon," he said, listing the key backers of the combatants in the war.
The area of Lebanon's border with Israel was in ruins. In the towns of Adaisse and Taibeh, south and west of Kfar Kila respectively, it was difficult to find a building that was not blackened, pockmarked by artillery or flattened altogether.
Wreckage was strewn through the streets, but new Hezbollah flags flapped in the wind over piles of rubble. In Kfar Kila, young men hung giant yellow banners above intersections. They read: "Rice, they will not see your new Mideast" and "The Great Lebanon has defeated the murderers." Both were signed, Hezbollah.
The only traffic in the towns was young bearded men zipping around piles of wreckage on motorcycles. They spoke quietly into two-way radios, occasionally dismounted to kiss one another on both cheeks, then zipped away. One had a handgun tucked into his belt. Another threw an AK-47 rifle into the back of a pickup truck when a reporter approached.
"I am a Hezbollah fighter, and this is my town," proclaimed 35-year-old Ahmed, who declined to give his full name because he feared retribution from Israel. His voice echoed off the shells of vacant, gnarled buildings in Adaisse's main square.
Ahmed pointed to one charred building after another. "That is where 18 of them (Israeli soldiers) died, and five more there," he said, pointing to buildings off the town square. "That over there is my business, a bookshop."
"Why did they (the Israelis) come? Why did they do this?" Ahmed screamed, his cement block house in shambles. "Next time the Israelis come, we'll fight again for sure." He broke open a 6-pack of mineral water he said he snatched from next to the bodies of Israeli soldiers killed days ago here.
Among the soldiers who will be taking up positions in villages like Adaisse and Taibeh was Cpl. Muhammed Abdul Rahim. The 42-year-old Lebanese army ranger from Tripoli, in the far north of the country, said he felt "like a new man today."
"It's a difficult mission, and the times now are still dangerous. I think we have one more week of danger in this country," he said.
The arrival of Adbul Rahim and his comrades was welcomed.
"We've been waiting for 30 years for this army to come," said George Najm, a 23-year-old wedding singer from Qleia. "Today is a new beginning."
"Lebanon is a beautiful country," Najm said as he looked over the valley toward Israel. "But it's been a pretty difficult place to live for the past month."
08-18-06 03:05 EDT
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theone666
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- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
Olmert 'suspends' withdrawal plan
Friday, 18 August 2006, 10:01 GMT 11:01 UK
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has suspended his plans for a unilateral withdrawal from the West Bank, a government minister says.
Housing minister Meir Shetreet said the plan had not been abandoned entirely.
He was commenting on media reports press that the pullout was no longer at the top of Mr Olmert's agenda.
Mr Olmert was elected on a platform of withdrawal from some of the West Bank, while tightening Israel's hold on large settlements and the Jordan Valley.
The BBC's Bethany Bell in Jerusalem says the development comes at a time when support in Israel both for the withdrawal and for Mr Olmert's government appears to be slipping.
Growing criticism
Fighting and violence in Lebanon and in Gaza this summer has caused many Israelis to question the plans.
Speaking on Israel army radio the housing minister Meir Shetreet confirmed the report in the Haaretz newspaper that the pullout is now no longer at the top of Mr Olmert's agenda.
"It is my assessment the prime minister will not deal with this [the West Bank pullout] in the coming period, because it's really not on the agenda," Mr Shetreet said.
"I cannot say that the prime minister has dropped the plan. I don't think he has reached such a conclusion."
Our correspondent says there has been growing criticism of Israel's political and military leadership in recent days, with many Israelis are asking what was actually achieved in the weeks of fighting Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.
The defence ministry has appointed a commission to investigate how the military campaign in Lebanon was conducted.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has suspended his plans for a unilateral withdrawal from the West Bank, a government minister says.
Housing minister Meir Shetreet said the plan had not been abandoned entirely.
He was commenting on media reports press that the pullout was no longer at the top of Mr Olmert's agenda.
Mr Olmert was elected on a platform of withdrawal from some of the West Bank, while tightening Israel's hold on large settlements and the Jordan Valley.
The BBC's Bethany Bell in Jerusalem says the development comes at a time when support in Israel both for the withdrawal and for Mr Olmert's government appears to be slipping.
Growing criticism
Fighting and violence in Lebanon and in Gaza this summer has caused many Israelis to question the plans.
Speaking on Israel army radio the housing minister Meir Shetreet confirmed the report in the Haaretz newspaper that the pullout is now no longer at the top of Mr Olmert's agenda.
"It is my assessment the prime minister will not deal with this [the West Bank pullout] in the coming period, because it's really not on the agenda," Mr Shetreet said.
"I cannot say that the prime minister has dropped the plan. I don't think he has reached such a conclusion."
Our correspondent says there has been growing criticism of Israel's political and military leadership in recent days, with many Israelis are asking what was actually achieved in the weeks of fighting Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.
The defence ministry has appointed a commission to investigate how the military campaign in Lebanon was conducted.
-
theone666
- Major [O-4]
- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
Israel alarm at UN force members
Friday, 18 August 2006, 11:35 GMT 12:35 UK
Israel says it would be "difficult if not inconceivable" to accept nations which do not recognise its right to exist as part of a UN force in Lebanon.
Israeli UN envoy Dan Gillerman was speaking after Indonesia and Malaysia, which do not recognise Israel, pledged troops for the UN deployment.
Malaysia said Israel should have no say in the make-up of the force.
The UN has expressed cautious optimism that it can deploy an initial 3,500-strong force within two weeks.
UN deputy chief Mark Malloch Brown warned earlier that delay could threaten the ceasefire.
But building the force has proved problematical. Mr Malloch Brown said a lot of work was needed in the coming days to meet the two-week deadline.
There is concern that the offers do not necessarily provide the right mix of troops and capabilities needed for the deployment, the BBC's Bridget Kendall in New York says.
A number of countries are calling for clearer guidance on the exact nature of the mission.
France, which had agreed to lead the force, said it would send only 200 extra troops immediately, far fewer than expected.
The UN had hoped for a larger European contingent and was disappointed by France's offer.
But French Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie defended the decision. "You can't send in men telling them: Look what's going on but you don't have the right to defend yourself or to shoot," she told RTL radio.
Italy's government has approved the deployment of troops, saying it would decide how many in the coming days. Officials said as many as 3,000 troops could be sent.
Bangladesh and Nepal have also pledged troops, while Germany has offered a maritime task force. The UK and the US say they will provide logistical support.
Disappointment
As the UN's efforts to build the force continued, Mr Gillerman made clear Israel's unhappiness with some of the contributors.
"It would be very difficult if not inconceivable for Israel to accept troops from countries who do not recognise Israel, who have no diplomatic relations with Israel," he told the BBC.
He said they would be "very happy" to accept troops from Muslim countries they have friendly relations with.
"But to expect countries who don't even recognise Israel to guard Israel's safety I think would be a bit naive," he said.
His comments were dismissed by Malaysia, which, along with Indonesia, has a Muslim majority population.
"We're going to be on Lebanese territory ... We're not going to be on Israeli territory," Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said.
'Positive sign'
As Lebanese troops continue to move into the south of the country as part of the UN ceasefire, mass burials are being held for those killed during the past month.
Near the morgue in Tyre, 138 coffins were being dug up from a temporary mass grave to give to relatives for a proper burial.
In Qana village, where 28 people were killed in an Israeli air strike, relatives were gathering for a mass funeral.
Lebanese troops were welcomed as a "positive sign" by residents as they arrived in the devastated town of Khiam, close to the Israeli border.
"We hope that the two parties, Hezbollah and the Lebanese army, have an agreement on this [deployment]," resident Ahmed Zoghbi said.
Israel says it has now withdrawn from two-thirds of its positions in southern Lebanon, including the port city of Tyre and villages of Qana, Hadatha and Beit Yahoun.
