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Regrets? Battle-weary terror leader has a few 'We did not think, even 1%, that the capture would lead to a war at this time and of this magnitude. You ask me, if I had known on July 11 ... that the operation would lead to such a war, would I do it? I say no, absolutely not." - Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah leader, Aug. 27 So much for the "strategic and historic victory" Nasrallah had claimed less than two weeks earlier. What real victor declares that, had he known, he would not have started the war that ended in triumph? Nasrallah's...

Israel's and Hezbollah's War of the Rockets has entered a new phase: the War of the Wallets, the race to gain political capital by rebuilding southern Lebanon. Diplomats and military analysts continue to debate The War of the Rockets. The conventional wisdom -- or more accurately, the wisdom of first impressions -- said Israel lost the military war and Hezbollah won by surviving. But the emerging "big picture" suggests the War of the Rockets physically punished and politically damaged Hezbollah, despite its media touts of victory. On the other hand, Israel cannot claim a victory -- at least, not yet....

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) - U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan demanded on Monday that Hezbollah release two captured Israeli soldiers to the international Red Cross, and that Israel lift its air and sea blockade of Lebanon. Visiting Beirut on the first leg of an 11-day Mideast tour, Annan said he was renewing his "call for the abducted soldiers to be free," and urged Hezbollah to transfer them to the Lebanese government "or a third party" under the auspices of the international Red Cross. "We, the U.N., will be prepared to play a role if we are required to do so. And I...

TEL AVIV -- Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said yesterday that he would not have ordered the July 12 seizure of two Israeli soldiers had he known it would provoke a war that leveled Shi'ite villages and neighborhoods throughout Lebanon.     "We did not think, even 1 percent, that the capture would lead to a war at this time and of this magnitude. You ask me, if I had known on July 11 ... that the operation would lead to such a war, would I do it? I say no, absolutely not," he told Lebanon's New TV station.     The sheik also...

Keeping The Peace In Lebanon The Israeli Defence Force operating within Southern Lebanon is describing its most recent discovery as "a spectacular find" - a huge Hizbollah bunker hidden underground. Sky's Lisa Holland has this special report.

Former Iraqi interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi arrived in Beirut on Monday for a three-day visit in solidarity with Lebanon. "We came carrying our support and our aid to our brother country Lebanon," Allawi told reporters at Rafik Hariri International Airport upon his arrival. He said the Iraqi government had donated $35 million to Lebanon as "Iraq's part in Lebanon's reconstruction." Allawi, heading a delegation of Iraqi officials from different sects, arrived at the airport in a private jet and is scheduled to meet with various Lebanese officials during his visit. "Lebanon as a country has had a great impact...

<p>Gaza, 28 August (AKI) - Palestinian government party Hamas will launch a satellite television channel in October, the Palestinian news agency Ramattan reported on Monday. Hamas launched an experimental terrestrial channel last year to give its candidates visibility in the electoral campaign...</p>

Sunday, August 20, 2006 Summary of Jewish Agency for Israel Relief Efforts during the War DURING THE WAR. THE JEWISH AGENCY RAISED 200 MILLION SHEKELS, ON BEHALF OF THE NORTHERN COMMUNITIES AND TODAY IT IS RAISING HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF SHEKELS TO REHABILITATE THE NORTH Thousands of Children Were Absorbed in Summer Camps in Central Israel and Thousands of Shelters Were Repaired Special Assistance was Provided to non-Jewish Communities in the North Since the outbreak of the war, the Jewish Agency initiated large scale activity on behalf of northern residents, to the tune of about 200 million Israeli Shekels. Within...

UN chief Kofi Annan was booed by a crowd chanting pro-Hezbollah slogans today as he toured Beirut's southern suburbs devastated by Israel's war against the Shiite militant group. Dozens of men, women and children angrily waved pictures of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and shouted "Allah, Nasrallah and all of the suburbs" as the UN secretary general emerged from his car to survey the destruction in the heart of the Haret Hreik area, a Hezbollah stronghold. Others booed and shouted "death to Israel" and "long live Syria" as they surrounded Mr Annan's convoy of vehicles which was accompanied by a heavy...

A new Messiah has arrived for the right wing and every body is jumping for joy. "We are saved!" says one. "This guy will destroy Hamas and Hezzbollah!" says another. "No more land deals, no more Gush Katif betrayals!" says a third. Who is this new savior? Who is this great man riding into Jerusalem to save the day, end the peace process, build more settlements, rid the country of terror and make us all live happily-ever-after? Haven't you heard? It's General Moshe "Boogey" Ya'alon... so stand up and shout "HOORAY!!!" I can see it now. The YESHA council will...

