11:50 July 12th. Until Israel declares its intentions, there's little hard news coming out of the region. At 11:15 p.m. (EDT), CNN reported live that Israel had declared all of Lebanon a target. At 11:45 p.m., a CNN reporter said that Beirut was under attack, including the airport, which is now apparently closed.
CNN also had reports from Gaza, where Israel has stepped up its military action. Their reporter said that opinion is divided between those who are celebrating the attacks on Israel and those who are exhausted, frustrated, and just want it all to end.
Israel's problems, however, may get more serious. WorldNet Daily reported late tonight that Abu Oudai of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades in Judea and Samarai (the West Bank) in an exclusive interview said that "Palestinian rockets will now also be launched regularly on the other side of the country aimed at Jewish communities a few miles from Tel Aviv and Jerusalem." He added that major Israeli cities would become targets of terrorist rockets, hinting that they were getting help from Iran, Syria, and Hezbollah.
"Our goal is to cover all Israeli regions and to bring them inside the distance of our rockets," he said.
On the international front, U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormick issued a stronger statement. "This was an unprovoked attack. This was an attack on soldiers who are on Israeli territory, Israeli soil, by a terrorist organization," he said, adding that Hezbollah was taking this opportunity to try to increase hostility in the region, and in the process is dragging the Lebanese people into a situation that is not in their interest.
"It is a cynical attempt to provoke a reaction. It's a cynical attempt to try to escalate tensions in a region where tensions are already high as a result of the acts of Hamas, another terrorist group," he said. "So we would call upon all interested countries to do everything that they can to help secure the release not only of the soldier held by Hamas but the two soldiers now held by Hezbollah."
U.S. National Security Council spokesman Frederick Jones added, "This is a terrorist attack and it is clearly timed to exacerbate already high tensions in the region and sow further violence. We also hold Syria and Iran - which directly support Hezbollah - responsible for this attack and for the ensuing violence."Syrian Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa denied any involvement by his country, blaming Israel for its occupation of the territories.
Article comments
1 - gazelle
israel has gone mad, simply. Its overall strategy is reverting to jerk-reactions. It will have to reverse everything it is doing now, and will also regret doing it.
hezbollah is not an underground party. neither is hamas. they are both lilitant AND political and regularly elect member of parliaments to the PA and the Lebanese parliament respectively. One can only imagine what israel would do to the palestinians and the lebanese had they not been militant out of necessity. Isreal on that account is massively nuclearly militant. what a comparison.
In 2000, in a prisoner swap 550 prisoners were exchanged for bodies of 3 israeli solders who had died in fighting with the hezbollah who are LEBANESE!
best
2 - Ruvy in Jerusalem
Mark,
Very god job and better written than my piece by far - and you picked up on the important piece about Abu Oudai. Aside from hard news all the rest you read is just trash.
Sorry I didn't call you. I was already asleep when you contacted me by e-mail. Didn't see your e-mail till this morning, way too late. Thanks though. I appreciate it.
There is an update in Pending
3 - Ruvy in Jerusalem
Gazelle,
Israel has not gone mad - we've gone to war. I regret to say that we are under the wrong leaders and in many instances we are attacking the wrong targets, but the IDF has finally been unleashed to do its job of defending Israel, instead of beating up Jews who want to live in their homeland. That is still being done too, unfortunately, but not by the IDF. They're busy with more important tasks, thank G-d.
4 - gazelle
Ruvy in Gruvy
I think you've described madness perfectly (from your point of view). I mean thats what it looks like.
best :)
5 - Bliffle
Gazelle:
And who, in your opinion, is not pursuing insane middle east policies?
6 - gazelle
no one is, as far as i can see, at the moment.
7 - malcontent
Ruvy and other israelis are already salivating at the thought of dead arabs. There will be an orgy of killing in the next few weeks and eventually israel will declare victory and pull out (they are far more pragmatic then the we are).
One hopes that the bloodlust of the israelis will be satiated for a few more years by this action but of course that probably won't happen.
In the mean time the so called civilized west stands by helplessly wringing their hands and murmuring about inappriate responses. They have been brought to their knees by this tiny nation who is immune to all international law and the UN thanks to it's massive attack dog.