Under the terms of the UN ceasefire resolution which ended the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the expanded UN force should work alongside the Lebanese army in the south to keep the peace.
Each force should eventually number 15,000.
Israel says it would be "difficult if not inconceivable" to accept nations which do not recognise its right to exist as part of a UN force in Lebanon.
Israeli UN envoy Dan Gillerman was speaking after Indonesia and Malaysia, which do not recognise Israel, pledged troops for the UN deployment.
Malaysia said Israel should have no say in the make-up of the force.
The UN has expressed cautious optimism that it can deploy an initial 3,500-strong force within two weeks.
UN deputy chief Mark Malloch Brown warned earlier that delay could threaten the ceasefire.
But building the force has proved problematical. Mr Malloch Brown said a lot of work was needed in the coming days to meet the two-week deadline.
There is concern that the offers do not necessarily provide the right mix of troops and capabilities needed for the deployment, the BBC's Bridget Kendall in New York says.
A number of countries are calling for clearer guidance on the exact nature of the mission.
France, which had agreed to lead the force, said it would send only 200 extra troops immediately, far fewer than expected.
The UN had hoped for a larger European contingent and was disappointed by France's offer.
But French Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie defended the decision. "You can't send in men telling them: Look what's going on but you don't have the right to defend yourself or to shoot," she told RTL radio.
Italy's government has approved the deployment of troops, saying it would decide how many in the coming days. Officials said as many as 3,000 troops could be sent.
Bangladesh and Nepal have also pledged troops, while Germany has offered a maritime task force. The UK and the US say they will provide logistical support.
Disappointment
As the UN's efforts to build the force continued, Mr Gillerman made clear Israel's unhappiness with some of the contributors.
"It would be very difficult if not inconceivable for Israel to accept troops from countries who do not recognise Israel, who have no diplomatic relations with Israel," he told the BBC.
He said they would be "very happy" to accept troops from Muslim countries they have friendly relations with.
"But to expect countries who don't even recognise Israel to guard Israel's safety I think would be a bit naive," he said.
His comments were dismissed by Malaysia, which, along with Indonesia, has a Muslim majority population.
"We're going to be on Lebanese territory ... We're not going to be on Israeli territory," Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said.
'Positive sign'
As Lebanese troops continue to move into the south of the country as part of the UN ceasefire, mass burials are being held for those killed during the past month.
Near the morgue in Tyre, 138 coffins were being dug up from a temporary mass grave to give to relatives for a proper burial.
In Qana village, where 28 people were killed in an Israeli air strike, relatives were gathering for a mass funeral.
Lebanese troops were welcomed as a "positive sign" by residents as they arrived in the devastated town of Khiam, close to the Israeli border.
"We hope that the two parties, Hezbollah and the Lebanese army, have an agreement on this [deployment]," resident Ahmed Zoghbi said.
Israel says it has now withdrawn from two-thirds of its positions in southern Lebanon, including the port city of Tyre and villages of Qana, Hadatha and Beit Yahoun.
Under the terms of the UN ceasefire resolution which ended the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the expanded UN force should work alongside the Lebanese army in the south to keep the peace.
Each force should eventually number 15,000.
-
theone666
- Major [O-4]
- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
Lebanese bury Qana strike victims
Friday, 18 August 2006, 15:36 GMT 16:36 UK
Grieving relatives have been taking part in a mass funeral in the southern Lebanese town of Qana for 28 people killed in an Israeli air strike.
Relatives carried pictures of loved ones who were killed on 30 July. Most were women and children taking refuge.
About 200,000 displaced people have returned to southern Lebanon and 107,000 who fled to Syria have now returned to the country, the UN says.
Israel has been withdrawing from southern Lebanon under a UN truce.
Defiance
It has expressed regret for the Qana raid, saying it would not have bombed the building if had it known civilians were inside.
It said it believed the building housed militants and accused Hezbollah of using civilians as human shields.
Two Hezbollah fighters were also killed in the air strike and were reportedly buried at another, undisclosed location on Friday, Associated Press news agency said.
Some mourners in Qana were defiant. One banner read: "These people are heroes. They woke up the world."
One mourner, Amal Chalhoub, told AP: "You can take a look at what's going on around us, all that has happened to us. We were not afraid, we have fighters. May God guard them."
An AFP news agency correspondent said three of the coffins were draped with Hezbollah flags and the rest with Lebanese national colours, as they were carried to the grave site in an open field.
"The Israelis are savages, they are heartless," Fatmeh Farhat, who lost several of her cousins, told the agency.
"They should fight against our combatants and not our children and our disabled people."
More than 1,000 Lebanese and about 160 Israelis were killed in the month-long conflict, sparked by the capture by Hezbollah on 12 July of two Israeli soldiers.
Lebanon has been slowly recovering as the Israelis withdraw.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees spokeswoman Jennifer Pagonis, said: "There has been a phenomenal return of the displaced Lebanese to their homes."
In addition to those returning to southern Lebanon, another 200,000 have returned to homes in the heavily bombed southern suburbs of Beirut, the UN said.
But on Friday, Lebanon's reconstruction chief, Al-Fadl Shalaq, told Reuters the Israeli bombardment had inflicted $3.6bn (£1.9bn) worth of damage on the country.
Cautious optimism
Lebanese troops have now reached the southern border with Israel - a jeep carrying a Lebanese flag made a symbolic pass a few metres from the border at Kfar Kila.
Israel says it has now withdrawn from two-thirds of its positions in southern Lebanon, including the port city of Tyre and villages of Qana, Hadatha and Beit Yahoun.
About 15,000 Lebanese troops are eventually expected to be deployed in the south, to be joined by another 15,000 from a UN force.
The UN has expressed cautious optimism that it can deploy an initial 3,500-strong force within two weeks.
But it accepts much work has to be done to meet that deadline.
A number of countries are calling for clearer guidance on the exact nature of the mission.
Grieving relatives have been taking part in a mass funeral in the southern Lebanese town of Qana for 28 people killed in an Israeli air strike.
Relatives carried pictures of loved ones who were killed on 30 July. Most were women and children taking refuge.
About 200,000 displaced people have returned to southern Lebanon and 107,000 who fled to Syria have now returned to the country, the UN says.
Israel has been withdrawing from southern Lebanon under a UN truce.
Defiance
It has expressed regret for the Qana raid, saying it would not have bombed the building if had it known civilians were inside.
It said it believed the building housed militants and accused Hezbollah of using civilians as human shields.
Two Hezbollah fighters were also killed in the air strike and were reportedly buried at another, undisclosed location on Friday, Associated Press news agency said.
Some mourners in Qana were defiant. One banner read: "These people are heroes. They woke up the world."
One mourner, Amal Chalhoub, told AP: "You can take a look at what's going on around us, all that has happened to us. We were not afraid, we have fighters. May God guard them."
An AFP news agency correspondent said three of the coffins were draped with Hezbollah flags and the rest with Lebanese national colours, as they were carried to the grave site in an open field.
"The Israelis are savages, they are heartless," Fatmeh Farhat, who lost several of her cousins, told the agency.
"They should fight against our combatants and not our children and our disabled people."
More than 1,000 Lebanese and about 160 Israelis were killed in the month-long conflict, sparked by the capture by Hezbollah on 12 July of two Israeli soldiers.
Lebanon has been slowly recovering as the Israelis withdraw.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees spokeswoman Jennifer Pagonis, said: "There has been a phenomenal return of the displaced Lebanese to their homes."
In addition to those returning to southern Lebanon, another 200,000 have returned to homes in the heavily bombed southern suburbs of Beirut, the UN said.
But on Friday, Lebanon's reconstruction chief, Al-Fadl Shalaq, told Reuters the Israeli bombardment had inflicted $3.6bn (£1.9bn) worth of damage on the country.