What are we seeing when we watch events from the Middle East on our television screens? Is it news or is it terrorist theater? Let us observe two media events which occurred on Sunday in Gaza. Sunday afternoon released hostages and Fox News journalists Steven Centanni and Olaf Wiig spoke before the cameras. The fact of their release and their statements were reported by more than 1,000 news organizations throughout the world. At the press conference, Centanni and Wiig, who were forced by their Palestinian captors to convert to Islam, praised the Palestinians. Centanni said, "I just hope this never...

We are already immersed in painful evaluations to identify the cause of the breakdowns in our decision-making processes and in rectifying the weaknesses in the IDF as a consequence of the recent war. What went wrong? The problem goes far beyond the failings of individual leaders. Nor, as is frequently alleged, is the primary source the pain and agony endured by successive generations of Israelis witnessing their children leaving for the battlefields to risk their lives in defense of the nation. It is rather the logical outcome of a profound malaise which over the years has infiltrated the psyche of...

Current crisis faced by Israel result of crumbling Jewish identity Many years ago, residents of Mishmar HaEmek held a meeting to discuss why the sons who left the kibbutz were not returning. The elderly Yaakov Hazan rejected the argument that the community's physical state needed improvement and summed his views with one sentence: "We failed in the effort to establish a secular Jewish society." I recall Hazan when Israelis start asking what happened to us and how did we reach a situation where even minor war objectives are not achieved. The leadership failure by the statesmen who directed the army...

JEDDAH, 29 August 2006 — With the Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah expressing regret Sunday on Lebanese TV for the month-long war in Lebanon in which more than a thousand people died, many people in the Kingdom accused the Hezbollah militia of “adventurism” and being “irresponsible.” According to Homoud Al-Bader, a Shoura Council member, Hezbollah’s kidnapping of the Israeli soldiers has taken Lebanon back to “square one.” Describing the actions as “miscalculated” and “provocative” Al Bader said that Lebanon had lost hundreds of lives, its infrastructure had been demolished, and now other governments were helping the country to rebuild. Jeddah resident...

JERUSALEM – Hezbollah, with the help of Iran, has started building underground war bunkers in Palestinian camps in south Lebanon just a few miles from the Israeli border, according to senior Lebanese officials. During its 34-day confrontation with Hezbollah in Lebanon, Israel destroyed scores of complex Hezbollah bunkers that snaked along the Lebanese side of the Israel-Lebanon border. Military officials said they were surprised by the scale of the Hezbollah bunkers, in which Israeli troops reportedly found war rooms with advanced eavesdropping and surveillance equipment they noted were made by Iran. A senior Lebanese official, speaking on condition of anonymity,...

HARET HREIK (Lebanon), Aug 28: UN chief Kofi Annan was booed by a crowd chanting pro-Hezbollah slogans on Monday as he toured Beirut’s southern suburbs devastated by Israel’s war against the militant group. Dozens of men, women and children angrily waved pictures of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and shouted ‘Allah, Nasrallah and all of the suburbs’ as the UN secretary general emerged from his car to survey the destruction in the heart of the Haret Hreik area, a Hezbollah stronghold. Others booed and shouted ‘death to Israel’ and ‘long live Syria’ as they surrounded Mr Annan’s convoy of vehicles which...

GAZA CITY: The US proposes deploying international observers at the main cargo crossing between Israel and Gaza to prevent repeated security closures of Gaza's economic lifeline, Palestinian and Israeli officials said yesterday. Both Israel and the Palestinians support the idea. However, Israel would only consider its implementation after the release of an Israeli soldier kidnapped by Hamas-allied militants in June. US officials in Israel had no immediate comment. The Karni crossing has been closed by Israel for long stretches this year following security alerts and attacks by Palestinian militants. Virtually all of Gaza's imports and exports go through Karni. Palestinian...

UNITED NATIONS — In a departure from language used by the U.N. Security Council, Secretary-General Annan yesterday linked the issue of releasing Israeli soldiers to freeing Lebanese terrorists held by Israel. Hezbollah demanded a prisoner swap when it kidnapped the two soldiers on July 12, launching a month-long war. Mr. Annan, speaking to the press in Beirut, retreated from several demands the Security Council made on Hezbollah and went as far as to equate the conduct of Israeli army soldiers with that of terrorists serving the Taliban regime. "You have to talk with those with the guns to stop shooting,...

