Will Hizballah Go To War for Iran?

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1209809,00.html?promoid=rss_world ^ | June 30

[markedmannerf]

Wearing a camouflage uniform and a floppy hat to shade his bearded face from the noonday sun, a Hizballah guerrilla blocks the way to a hilltop position overlooking Lebanon's border with Israel. The region's olive trees, umbrella pines and craggy hillsides are believed to conceal Hizballah's arsenal of rockets, including long-range variants capable of striking targets deep inside the Jewish state. "Access to this area is forbidden," warns the fighter, cradling a Kalashnikov. Hizballah men later emphasize the point by detaining a TIME reporter. Mug shots, front and profile, are snapped with a digital camera and quickly relayed to Hizballah's military command in the region. The reporter is released with handshakes and smiling apologies two hours later, but it's hardly any surprise that Hizballah is uneasy about anyone snooping around its turf these days. After all, if the U.S.-Iran standoff escalates to the point of military confrontation, these hills — and the rocket emplacements they are believed to conceal — could once again become a war zone.

Although the Iran-backed Shiite Muslim movement likes to highlight its role in defending Lebanon, analysts believe that in the event of military action against Iran, it may be called upon to act as Tehran's proxy in retaliation by firing rockets into Israel or launching terrorist attacks against Western targets. That's why many Lebanese fear that their country, still recovering from long years of civil war and intervention by foreign armies, is in danger of becoming a battlefield in an extraneous regional conflict.

[RIghtWingAvenger]

Earth to Time. Hizbollah is ALREADY at war.

[Tallguy]

Earth to Time. Hizbollah is ALREADY at war.

Yeah, they have a comprehension problem over there at Time Magazine.

[pawdoggie]

The reporter is released with handshakes and smiling apologies two hours later, but it's hardly any surprise that Hizballah is uneasy about anyone snooping around its turf these days.

What was that statement Keller made about how NYT inc. isn't "neutral" where terrorism is concerned? Guess which side they're on? The most revealing sentence in the article.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Big time War....

Got some details on the Rockets that hit haifa from the Counter Terorism Blog:

Iranian manufactured Raad 1 missiles launched at Haifa
By Bill Roggio

See link for the map

Map of Hezbollah rocket strikes in northern Israel. Click map to view.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

From the link above....Counter Terrorism Blog.....

***************************************************

The accusations of direct Iranian involvement of long range missiles precedes the fighting of the past few days. On June 28, 2006, TIME Magazine, in an article titled "Will Hizballah Go To War for Iran?", looks at Hezbollah's posture on the Israeli border and the potential for war. The strike on Haifa was foreshadowed by Israeli military officials, and the IRGC is accused of having direct operational control over the long range missiles.

Hizballah officials have publicly said that the group possesses some 13,000 rockets. Most of them are believed to be standard Katyushas, which have a 12-mile range. But, Israeli officials say Hizballah also maintains a supply of 220mm and even larger rockets from Iran, a "strategic threat" capable of hitting targets in Haifa — 20 miles inside Israel — and beyond. "They can target all of the north and go as far afield as Haifa, threatening one million inhabitants of Israel. It must be considered by Israel's leaders at all times," the Israeli military intelligence official says.

Israeli officials reportedly allege that the long-range rockets are under the direct command of officers of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, which Israel alleges has lately expanded its presence along the border. This charge, too, is denied by Hizballah, and has not been independently confirmed.

[Marine_Uncle]

Thanks. It is going to take one heck of a lot of precision bombing to take even some of these goons out. Israel has little choice but to send in ground troops and with air support clean out sectors at a time. It is going to be really tough fighting. This could go on for years.