Cautious optimism
Lebanese troops have now reached the southern border with Israel - a jeep carrying a Lebanese flag made a symbolic pass a few metres from the border at Kfar Kila.
Israel says it has now withdrawn from two-thirds of its positions in southern Lebanon, including the port city of Tyre and villages of Qana, Hadatha and Beit Yahoun.
About 15,000 Lebanese troops are eventually expected to be deployed in the south, to be joined by another 15,000 from a UN force.
The UN has expressed cautious optimism that it can deploy an initial 3,500-strong force within two weeks.
But it accepts much work has to be done to meet that deadline.
A number of countries are calling for clearer guidance on the exact nature of the mission.
-
theone666
- Major [O-4]
- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
Lebanese Patrol Town on Israeli Border
KFAR KILA, Lebanon (Aug. 18) - The Lebanese army reached the country's southern border with Israel for the first time Friday, sending a sole jeep on patrol through this village, where Israeli forces pulled out of in 2000, ending an 18-year occupation.
The army jeep, flying a large Lebanese flag and carrying just two soldiers clad in green camouflage uniforms, passed by the Fatima Gate a few yards from the border in Kfar Kila but did not stop.
Villagers throwing rice and Hezbollah supporters holding banners have welcomed the country's army to the south after a nearly 40-year absence. About 15,000 troops are eventually supposed to deploy in the region under a peace plan aimed at securing an end to more than a month of fighting between Hezbollah guerrillas and Israel, but so far the troops have deployed mostly to predominantly Christian towns including Qleia and Marjayoun.
Overnight, Lebanese forces arrived in the largely Shiite Muslim village of Khiam in the same area, said Lebanese Brig. Gen. Charles Sheikhani.
Sheikhani said he would not deploy troops permanently to Kfar Kila until a border fence destroyed by invading Israeli troops last month was repaired and all Israeli troops there withdrew.
An Associated Press reporter visited the town Thursday and early Friday, however, and saw no Israeli troops. Residents in Kfar Kila said Israeli forces had already pulled out.
"Maybe today we'll patrol Kfar Kila, but if we deploy forces there, it doesn't mean we'll put soldiers in the village" to stay, Sheikhani said earlier Friday.
The army's 10th brigade has set up camps within a mile of the Israeli border - a key step toward taking control of the whole country for the first time since 1968 and a major demand of the U.N. resolution that so far has halted the fighting.
The deployment marks the first time the Lebanese army has moved in force to a region that was held by Palestinian guerrillas in the 1970s and by Hezbollah since Israeli troops withdrew from the area in 2000.
"We are all very happy," Sheikhani said. "It's our country, and this is the first time we've really been in south Lebanon."
Five days into a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah, there was still no firm date for a deployment of an enhanced international force that is supposed to expand to 15,000 troops and join an equal number of Lebanese soldiers.
The United Nations got pledges Thursday of 3,500 troops for the force, with Bangladesh making the largest offer of up to 2,000 troops. But France offered just 400, and Germany - uneasy given its Nazi past of any possible military confrontation with Israeli soldiers - said it wouldn't send any.
France was expected to lead the U.N. force, and its announcement of such a small number focused attention on its demands for a more explicit mandate, including when to use firepower, and could affect contributions by other countries.
Even though the Israel withdrawal and handover to U.N. forces has gone well thus far, some potential contributors are believed to be concerned about avoiding confrontation with Hezbollah or being caught in the middle of a future conflict.
The U.N. cease-fire resolution called for the force to keep the peace and disarm Hezbollah fighters south of the Litani River. However, the Lebanese government adopted a mandate Wednesday that requires confiscation of Hezbollah arms only if carried in public. It said nothing about the network of Hezbollah rocket bunkers across the 18-mile stretch between the river and the Israeli border.
The deep political divisions in Lebanon resurfaced with the head of the largest parliamentary bloc blasting both Israel and Syria in a fiery nationalistic speech to hundreds of supporters.
Saad Hariri, the leader of an independent, secular bloc that has opposed Syrian domination of Lebanon and is seen as an opponent of Hezbollah, accused Israel of "living off the blood" of Arabs and said Syrian President Bashar Assad was trying to sow strife in Lebanon. Syria and Iran are the main international backers of Hezbollah, a Shiite Muslim guerrilla group opposed to Israel.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev, when asked about Hariri's speech, said: "Too often in the Arab world, people think that political legitimacy is attained by bashing Israel."
At least 845 Lebanese were killed in the 34-day war: 743 civilians, 34 soldiers and 68 Hezbollah. Israel says it killed about 530 guerrillas. On the Israeli side, 157 were killed - 118 soldiers and 39 civilians, many from the 3,970 Hezbollah rocket strikes. The figures were compiled by The Associated Press, mostly from government officials on both sides.
In Beirut, the international airport reopened to commercial traffic for the first time Thursday since July 13, when it was attacked by Israeli warplanes and gunboats. A Middle East Airlines passenger jet touched down from Amman, Jordan, ending a 36-day Israeli blockade, and a Royal Jordanian flight followed soon after.
The Israeli military said it was coordinating the arrivals, and that the air blockade had not been lifted. But Middle East Airlines Chairman Mohammed Hout said the blockade was partially lifted to allow flights between Amman and Beirut. Airport officials said full commercial traffic could resume next week.
The area of Lebanon's border with Israel is in ruins. In the towns of Adaisse and Taibeh, south and west of Kfar Kila respectively, it was difficult to find a building that was not blackened, pockmarked by artillery or flattened altogether.
Wreckage was strewn through the streets, but new Hezbollah flags flapped in the wind over piles of rubble.
Sheikhani said Lebanese troops would assist in the reconstruction effort, but he gave no details.
2006-08-18 05:28:08
The army jeep, flying a large Lebanese flag and carrying just two soldiers clad in green camouflage uniforms, passed by the Fatima Gate a few yards from the border in Kfar Kila but did not stop.
Villagers throwing rice and Hezbollah supporters holding banners have welcomed the country's army to the south after a nearly 40-year absence. About 15,000 troops are eventually supposed to deploy in the region under a peace plan aimed at securing an end to more than a month of fighting between Hezbollah guerrillas and Israel, but so far the troops have deployed mostly to predominantly Christian towns including Qleia and Marjayoun.
Overnight, Lebanese forces arrived in the largely Shiite Muslim village of Khiam in the same area, said Lebanese Brig. Gen. Charles Sheikhani.
Sheikhani said he would not deploy troops permanently to Kfar Kila until a border fence destroyed by invading Israeli troops last month was repaired and all Israeli troops there withdrew.
An Associated Press reporter visited the town Thursday and early Friday, however, and saw no Israeli troops. Residents in Kfar Kila said Israeli forces had already pulled out.
"Maybe today we'll patrol Kfar Kila, but if we deploy forces there, it doesn't mean we'll put soldiers in the village" to stay, Sheikhani said earlier Friday.
The army's 10th brigade has set up camps within a mile of the Israeli border - a key step toward taking control of the whole country for the first time since 1968 and a major demand of the U.N. resolution that so far has halted the fighting.
The deployment marks the first time the Lebanese army has moved in force to a region that was held by Palestinian guerrillas in the 1970s and by Hezbollah since Israeli troops withdrew from the area in 2000.
"We are all very happy," Sheikhani said. "It's our country, and this is the first time we've really been in south Lebanon."
Five days into a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah, there was still no firm date for a deployment of an enhanced international force that is supposed to expand to 15,000 troops and join an equal number of Lebanese soldiers.
The United Nations got pledges Thursday of 3,500 troops for the force, with Bangladesh making the largest offer of up to 2,000 troops. But France offered just 400, and Germany - uneasy given its Nazi past of any possible military confrontation with Israeli soldiers - said it wouldn't send any.