Website quotes al-Qaeda senior figure as saying: 'Hizbullah are infidels, it and Israel are enemies of Allah' A speech allegedly made by Sheikh Abu Abdul Rahman has surfaced on a jihadi pro al-Qaeda website in which Rahman is cited as condemning the "infidel Hizbullah" and "the most corrupted regimes of Syria and Iran." "We need to know the reality, and we already know how Hizbullah do not fight for the sake of Allah. They declare themselves that they fight for the sake of Lebanon, are backed by the most corrupted regimes – Syria and Iran – and backed by the...

The United Nations peacekeeping force to be deployed in Lebanon is facing further criticism after the admission that its forces will not even be allowed to intercept shipments of arms to Hezbollah from Syria. Speaking in Brussels before heading to the region, Kofi Annan, pictured below, the UN Secretary-General, confirmed that the 15,000-strong force will not meet Israeli demands to police the routes used by the militia to smuggle missiles from Syria. "Troops are not going in there to disarm - let's be clear," he said. Instead, the Unifil force will only carry out interception missions if asked by the...

Hezbollah would not have abducted two Israel Defense Forces soldiers on July 12 had it known that the action would lead to war in Lebanon, the leader of the militant group, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, said in an interview televised Sunday. Reservist soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev were kidnapped on July 12 in a cross-border raid by Hezbollah guerillas, sparking a 34-day conflict. Hezbollah is demanding the release of some of the thousands of Arabs in Israeli prisons in exchange for the kidnapped soldiers. We did not think, even one percent, that the capture would lead to a war at...

Hizbullah's leader Hassan Nasrallah claimed in the first post-war interview on Sunday that contacts were being held to bring about a prisoner swap between Israel and Hizbullah. Nasrallah, who spoke with Lebanese NTV television, announced that he was willing to begin negotiations and that Italy had taken an interest in playing a lead role. The UN, he added, was also keen on being involved in the process, which would occur with the help of Lebanon's Parliament Chairman Nabia Berry who was said to be in good ties with the organization. Only selected pieces of the interview were played during the...

Head of the Hizbullah faction in the Lebanese parliament, Muhammad Raad, denied a report in the Egyptian newspaper al-Ahram that negotiations on the release of the two kidnapped Israeli soldiers are expected to be completed within three weeks. "We have no information on the issue, other than what we are hearing from the Israelis," he stated. (Roee Nahmias)

Humbling of the supertroops shatters Israeli army morale HUNDREDS of feet below ground in the command bunker of the Israeli air force in Tel Aviv, a crowd of officers gathered to monitor the first day of the war against Hezbollah. It was July 12 and air force jets were about to attack Hezbollah’s military nerve centre in southern Beirut. Among the officers smoking tensely as they waited for news, was Lieutenant-General Dan Halutz, 58, a daring fighter pilot in the 1973 Arab-Israeli war who had become chief of staff a year earlier and now faced the biggest test of his...

From the remnants of Saddam's Baathists at Uruknet: What Types of Gruesome Weapons Did Israel Use in Lebanon? Nada Sayad, Global ResearchAugust 23, 2006Some doubts have been expressed regarding the use by Israel of Internationally Forbidden Weapons in its war on Lebanon.The South Medical Complex in Saida is investigating this matter. It is examining 24 samples from corps that were hit in the area of South Lebanon in a trial to discover the nature of the substances that lead to death.In a phone call done by "Assafir", the Lebanese local newspaper, Dr. Omar Morabi, the president of the Association of...

What did you do in the war, UNIFIL? You broadcast Israeli troop movements. by Lori Lowenthal Marcus 09/04/2006, Volume 011, Issue 47 DURING THE RECENT month-long war between Hezbollah and Israel , U.N. "peacekeeping" forces made a startling contribution: They openly published daily real-time intelligence, of obvious usefulness to Hezbollah, on the location, equipment, and force structure of Israeli troops in Lebanon . UNIFIL--the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon , a nearly 2,000-man blue-helmet contingent that has been present on the Lebanon-Israel border since 1978--is officially neutral. Yet, throughout the recent war, it posted on its website for all...

ALARM - the Lebanese army on the border with Israel for the first time since 1975 BEIRUT - the Lebanese army has been installed Saturday for the first time for 30 years on the border with Israel by giving an opinion with the "Door of Fatima", in the south-east of the country, affirmed with AFP the General Charles Chikhani, ordering 10è brigade of infantry.

'Israel can only lose once' Posted: August 18, 2006 1:00 a.m. Eastern © 2006 During one of Israel's many wars, Golda Meir offered this famous – and tragic – observation: "The Arabs can fight, and lose, and return to fight another day. Israel can only lose once." Golda's assessment became a truism of the Middle East up until now. And the jury is still out as to whether her assessment remains true to this day. In the strange and surreal world that is the Middle East, Israel lost its war with Hezbollah. And while it remains intact at the moment,...