God is the root of all this evil. Renounce god and start acting like civilized people.
8 - Bliffle
"no one is, as far as i can see, at the moment."
Are you joking?
9 - mschannon
Malcontent, I politely suggest you read a little history before offering comments that make no sense. Here's a test: Other than Egypt and Jordan, name one other Arab country that doesn't have as it's goal the destruction of Israel?
Stumpted. There aren't any. If you were surrounded by people trying to kill you and your family, what would you do? Ask them to be nice.
In Decaf Veritas
10 - Christopher Rose
Mark, I decided to follow your advice and refresh my understanding of the history of the conflict. The following comes from the first result of a google search, which is from a site I'm unfamiliar with called MidEastWeb.org
11 - gazelle
#10 thanks for straitening things out. that is a good site ive been seeing for 5 yrs now.
best
12 - gonzo marx
ok...i've been out of this for a while, but i HAVE to get out some Thoughts...
i put this in another Thread on the Topic, but feel it needs to be spread around a bit as another Analysis on the Insanity happening now in the region...
building on comment #10 above...
-might i note some Facts that everyone here, from either "gang" seem to agree on at least....
Hizballah + Hamas started fucking with Israel
Hizballah is a legally elected part of the Lebanese government
Hamas controls the legally elected Palestinian government
both Hizballah and Hamas receive financial backing (at least) from Iran
besides the human Tragedy of this Conflict (total deaths of innocents from all sides, captured soldiers, collateral deaths from war-damage to infrastructure, etc) we see the clear evidence of smoething unmistakable which no one appears to have pointed out...
these democratically elected groups (Hamas and Hizballah), have entered into a sectarian War of Agression
so much for the hypothesis that bringing "democracy" to the Middle East would be the panacea to the regions Problems
and it raises a Question...
there are many Signs that Iraq could go along a similar theocratic Path, following Iran, and joining with the democratically elected governments of Hamas and Hizballah...to form a "democratic" Caliphate (remember, there were "elections" in Iran as well)
and who is bleeding, and dying on the front lines of all this?
Israelis trying to Live, and the non-Shia (especially the more secular) portions of the surrounding Muslim countries caught up in the jihadist conflicts started by the theocrats "elected" to Power...
no easy Answers anywhere to be found, and the stench of burning Death permeates all Involved...the guilty and Innocent alike
this is NOT any kind of U.S. political bullshit, the ONLY thing the U.S. has involved in this insanity stem from the result of the Policies it has pursued in the Region, many of them evolving from poorly thought out, or just plain uninformed Wishful thinking on the part of those making Policy
the Responsibility lies squarely upon those who ordered the rocket attacks into Israel, as well as the capture for exchange of Israeli soldiers... to be taken into account, is the Israeli reaction, few can lay blame to them for striking out...though many can Question their methodology, none can really blame them for defending themselves from invading rocket attacks as best as they are able...at least this is not some sort of "pre-emptive" type Action...
but rather a militarily directed Reaction to attacks by Factions of foreign governments
the closest thing i can find to any kind of "good news" in all this , is that the "Arab League" appears to be split in it's condemnation of Hizballah for the attacks...it shows that there IS some "sanity" in a few of the Arab governments, while there is a clear Faction which supports the Iranian directed actions of Hizballah and Hamas
the Questions will be...
how does Israel conduct themselves in resolving this Conflict?
how do the Arab governments, not directly involved, conduct themselves?
how does U.S. foreign policy, and that of the other world Powers, react and adjust to ongoing Events as this War unfolds?
me? i'm Concerned for the Innocents who will suffer, as they always do, under this War of Idealogues and Theocrats...
in the macro-geopolitical sense...we must Ask, did U.S. Policy, vis-a-vis Iraq and thus Iran (the old "axis of evil" speech onward)...effect and possibly embolden the "leaders" of Hamas and Hizballah into these attacks?
and what can be done to stop the Conflict, and resolve the underlying Issues that lead to the insanity of this kind of Violence?
no easy Answers..but i do know this, bullshit mindless name-calling and knee-jerk Ideological reactions are NOT any part of the Answer, and help no one
your mileage may vary
Excelsior?