France was expected to lead the U.N. force, and its announcement of such a small number focused attention on its demands for a more explicit mandate, including when to use firepower, and could affect contributions by other countries.
Even though the Israel withdrawal and handover to U.N. forces has gone well thus far, some potential contributors are believed to be concerned about avoiding confrontation with Hezbollah or being caught in the middle of a future conflict.
The U.N. cease-fire resolution called for the force to keep the peace and disarm Hezbollah fighters south of the Litani River. However, the Lebanese government adopted a mandate Wednesday that requires confiscation of Hezbollah arms only if carried in public. It said nothing about the network of Hezbollah rocket bunkers across the 18-mile stretch between the river and the Israeli border.
The deep political divisions in Lebanon resurfaced with the head of the largest parliamentary bloc blasting both Israel and Syria in a fiery nationalistic speech to hundreds of supporters.
Saad Hariri, the leader of an independent, secular bloc that has opposed Syrian domination of Lebanon and is seen as an opponent of Hezbollah, accused Israel of "living off the blood" of Arabs and said Syrian President Bashar Assad was trying to sow strife in Lebanon. Syria and Iran are the main international backers of Hezbollah, a Shiite Muslim guerrilla group opposed to Israel.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev, when asked about Hariri's speech, said: "Too often in the Arab world, people think that political legitimacy is attained by bashing Israel."
At least 845 Lebanese were killed in the 34-day war: 743 civilians, 34 soldiers and 68 Hezbollah. Israel says it killed about 530 guerrillas. On the Israeli side, 157 were killed - 118 soldiers and 39 civilians, many from the 3,970 Hezbollah rocket strikes. The figures were compiled by The Associated Press, mostly from government officials on both sides.
In Beirut, the international airport reopened to commercial traffic for the first time Thursday since July 13, when it was attacked by Israeli warplanes and gunboats. A Middle East Airlines passenger jet touched down from Amman, Jordan, ending a 36-day Israeli blockade, and a Royal Jordanian flight followed soon after.
The Israeli military said it was coordinating the arrivals, and that the air blockade had not been lifted. But Middle East Airlines Chairman Mohammed Hout said the blockade was partially lifted to allow flights between Amman and Beirut. Airport officials said full commercial traffic could resume next week.
The area of Lebanon's border with Israel is in ruins. In the towns of Adaisse and Taibeh, south and west of Kfar Kila respectively, it was difficult to find a building that was not blackened, pockmarked by artillery or flattened altogether.
Wreckage was strewn through the streets, but new Hezbollah flags flapped in the wind over piles of rubble.
Sheikhani said Lebanese troops would assist in the reconstruction effort, but he gave no details.
2006-08-18 05:28:08
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theone666
- Major [O-4]
- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
Fears over cluster bomb clean-up
Friday, 18 August 2006, 16:15 GMT 17:15 UK
Clearing unexploded Israeli cluster bombs from southern Lebanon could take 12 months, the head of the UN weapons clearance team there has told the BBC.
Chris Clark, head of the UN Mine Action Service in southern Lebanon, said 22 people have been injured, but none killed, while handling live munitions.
"Bomblets" have been already been found at 30 locations, but Mr Clark said he expected a final total of over 100.
Israel says all munitions it uses in conflict comply with international law.
But the New York-based group Human Rights Watch has accused Israel of acting outside the rules of war by firing cluster bombs into civilian areas.
Critics of cluster bombs say the relatively high numbers of unexploded bomblets can kill and maim long after conflict has ended.
All Israeli cluster bombs found in southern Lebanon were contained in artillery shells, the UN said, and were not dropped from planes overhead.
Lengthy task
Speaking to the BBC from Tyre, southern Lebanon, Mr Clark said UN mine clearance teams had inspected just 40% of sites known to have been hit by Israeli munitions during the recent conflict with Hezbollah.
"The picture is still emerging at the moment, but there is a general spread of these munitions throughout southern Lebanon," Mr Clark said.
The Mine Action Service had a presence in southern Lebanon long before this year's fighting, clearing mines and unexploded ordnance from previous conflicts.
But Mr Clark said the aftermath of the recent fighting had to take precedence over the search for mines laid during Israel's 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon.
"Now there is a whole new problem here. In terms of the new problem I would like to think that we could get it under control in six months and complete clearance in 12 months."
Legality questioned
Thousands of Lebanese have been returning to their homes to inspect damage caused by Israeli air strikes and clashes on the ground between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters.
Mine clearing teams in the area, as well as Human Rights Watch, have warned of the dangers of casualties as people clear rubble from homes and roads.
Mr Clark hopes further casualties can be minimised by telling people to stay away from the bomblets, which resemble the bulky batteries often used in torches.
The director of Human Rights Watch, Kenneth Roth, has warned that cluster bombs with high failure rates "effectively become anti-personnel landmines", and that their use in civilian areas breaks a legal ban on indiscriminate attacks.
In response, the Israeli military told the BBC: "All the weapons and munitions used by the Israel Defence Forces are legal under international law and their use conforms to international standards."
Clearing unexploded Israeli cluster bombs from southern Lebanon could take 12 months, the head of the UN weapons clearance team there has told the BBC.
Chris Clark, head of the UN Mine Action Service in southern Lebanon, said 22 people have been injured, but none killed, while handling live munitions.
"Bomblets" have been already been found at 30 locations, but Mr Clark said he expected a final total of over 100.
Israel says all munitions it uses in conflict comply with international law.
But the New York-based group Human Rights Watch has accused Israel of acting outside the rules of war by firing cluster bombs into civilian areas.
Critics of cluster bombs say the relatively high numbers of unexploded bomblets can kill and maim long after conflict has ended.
All Israeli cluster bombs found in southern Lebanon were contained in artillery shells, the UN said, and were not dropped from planes overhead.
Lengthy task
Speaking to the BBC from Tyre, southern Lebanon, Mr Clark said UN mine clearance teams had inspected just 40% of sites known to have been hit by Israeli munitions during the recent conflict with Hezbollah.
"The picture is still emerging at the moment, but there is a general spread of these munitions throughout southern Lebanon," Mr Clark said.
The Mine Action Service had a presence in southern Lebanon long before this year's fighting, clearing mines and unexploded ordnance from previous conflicts.
But Mr Clark said the aftermath of the recent fighting had to take precedence over the search for mines laid during Israel's 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon.
"Now there is a whole new problem here. In terms of the new problem I would like to think that we could get it under control in six months and complete clearance in 12 months."
Legality questioned
Thousands of Lebanese have been returning to their homes to inspect damage caused by Israeli air strikes and clashes on the ground between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters.
Mine clearing teams in the area, as well as Human Rights Watch, have warned of the dangers of casualties as people clear rubble from homes and roads.
Mr Clark hopes further casualties can be minimised by telling people to stay away from the bomblets, which resemble the bulky batteries often used in torches.
The director of Human Rights Watch, Kenneth Roth, has warned that cluster bombs with high failure rates "effectively become anti-personnel landmines", and that their use in civilian areas breaks a legal ban on indiscriminate attacks.
In response, the Israeli military told the BBC: "All the weapons and munitions used by the Israel Defence Forces are legal under international law and their use conforms to international standards."
-
theone666
- Major [O-4]
- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
UN plea for European peacekeepers
Saturday, 19 August 2006, 04:33 GMT 05:33 UK
The UN has urged European countries to come forward to contribute more troops for the peacekeeping force in Lebanon.
Deputy Secretary General Mark Malloch Brown thanked Asian nations for their firm commitment but added the force had to be "multilateral" in character.
The call came after Israel said it might be "inconceivable" to accept nations that denied its right to exist, such as Malaysia and Indonesia.
A 15,000-strong UN force is planned to police the truce in southern Lebanon.
Under the terms of the UN ceasefire resolution which ended the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the expanded UN force should work alongside about 15,000 Lebanese troops to keep the peace.