Secretary-General Kofi Annan visited U.N. peacekeepers in south Lebanon on Tuesday, a day after Italy and Turkey moved to join the international force there. Annan and his entourage left Beirut Tuesday morning in two white United Nations helicopters, and landed in Naqoura, a town on the Mediterranean coast about 2.5 miles north of the Israeli border, and home to headquarters of the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL.

Shin Bet head Yuval Diskin reiterated on Tuesday at a Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee meeting that Palestinian terrorist organizations were studying the Lebanese-Israeli war to learn how to play on Israel's weaker points. Diskin said the terror groups were stepping up efforts to smuggle long-range missiles - as well as experts in building and launching them - through the Philadelphi route. MK Natan Sharansky (Likud) said, "For ten years, we've been hearing these types of reports, but there has never been such an immediate need for action. Every kind of weapon is getting into the Gaza Strip, and Hamas...

"Hezbollah's staged mini-demonstration in the southern suburb of Beirut has been exposed by unauthorized media footage. During a visit to the Hezbollah former "security square," destroyed during the war with Israel, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan was greeted by a prepared crowd of Hezbollah militants. Accompanied by Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Seniora, Dr. Annan was escorted by Lebanese Army security, apparently very friendly with Hezbollah Department of Security. The Lebanese Army officers and Hezbollah were seen smiling at each other and coordinating the staged demonstration. A camera linked to an international media agency was broadcasting live from behind the Hezbollah's...

We have published articles on both sides of the question, and the argument is far from settled. But the latest evidence includes this remarkable statement from Nasrallah himself, “We did not think, even one percent, that the capture would lead to a war at this time and of this magnitude,” Nasrallah told Lebanon’s New TV network. “You ask me, if I had known on July 11 … that the operation would lead to such a war, would I do it? I say no, absolutely not, for humanitarian, moral, social, security, military and political reasons. Neither I, Hezbollah, prisoners in Israeli...

Sharansky: Now We Can't Say We Weren't Warned 13:17 Aug 29, '06 / 5 Elul 5766 (IsraelNN.com) MK Natan Sharansky (Likud), responding to Shabak (General Security Service) chief Yuval Diskin’s briefing to the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Security Committee Tuesday, said it was the most alarming security assessment he had ever been privy to in his lengthy political career. "For ten years I have been hearing security reports. I have never heard such an unequivocal and frightening report that calls for immediate action,” Sharansky said. "Every kind of weapon, except for tanks and airplanes, are getting into the Gaza Strip...

Palestinian witnesses and medics say Israeli forces have killed five Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. They say Israeli troops killed three Palestinians near Gaza City Tuesday, as Israel pressed ahead with its Gaza offensive. Palestinian sources say one of the dead belonged to the militant Islamic group Hamas. The Israeli army said its troops fired at a group of militants preparing a bomb, but did not confirm any deaths. Earlier Tuesday, Israeli troops killed two Palestinians in clashes that broke out when Israeli forces raided the Balata refugee camp in the West Bank town of Nablus. The...

US scholars: Israel planned Lebanon war in advance Nathan Guttman, THE JERUSALEM POST Aug. 29, 2006 The two US scholars, who stirred controversy several months ago after claiming that US foreign policy is skewed in favor of Israel due to the work of the pro-Israeli lobby, are now accusing the lobby of leading the administration, Congress and public opinion to support Israel's actions in Lebanon against America's best interests. Profs. Stephan Walt and John Mearsheimer also claim that Israel had planned the war in Lebanon in advanced and used the kidnapping of its soldiers as a pretext to launch the...

TIBERIAS, Israel, 30 August 2006 — Prime Minister Ehud Olmert denied yesterday that Israel had aimed to destroy the Hezbollah Shiite militant group during the monthlong Lebanon war. “The government made a decision on the 12th of July. They never said the goal was to destroy Hezbollah. It was to implement UN Resolution 1559, to have the Lebanese Army in the south and that was achieved,” he said here. UN Resolution 1559, adopted by the UN Security Council in September 2004, called for all foreign troops to leave Lebanon and for all militias there to disband. Olmert spoke a day...

Statement issued by Counter-Terrorism Bureau warns all Israelis visiting Sinai to leave area immediately. 'Threat to kidnap Israelis on Sinai beaches has become extremely severe and concrete in recent days,' statement says

ABOARD THE GARIBALDI, Aug 29 (Reuters) - The first 800 troops of the Italian contingent for a major U.N. peacekeeping force for Lebanon set sail on Tuesday on a mission that the Rome government warned would be "long and risky". The aircraft carrier Garibaldi, flagship of the Italian fleet, met four other Navy ships off the Mediterranean port of Brindisi for an official send-off for the landing force of 803 plus 1,350 sailors and air defence crew taking them to Lebanon. Italy will eventually send a total of 3,000 troops, making it the biggest contributor to a force authorised by...