France has agreed to lead the force if its mandate concerns are but its immediate pledge of only 200 extra troops is far smaller than expected.
"There's been different signals coming out of France," US President George W Bush said.
"We hope they send more."
Two senior UN envoys, Vijay Nambiar and Terje Roed-Larsen, have arrived in Beirut for talks on how the UN-brokered truce is being implemented.
Heavy Israeli air activity over Hezbollah's Bekaa Valley heartland early on Saturday has been reported by Lebanese sources.
It was not immediately clear if any air strikes had been made.
'Prudent' force
Mr Malloch Brown said the commitment of troops by Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh and Nepal among others was "enormously helpful and a major contribution".
But he said the force should have a "multilateral character so that it enjoys the confidence of both sides".
French Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie warned that soldiers could not be told: "Look what's going on but you don't have the right to defend yourself or to shoot".
Mr Malloch Brown said the new force would not be "offensive", nor would it be asked to "attempt large-scale disarmament".
"Rather it is going to police the political agreement which triggers disarmament called for under the resolution," he said.
Use of force would only be exercised if combatants forcefully resisted a demand to disarm, Mr Malloch Brown said.
A 3,500-strong vanguard is planned to be in place in the next 10 days.
European powers have so far been reluctant to sign up but Italy on Friday confirmed it was approving sending troops to Lebanon.
Germany has offered a maritime task force. The UK and the US say they will provide logistical support.
Israeli UN envoy Dan Gillerman said earlier it would be "difficult if not inconceivable" to accept nations that did not recognise Israel's right to exist.
Mr Gillerman said Israel would be "very happy" to accept troops from Muslim countries they have friendly relations with.
Israel says it has now withdrawn from two-thirds of its positions in southern Lebanon, including the port city of Tyre and villages of Qana, Hadatha and Beit Yahoun.
Refugees return
Lebanese troops have reached the southern border with Israel - a vehicle carrying a Lebanese flag made a symbolic pass a few metres from the border at Kfar Kila.
The UN says 400,000 people have returned to homes in the south and in the heavily bombed southern suburbs of Beirut.
Lebanese President Emile Lahoud has praised what he called the victory of Hezbollah against Israel in a televised address to the nation.
He said he saluted Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah "who willed this victory to be a victory for all Lebanese and all the Arab peoples".
At his presidential retreat in Camp David, Mr Bush again condemned Hezbollah as a "force of instability".
"Sometimes it takes people awhile to come to the sober realisation of what forces create stability and what don't," he said.
The UN has urged European countries to come forward to contribute more troops for the peacekeeping force in Lebanon.
Deputy Secretary General Mark Malloch Brown thanked Asian nations for their firm commitment but added the force had to be "multilateral" in character.
The call came after Israel said it might be "inconceivable" to accept nations that denied its right to exist, such as Malaysia and Indonesia.
A 15,000-strong UN force is planned to police the truce in southern Lebanon.
Under the terms of the UN ceasefire resolution which ended the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the expanded UN force should work alongside about 15,000 Lebanese troops to keep the peace.
France has agreed to lead the force if its mandate concerns are but its immediate pledge of only 200 extra troops is far smaller than expected.
"There's been different signals coming out of France," US President George W Bush said.
"We hope they send more."
Two senior UN envoys, Vijay Nambiar and Terje Roed-Larsen, have arrived in Beirut for talks on how the UN-brokered truce is being implemented.
Heavy Israeli air activity over Hezbollah's Bekaa Valley heartland early on Saturday has been reported by Lebanese sources.
It was not immediately clear if any air strikes had been made.
'Prudent' force
Mr Malloch Brown said the commitment of troops by Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh and Nepal among others was "enormously helpful and a major contribution".
But he said the force should have a "multilateral character so that it enjoys the confidence of both sides".
French Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie warned that soldiers could not be told: "Look what's going on but you don't have the right to defend yourself or to shoot".
Mr Malloch Brown said the new force would not be "offensive", nor would it be asked to "attempt large-scale disarmament".
"Rather it is going to police the political agreement which triggers disarmament called for under the resolution," he said.
Use of force would only be exercised if combatants forcefully resisted a demand to disarm, Mr Malloch Brown said.
A 3,500-strong vanguard is planned to be in place in the next 10 days.
European powers have so far been reluctant to sign up but Italy on Friday confirmed it was approving sending troops to Lebanon.
Germany has offered a maritime task force. The UK and the US say they will provide logistical support.
Israeli UN envoy Dan Gillerman said earlier it would be "difficult if not inconceivable" to accept nations that did not recognise Israel's right to exist.
Mr Gillerman said Israel would be "very happy" to accept troops from Muslim countries they have friendly relations with.
Israel says it has now withdrawn from two-thirds of its positions in southern Lebanon, including the port city of Tyre and villages of Qana, Hadatha and Beit Yahoun.
Refugees return
Lebanese troops have reached the southern border with Israel - a vehicle carrying a Lebanese flag made a symbolic pass a few metres from the border at Kfar Kila.
The UN says 400,000 people have returned to homes in the south and in the heavily bombed southern suburbs of Beirut.
Lebanese President Emile Lahoud has praised what he called the victory of Hezbollah against Israel in a televised address to the nation.
He said he saluted Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah "who willed this victory to be a victory for all Lebanese and all the Arab peoples".
At his presidential retreat in Camp David, Mr Bush again condemned Hezbollah as a "force of instability".
"Sometimes it takes people awhile to come to the sober realisation of what forces create stability and what don't," he said.
-
theone666
- Major [O-4]
- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
Annan pleads for Lebanon troops
Saturday, 19 August 2006, 06:45 GMT 07:45 UK
UN chief Kofi Annan has made a strong plea to member states to provide troops for a peacekeeping force in Lebanon.
A week after a UN ceasefire resolution was passed, Mr Annan said the situation on the ground was still "fragile".
He urged Israel immediately to lift its air and sea blockade on Lebanon so aid could be delivered quickly.
The ceasefire has largely held, but Lebanese military sources said Israel staged a raid in the Bekaa Valley on Saturday. Israel has not commented.
Reports on Hezbollah's TV station say Israeli commandos were flown into the area, some 100km (60 miles) north of the Israeli border, but were repulsed by Hezbollah fighters. Israeli missile strikes in the area were also reported.
If the reports are confirmed, they will constitute the first major incident between the two sides since the UN-brokered ceasefire came into effect on Monday.
European call
As efforts continue to build a UN peace force, senior officials have urged Europe to pledge more troops.
Israel has said it may be "inconceivable" to accept nations that denied its right to exist, such as Malaysia and Indonesia, as part of the planned 15,000-strong force for south Lebanon.
While thanking Asian nations for their firm commitment, UN Deputy Secretary General Mark Malloch Brown said the force had to be "multilateral" in character.
Two senior UN envoys, Vijay Nambiar and Terje Roed-Larsen, have arrived in Beirut for talks on how the UN-brokered truce is being implemented.
When the UN Security Council agreed the ceasefire resolution last week, Mr Annan promised to report back on progress within seven days.
His update is cautiously positive, the BBC's Mike Sergeant reports from UN headquarters in New York.
Mr Annan says only a handful of violations of the ceasefire have been observed and he praises what he describes as "the constructive efforts" of both the Lebanese and Israeli armies in upholding their obligations.
But he warns that the overall situation remains "fragile" and he strongly appeals to member-states to provide emergency reinforcements for the UN peacekeeping operation.
The UN has been struggling to persuade Europeans to provide the bulk of an initial deployment of 3,500 troops to go in by 2 September, our correspondent says.
France has agreed to lead the force but its immediate pledge of only 200 extra troops is far smaller than expected.
French Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie has stressed that the troops must have clear rules of engagement.
Mr Malloch Brown said the expanded UN force in Lebanon would not be "offensive", nor would it be asked to "attempt large-scale disarmament".
"Rather it is going to police the political agreement which triggers disarmament called for under the resolution," he said.
Refugees return
Lebanese troops have reached the southern border with Israel - a vehicle carrying a Lebanese flag made a symbolic pass a few metres from the border at Kfar Kila.
The UN says 400,000 people have returned to homes in the south and in the heavily bombed southern suburbs of Beirut.
Lebanese President Emile Lahoud has praised what he called the victory of Hezbollah against Israel in a televised address to the nation.
He said he saluted Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah "who willed this victory to be a victory for all Lebanese and all the Arab peoples".
At his presidential retreat in Camp David, President George W Bush again condemned Hezbollah as a "force of instability".
"Sometimes it takes people awhile to come to the sober realisation of what forces create stability and what don't," he said.
UN chief Kofi Annan has made a strong plea to member states to provide troops for a peacekeeping force in Lebanon.
A week after a UN ceasefire resolution was passed, Mr Annan said the situation on the ground was still "fragile".
He urged Israel immediately to lift its air and sea blockade on Lebanon so aid could be delivered quickly.
The ceasefire has largely held, but Lebanese military sources said Israel staged a raid in the Bekaa Valley on Saturday. Israel has not commented.
Reports on Hezbollah's TV station say Israeli commandos were flown into the area, some 100km (60 miles) north of the Israeli border, but were repulsed by Hezbollah fighters. Israeli missile strikes in the area were also reported.
If the reports are confirmed, they will constitute the first major incident between the two sides since the UN-brokered ceasefire came into effect on Monday.
European call
As efforts continue to build a UN peace force, senior officials have urged Europe to pledge more troops.
Israel has said it may be "inconceivable" to accept nations that denied its right to exist, such as Malaysia and Indonesia, as part of the planned 15,000-strong force for south Lebanon.
While thanking Asian nations for their firm commitment, UN Deputy Secretary General Mark Malloch Brown said the force had to be "multilateral" in character.
Two senior UN envoys, Vijay Nambiar and Terje Roed-Larsen, have arrived in Beirut for talks on how the UN-brokered truce is being implemented.
When the UN Security Council agreed the ceasefire resolution last week, Mr Annan promised to report back on progress within seven days.
His update is cautiously positive, the BBC's Mike Sergeant reports from UN headquarters in New York.
Mr Annan says only a handful of violations of the ceasefire have been observed and he praises what he describes as "the constructive efforts" of both the Lebanese and Israeli armies in upholding their obligations.
But he warns that the overall situation remains "fragile" and he strongly appeals to member-states to provide emergency reinforcements for the UN peacekeeping operation.
The UN has been struggling to persuade Europeans to provide the bulk of an initial deployment of 3,500 troops to go in by 2 September, our correspondent says.
France has agreed to lead the force but its immediate pledge of only 200 extra troops is far smaller than expected.
French Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie has stressed that the troops must have clear rules of engagement.
Mr Malloch Brown said the expanded UN force in Lebanon would not be "offensive", nor would it be asked to "attempt large-scale disarmament".
"Rather it is going to police the political agreement which triggers disarmament called for under the resolution," he said.
Refugees return
Lebanese troops have reached the southern border with Israel - a vehicle carrying a Lebanese flag made a symbolic pass a few metres from the border at Kfar Kila.
The UN says 400,000 people have returned to homes in the south and in the heavily bombed southern suburbs of Beirut.
Lebanese President Emile Lahoud has praised what he called the victory of Hezbollah against Israel in a televised address to the nation.
He said he saluted Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah "who willed this victory to be a victory for all Lebanese and all the Arab peoples".
At his presidential retreat in Camp David, President George W Bush again condemned Hezbollah as a "force of instability".
"Sometimes it takes people awhile to come to the sober realisation of what forces create stability and what don't," he said.
-
theone666
- Major [O-4]
- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
Israel mounts fresh Lebanon raid
Saturday, 19 August 2006, 11:13 GMT 12:13 UK
Israel carried out an overnight raid inside Lebanon aimed at disrupting an arms transfer, the Israeli army says.
One soldier died and two were injured in the Bekaa Valley operation, it said. Lebanese sources earlier told Reuters agency that three militants also died.
The incident came hours after UN chief Kofi Annan warned of a "fragile" situation on the ground.
Meanwhile, 50 French troops arrived in the Lebanese port of Naqoura, the first soldiers to bolster the UN force.
They are among 200 extra troops promised by France, as the UN struggles to build its force.
The UN wants 3,500 troops on the ground speedily, to be expanded later to 15,000. It says it is disappointed with the French contribution and wants other European nations to offer more help too.
Israel's fresh operation inside Lebanon came five days after a UN-brokered ceasefire ended the month-long conflict.
Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said the Israeli raid was a naked violation of the ceasefire.
The Israeli army said the raid was to prevent arms being delivered to Hezbollah by Iran and Syria.
"Israeli army special forces operated deep inside Lebanon last night to foil terrorist operations against Israel," an army spokesman told AFP news agency.
He added that "all goals were achieved".
Hezbollah reports
Reports on Hezbollah's TV station said Israeli commandos and two vehicles were flown into the area, some 100km (60 miles) north of the Israeli border, by helicopter.
The reports said they were driven back by Hezbollah fighters. Israeli missile strikes in the area were also reported.
The operation centred on the village of Bodai, west of the city of Baalbek.
The BBC's Jon Leyne at the scene says no-one there is quite sure what the target was, but speculation locally is that the Israelis may have been trying to capture a senior Hezbollah figure who lives in the village.
It is the first major incident between the two sides since the ceasefire came into effect.
The incident is not being seen in Israel as any sort of breakdown of the ceasefire, but a reinforcement of it, says the BBC's Rob Norris in Jerusalem.
The resolution said Israel should end all offensive military action and Hezbollah should end all attacks.
Israel has it will continue to carry out such actions until an expanded international military force is in place to prevent Hezbollah's re-armament.
Lebanese movements
Earlier Lebanese troops reached the southern border with Israel, where a vehicle carrying a Lebanese flag made a symbolic pass a few metres from the border at Kfar Kila.
The UN says 400,000 people have returned to homes in the south and in the heavily bombed southern suburbs of Beirut.
Pro-Syrian Lebanese President Emile Lahoud has praised what he called the victory of Hezbollah against Israel in a televised address to the nation.
He said he saluted Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah "who willed this victory to be a victory for all Lebanese and all the Arab peoples".
At his presidential retreat in Camp David, President George W Bush again condemned Hezbollah as a "force of instability".
"Sometimes it takes people awhile to come to the sober realisation of what forces create stability and what don't," he said.
In a separate development, an Israeli soldier was shot dead by a Palestinian gunman in the West Bank, the army said.
The incident happened near the city of Nablus, when militants opened fire from a car, one report said.
Israel carried out an overnight raid inside Lebanon aimed at disrupting an arms transfer, the Israeli army says.
One soldier died and two were injured in the Bekaa Valley operation, it said. Lebanese sources earlier told Reuters agency that three militants also died.
The incident came hours after UN chief Kofi Annan warned of a "fragile" situation on the ground.
Meanwhile, 50 French troops arrived in the Lebanese port of Naqoura, the first soldiers to bolster the UN force.
They are among 200 extra troops promised by France, as the UN struggles to build its force.
The UN wants 3,500 troops on the ground speedily, to be expanded later to 15,000. It says it is disappointed with the French contribution and wants other European nations to offer more help too.
Israel's fresh operation inside Lebanon came five days after a UN-brokered ceasefire ended the month-long conflict.
Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said the Israeli raid was a naked violation of the ceasefire.
The Israeli army said the raid was to prevent arms being delivered to Hezbollah by Iran and Syria.