Analysis by a captain in the IDF reserves, just back from the war, that will leave you with A LOT to think about — guaranteed Contrary to what is now the accepted wisdom in the media, Hezballah in its recent offensive against Israel neither "badly bloodied the Israel Defense Force," nor "fought it to a standstill" in Southern Lebanon. In fact, the opposite is the case. By any legitimate measure Hezballah was handed a resounding military defeat by the IDF in the recent fighting, and while the cancer that is Hezballah was not cured by Israel's soldiers, it was put...

Survivors in Lebanon: 'What am I going to do?' TYRE, Lebanon (CNN) -- In a village not far from Tyre, mine-clearing teams worked to destroy unexploded bombs, mortars and other weaponry scattered across the landscape. "Do you think there will be another war again?" a young girl said as she ran up to me, her pink sunhat flopping in the breeze. Her mother smiled dryly. "See what even the children are saying?" she said. "Their innocence is gone." More than two weeks after a cease-fire in the 34-day conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the effects of the war are seen...

In July, the WCC released a statement. The WCC refuses to name Hezbollah, defends the terrorists and reproaches the victims for their self-defense. The letter attacks democratic countries, shields militia groups from blame, and challenges "the concept of war on terror." This letter tells the reader that there is no difference between the victim and the attacker. Not only does the letter fail to condemn Hezbollah terrorists for their crimes, but it condemns G8 members who are seeking a solution to those crimes. Hezbollah's rocket campaign against Israeli civilians seems to be entirely Israel's fault. The Jewish state is the...

ROME, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Italy's foreign minister said the international community would "not stand by and watch" if Syria sent arms to Lebanon, news agency Ansa reported on Wednesday. "In Syria they should also know that if arms arrive from Syria ... the international community will know about it and won't stand by and watch," Massimo D'Alema said in a radio interview, Ansa reported.

JERUSALEM (AP) - Israel sidestepped demands Wednesday from visiting U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan that it immediately lift its sea and air blockade of Lebanon and withdraw its forces once 5,000 international troops are deployed. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert indicated Israel would only lift the blockade and withdraw its soldiers from Lebanon after the full implementation of a U.N.-brokered cease-fire.

UN denounces Israel cluster bombs The UN's humanitarian chief has accused Israel of "completely immoral" use of cluster bombs in Lebanon. UN clearance experts had so far found 100,000 unexploded cluster bomblets at 359 separate sites, Jan Egeland said. "Ninety per cent of the cluster bomb strikes occurred in the last 72 hours of the conflict, when we knew there would be a resolution," he said. Israel has previously said that munitions it uses in conflict comply with international law. Earlier estimates from UN experts had suggested a total of about 100 cluster bomb sites. Mr Egeland described the fresh...

Aug. 24, 2006 10:26 | Updated Aug. 28, 2006 5:49 Hizbullahland By KSENIA SVETLOVA By 8 a.m. May 26, 2000, the day after the Israeli withdrawal from south Lebanon was completed, there were already some spectators at Fatima's Gate, a former checkpoint between Israel and Lebanon, and the new Lebanese frontline with Israel. Some were armed Hizbullah men with yellow flags, others curious citizens who came to observe the Israeli soldiers patrol the border just a few meters away. Here you could buy some refreshments with which you could more fully enjoy your time at the border, or perhaps some...

He wanted an Israeli message to hand to Iranian leaders in Tehran which he hoped to visit later in his 11-day Middle East tour. The message was to contain an assurance that, despite the Lebanon war and the accelerated tempo of the Iranian nuclear program, Israel undertook not to attack Iran. Annan wanted to be the bearer of a Note in this vein to dispel the Islamic Republic’s fears of an imminent Israeli strike. Olmert asked the UN Secretary if he had procured a message in this spirit from Washington and, if so, would he submit the American and Israeli...

by Michael J. Totten Israeli video journalist Itai Anghel went into Hezbollah-controlled Lebanon with the Nahal Brigade and shot 25 minutes of riveting house-to-house combat footage with a night vision lens. The Hezbollah fighters wore Israeli uniforms. Note: To watch the movie, copy and paste the url below into a new window. For some reason it won't work if you click on it. http://switch248-01.castup.net/cunet/gm.asp?ClipMediaID=209947&ak=63628786 Hat tip: Lisa Goldman