"Israeli army special forces operated deep inside Lebanon last night to foil terrorist operations against Israel," an army spokesman told AFP news agency.
He added that "all goals were achieved".
Hezbollah reports
Reports on Hezbollah's TV station said Israeli commandos and two vehicles were flown into the area, some 100km (60 miles) north of the Israeli border, by helicopter.
The reports said they were driven back by Hezbollah fighters. Israeli missile strikes in the area were also reported.
The operation centred on the village of Bodai, west of the city of Baalbek.
The BBC's Jon Leyne at the scene says no-one there is quite sure what the target was, but speculation locally is that the Israelis may have been trying to capture a senior Hezbollah figure who lives in the village.
It is the first major incident between the two sides since the ceasefire came into effect.
The incident is not being seen in Israel as any sort of breakdown of the ceasefire, but a reinforcement of it, says the BBC's Rob Norris in Jerusalem.
The resolution said Israel should end all offensive military action and Hezbollah should end all attacks.
Israel has it will continue to carry out such actions until an expanded international military force is in place to prevent Hezbollah's re-armament.
Lebanese movements
Earlier Lebanese troops reached the southern border with Israel, where a vehicle carrying a Lebanese flag made a symbolic pass a few metres from the border at Kfar Kila.
The UN says 400,000 people have returned to homes in the south and in the heavily bombed southern suburbs of Beirut.
Pro-Syrian Lebanese President Emile Lahoud has praised what he called the victory of Hezbollah against Israel in a televised address to the nation.
He said he saluted Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah "who willed this victory to be a victory for all Lebanese and all the Arab peoples".
At his presidential retreat in Camp David, President George W Bush again condemned Hezbollah as a "force of instability".
"Sometimes it takes people awhile to come to the sober realisation of what forces create stability and what don't," he said.
In a separate development, an Israeli soldier was shot dead by a Palestinian gunman in the West Bank, the army said.
The incident happened near the city of Nablus, when militants opened fire from a car, one report said.
-
theone666
- Major [O-4]
- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
Israeli Raid on Lebanon Tests U.N. Truce
By Nadim Ladki, Reuters
BEIRUT (Aug. 19) - Helicopter-borne Israeli commandos raided a Hezbollah bastion in eastern Lebanon on Saturday in the first major attack since a U.N.-backed truce halted Israel's 34-day war with the Shi'ite Muslim group.
Lebanese security sources said three Hezbollah guerillas were killed in a firefight. The Israeli army said it had suffered one dead and two wounded.
The security sources said commandos in two vehicles unloaded from helicopters were on their way to attack an office of senior Hezbollah official Sheikh Mohammed Yazbek in the village of Bodai when they were intercepted. After the gunbattle, the Israelis pulled out under cover of fierce air strikes.
Israel said the raid aimed to disrupt arms supplies to Hizbollah from Syria and Iran. Both deny arming the group.
"Special forces carried out an operation to disrupt terror actions against Israel with an emphasis on the transfer of munitions from Syria and Iran to Hezbollah," Israel's army said.
Bodai is 9miles northwest of the ancient city of Baalbek and 16 miles from the Syrian border.
The Israeli raid coincided with a Lebanese army drive to tighten its grip on the border with Syria. Thousands of troops deployed on the eastern border on Saturday, security sources said. Hundreds deployed on the northern frontier on Friday.
Nevertheless, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said continued Hizbollah arms shipments and the absence of Lebanese and international troops on the border had made the raid necessary.
"The ceasefire in Lebanon is based on U.N. Security Council resolution 1701 which calls for a total international arms embargo on Hizbollah," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev.
"Israel reserves the right to act in order to enforce the spirit of the resolution."
LEBANESE COMPLAINT
Lebanese Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh said he had complained about the assault to U.N. envoys Terje Roed-Larsen and Vijay Nambiar during talks in Beirut about the truce.
"We asked them to convey a question to Israel: how is it going to stick by resolution 1701 while it is trying to breach it at any moment?" Salloukh told reporters.
The resolution adopted on August 11 ordered a "cessation of hostilities" that took effect on Monday, halting a war in which at least 1,183 people in Lebanon and 157 Israelis were killed.
It ordered Israel to end "all offensive military actions" and Hizbollah to end all attacks. It also called for an embargo on arms supplies not authorized by the Lebanese government and for the deployment of the Lebanese army in the south alongside a strengthened UNIFIL, the U.N. peacekeeping force in the area.
Fifty French military engineers arrived at UNIFIL's main base in Naqoura on the south Lebanese coast, the first contingent of reinforcements since the war.
The engineers were among 200 pledged by France, which has disappointed U.N. and U.S. hopes that it would form the backbone of the expanded U.N. force to supervise the truce, support the Lebanese army and monitor the withdrawal of Israeli troops.
The United States urged France on Friday to increase its contingent and the United Nations appealed for Europeans to contribute to the force to create a balance between Western and Muslim troops acceptable to Israel and Lebanon.
The United Nations wants to field an advance force of 3,500 troops by September 2 and the entire complement of 13,000 extra troops by November 4, as authorized by the U.N. resolution.
The Lebanese army began deploying in the south on Thursday. Hizbollah fighters have lain low, without relinquishing their weapons, including the rockets they rained on Israel in the war.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan urged Israel and Lebanon to make "painful compromises" to win the release of captured Israeli soldiers and settle the issue of Lebanese prisoners.
The war began after Hizbollah snatched two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid on July 12, saying it wanted to trade them for Lebanese and Arab prisoners held in Israel.
Last week's U.N. resolution called for the unconditional release of the two Israelis and urgently encouraged efforts at settling the issue of Lebanese prisoners in Israel.
In the occupied West Bank, Israel seized Palestinian Deputy Prime Minister Naser al-Shaer of the ruling Hamas militant group at his home on Saturday, his wife and two legislators said.
A Palestinian gunman shot dead an Israeli soldier in the West Bank on Saturday, the Israeli army said.
Israel has taken more than two dozen Hamas lawmakers and several other cabinet ministers into custody since late June, after it launched an offensive in response to the capture of a soldier in a cross-border raid from the Gaza Strip.
8/19/2006 06:28 EDT
BEIRUT (Aug. 19) - Helicopter-borne Israeli commandos raided a Hezbollah bastion in eastern Lebanon on Saturday in the first major attack since a U.N.-backed truce halted Israel's 34-day war with the Shi'ite Muslim group.
Lebanese security sources said three Hezbollah guerillas were killed in a firefight. The Israeli army said it had suffered one dead and two wounded.
The security sources said commandos in two vehicles unloaded from helicopters were on their way to attack an office of senior Hezbollah official Sheikh Mohammed Yazbek in the village of Bodai when they were intercepted. After the gunbattle, the Israelis pulled out under cover of fierce air strikes.
Israel said the raid aimed to disrupt arms supplies to Hizbollah from Syria and Iran. Both deny arming the group.
"Special forces carried out an operation to disrupt terror actions against Israel with an emphasis on the transfer of munitions from Syria and Iran to Hezbollah," Israel's army said.
Bodai is 9miles northwest of the ancient city of Baalbek and 16 miles from the Syrian border.
The Israeli raid coincided with a Lebanese army drive to tighten its grip on the border with Syria. Thousands of troops deployed on the eastern border on Saturday, security sources said. Hundreds deployed on the northern frontier on Friday.
Nevertheless, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said continued Hizbollah arms shipments and the absence of Lebanese and international troops on the border had made the raid necessary.
"The ceasefire in Lebanon is based on U.N. Security Council resolution 1701 which calls for a total international arms embargo on Hizbollah," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev.
"Israel reserves the right to act in order to enforce the spirit of the resolution."
LEBANESE COMPLAINT
Lebanese Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh said he had complained about the assault to U.N. envoys Terje Roed-Larsen and Vijay Nambiar during talks in Beirut about the truce.
"We asked them to convey a question to Israel: how is it going to stick by resolution 1701 while it is trying to breach it at any moment?" Salloukh told reporters.
The resolution adopted on August 11 ordered a "cessation of hostilities" that took effect on Monday, halting a war in which at least 1,183 people in Lebanon and 157 Israelis were killed.
It ordered Israel to end "all offensive military actions" and Hizbollah to end all attacks. It also called for an embargo on arms supplies not authorized by the Lebanese government and for the deployment of the Lebanese army in the south alongside a strengthened UNIFIL, the U.N. peacekeeping force in the area.
Fifty French military engineers arrived at UNIFIL's main base in Naqoura on the south Lebanese coast, the first contingent of reinforcements since the war.
The engineers were among 200 pledged by France, which has disappointed U.N. and U.S. hopes that it would form the backbone of the expanded U.N. force to supervise the truce, support the Lebanese army and monitor the withdrawal of Israeli troops.
The United States urged France on Friday to increase its contingent and the United Nations appealed for Europeans to contribute to the force to create a balance between Western and Muslim troops acceptable to Israel and Lebanon.
The United Nations wants to field an advance force of 3,500 troops by September 2 and the entire complement of 13,000 extra troops by November 4, as authorized by the U.N. resolution.
The Lebanese army began deploying in the south on Thursday. Hizbollah fighters have lain low, without relinquishing their weapons, including the rockets they rained on Israel in the war.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan urged Israel and Lebanon to make "painful compromises" to win the release of captured Israeli soldiers and settle the issue of Lebanese prisoners.
The war began after Hizbollah snatched two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid on July 12, saying it wanted to trade them for Lebanese and Arab prisoners held in Israel.
Last week's U.N. resolution called for the unconditional release of the two Israelis and urgently encouraged efforts at settling the issue of Lebanese prisoners in Israel.
In the occupied West Bank, Israel seized Palestinian Deputy Prime Minister Naser al-Shaer of the ruling Hamas militant group at his home on Saturday, his wife and two legislators said.
A Palestinian gunman shot dead an Israeli soldier in the West Bank on Saturday, the Israeli army said.
Israel has taken more than two dozen Hamas lawmakers and several other cabinet ministers into custody since late June, after it launched an offensive in response to the capture of a soldier in a cross-border raid from the Gaza Strip.
8/19/2006 06:28 EDT
-
theone666
- Major [O-4]
- Posts: 1434
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:00 am
Beirut fury at 'ceasefire breach'
Saturday, 19 August 2006, 17:10 GMT 18:10 UK
Lebanese PM Fouad Siniora has accused Israel of a "naked violation" of the five-day-old ceasefire, after a raid by Israeli commandos deep inside Lebanon.
The raid, in the eastern Bekaa Valley, left one Israeli dead and two injured.
Israel said it was trying to disrupt the movement of weapons from Iran and Syria to Hezbollah, and insisted the ceasefire was still intact.
But Lebanon's defence minister said he might suspend his army's deployment in the south if the UN failed to respond.
The Israeli raid centred on the village of Bodai, west of the city of Baalbek, some 100km (60 miles) north of the Israeli border.
It is the first incident of its kind since the ceasefire came into effect.
Lebanese warning
Lebanese Defence Minister Elias al-Murr said that if the UN failed to give "clear answers" in response to the raid, "I might be forced to ask the cabinet early next week to halt the army deployment in the south".
A visiting UN envoy, Terje Roed Larsen, told the BBC that he would not pre-judge the raid, but described it as unhelpful to the peace process.
Israeli helicopters are believed to have dropped off the commandos and two vehicles during the night.
The Israelis seem to have met more resistance than they expected, with one local fighter describing a gun battle lasting more than two hours, says the BBC's Jon Leyne at the scene.
Two helicopters landed in a cornfield and took away the soldiers, while Israeli fighter jets circled overhead, witnesses say.
There is speculation locally that the Israelis may have been trying to capture a senior Hezbollah figure who lives in the village, our correspondent adds.
Lebanese sources earlier told Reuters agency that three militants died in the incident.
In Beirut, the raid prompted an angry response from Mr Siniora.
"It is a naked violation of the cessation of hostilities declared by the Security Council," he told reporters.
He said a complaint had been made to visiting UN envoys about the operation.
But Israel insisted it had not breached the ceasefire.
"We had specific information of arms transfers taking place and we acted to prevent that violation, so that violation is not from the Israeli side - we were responding to a violation of the resolution by Hezbollah," said Israeli spokesman Mark Regev.
Israel has said it will continue to carry out such actions until an expanded international military force is in place to prevent Hezbollah's rearmament.
UN mission
The resolution which stopped the conflict said Israel should end all offensive military action and Hezbollah should end all attacks.
It also called for a halt to all unauthorised arms deliveries to Lebanon.
Fifty French troops arrived in the Lebanese port of Naqoura on Saturday, the first soldiers to bolster the UN peacekeeping force.
They are among 200 extra troops promised by France, as the UN struggles to build its expanded force.
The UN wants 3,500 troops on the ground by the end of August, to be increased later to 15,000. It says it is disappointed with the French contribution and wants other European nations to offer more help too.
Lebanese PM Fouad Siniora has accused Israel of a "naked violation" of the five-day-old ceasefire, after a raid by Israeli commandos deep inside Lebanon.
The raid, in the eastern Bekaa Valley, left one Israeli dead and two injured.
Israel said it was trying to disrupt the movement of weapons from Iran and Syria to Hezbollah, and insisted the ceasefire was still intact.
But Lebanon's defence minister said he might suspend his army's deployment in the south if the UN failed to respond.
The Israeli raid centred on the village of Bodai, west of the city of Baalbek, some 100km (60 miles) north of the Israeli border.
It is the first incident of its kind since the ceasefire came into effect.
Lebanese warning
Lebanese Defence Minister Elias al-Murr said that if the UN failed to give "clear answers" in response to the raid, "I might be forced to ask the cabinet early next week to halt the army deployment in the south".
A visiting UN envoy, Terje Roed Larsen, told the BBC that he would not pre-judge the raid, but described it as unhelpful to the peace process.
Israeli helicopters are believed to have dropped off the commandos and two vehicles during the night.
The Israelis seem to have met more resistance than they expected, with one local fighter describing a gun battle lasting more than two hours, says the BBC's Jon Leyne at the scene.
Two helicopters landed in a cornfield and took away the soldiers, while Israeli fighter jets circled overhead, witnesses say.
There is speculation locally that the Israelis may have been trying to capture a senior Hezbollah figure who lives in the village, our correspondent adds.
Lebanese sources earlier told Reuters agency that three militants died in the incident.
In Beirut, the raid prompted an angry response from Mr Siniora.
"It is a naked violation of the cessation of hostilities declared by the Security Council," he told reporters.
He said a complaint had been made to visiting UN envoys about the operation.
But Israel insisted it had not breached the ceasefire.
"We had specific information of arms transfers taking place and we acted to prevent that violation, so that violation is not from the Israeli side - we were responding to a violation of the resolution by Hezbollah," said Israeli spokesman Mark Regev.
Israel has said it will continue to carry out such actions until an expanded international military force is in place to prevent Hezbollah's rearmament.
UN mission
The resolution which stopped the conflict said Israel should end all offensive military action and Hezbollah should end all attacks.
It also called for a halt to all unauthorised arms deliveries to Lebanon.
Fifty French troops arrived in the Lebanese port of Naqoura on Saturday, the first soldiers to bolster the UN peacekeeping force.
They are among 200 extra troops promised by France, as the UN struggles to build its expanded force.
The UN wants 3,500 troops on the ground by the end of August, to be increased later to 15,000. It says it is disappointed with the French contribution and wants other European nations to offer more help too.