Posted on 07/12/2006 7:50:34 PM PDT by callmejoe
(Israel) Government okays massive strikes on Lebanon
By Amos Harel, Aluf Benn and Gideon Alon, Haaretz Correspondents and Agencies (snip)
The Israel Defense Forces began preparing Wednesday night for a widespread aerial assault on Lebanon, after the cabinet approved a "severe" response to Hezbollah's attack on the northern border on Wednesday, which ended with eight soldiers dead and two kidnapped. . .
The response will include a series of aerial attacks against Hezbollah, and particularly against the batteries of rockets aimed at Israel that the organization has stationed along the northern border. . .
. . . Hezbollah is likely to respond to the Israeli attacks with massive rocket launches at Israel, and in that case, the IDF might move ground forces into Lebanon, both to create a temporary buffer zone in the southern part of the country and to destroy Hezbollah's network of outposts and rockets along the border. The goal of any such operation would also be to ensure that this network could not be rebuilt.
Residents of northern border communities have already been ordered into shelters, and Defense Minister Amir Peretz ordered the Home Front Command to prepare for the defense of dozens of other communities that were not vulnerable to Hezbollah fire in the past, but are now reachable with the long-range rockets Hezbollah has deployed in recent years.
"We may be facing a completely different reality, in which hundreds of thousands of Israelis will, for a short time, find themselves in danger from Hezbollah's rockets," said a senior defense official. These include residents of the center of the country.
The army also began preparing for a limited call-up of the reserves, since this might be necessary if a ground operation in Lebanon is approved. Thus far, however, no call-up has been approved. . .
(Excerpt) Read more at haaretz.com ...
I heard a report today that when the Israeli cabinet meeting ended, it was said that they are going to set Lebanaon back 20 years.
Sound painful.
That would be a gift to us all !
LOL!
The Hezbollah actions and the Gaza actions are undoubtedly linked to Iran and Ahmadinejad. Remember that Ahmadinejad had postponed even giving a response to the attempted negotiated settlement of the Iranian nuclear fuel enrichment program until the month of August. What could have necessitated such a delay? Could it be that Iran had various plans in the works that would not have unfolded until then? Could they be planning to have Israel facing a three-front war (adding in the West Bank) by August, to be capped off by an Iranian attempt to launch missile attacks, or even a nuclear device (obtained from Russia? Pakistan? North Korea?) against Israel? Their plan seems to be that they expect to have achieved some kind of fait accompli by their self-imposed August deadline...
This is right in John Batchelor's sweet spot. He's pretty fired up tonight and has some excellent (and jacked in) guests on.
Maybe encouraging the Lebanese to do their bit ? Another UNSC resolution being ignored.
they are going to set Lebanaon back 20 years.
They should be set back 1,000 years.
Let us hope that the Israelis intelligence and security forces have been busy while their politicians dithered in the face of world opinion. Judging from the success of their targeted take-downs they have very good human intel. Please let the sparse news we hear in our media be merely the visible manifestation of a strategic plan of attack.
I've had a prayer placed at the Western Wall, and will be petitioning the Almighty on Jerusalem's behalf all night.
Ahmadinejad reportedly met in Damascus earlier this year with leaders of 10-12 terror groups to coordinate strategy (including Hezbollah, Hamas, and al Qaeda). The Hamas and Hezbollah hostage-taking was well-planned and succeeded in provoking the opening of two fronts (Gaza and now Lebanon). Maybe they planned to have destabilized Jordan by August (setting off the civil war in Iraq, spreading it through Anbar into Jordan so a Black September scenario would bring Hamas to power with Meshal then moving his HQ from Damascus to Amman in order to destabilize the West Bank).
If the Iranians had a usable device in time, they would lob it in the midst of a storm of missiles hoping to sneak one through.
http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=705948&contrassID=1&subContrassID=0&sbSubContrassID=0
Last update - 19:41 14/04/2006
Iranian president: 'Rotten' Israel will be annihilated by 'one storm'
By News Agencies (snipped)
TEHRAN - Days after announcing that Iran had successfully enriched uranium, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Friday called Israel a "rotten, dried tree" that will be annihilated by "one storm."
Opening of a conference in Tehran on supporting the Palestinians, Ahmadinejad fired a series of verbal shots at Israel, saying it was a "permanent threat" to the Middle East that will "soon" be liberated, and again questioning the validity of the Nazi Holocaust against Jews in World War II.
"Like it or not, the Zionist regime is heading toward annihiliation," Ahmadinejad said. "The Zionist regime is a rotten, dried tree that will be eliminated by one storm," he said.
"The existence of the Zionist regime is tantamount to an imposition of an unending and unrestrained threat so that none of the nations and Islamic countries of the region and beyond can feel secure from its threat," Ahmadinejad said.
The president provoked a world outcry last October when he said Israel should be "wiped off the map." On Friday, he repeated his previous line on the Holocaust, saying: "If such a disaster is true, why should the people of this region pay the price? Why does the Palestinian nation have to be suppressed and have its land occupied?"
The land of Palestine, he said, referring to the British mandated territory that includes all of Israel, Gaza and the West Bank, "will be freed soon."
He did not say how this would be achieved, but insisted to the audience of at least 900 people: "Believe that Palestine will be freed soon." . . .
I would be prepared for the possibility of some of those rockets being non-conventional.
If they are used by Hezbollah I believe Israel has a few non-cons in their arsenal as well. As my father said to me once-who do you think invented the nuclear bomb?
Had a talk with my dad tonight about this, and he pointed out the distinct possibility that there are IAF F-16's sitting on runways right now with atomic bombs ready to be used. Chilling thought (not that I disagree with the preparations one bit).
Israel is afraid to do it. They are afraid of losing "international goodwill". Luckily, this administration is much more understanding of Israel's predicament. President Bush has most certainly read Clinton's notes on the Mid East Peace Process and concluded correctly that Israel wants to make peace, its enemies don't, and so Israel has no choice but to strike when it needs to strike.
Hey Israel has to defend itself. They are surrounded by countries that are full of people who are trying to bring it's demise either directly or indirectly. Just like we found it necessary to drop THE BOMB on Japan to end WWII Israel has to do what it has to do. They didn't want to come to the party but by God they will decide how they will leave it.
Lebanon was the lovely garden of the ME until Hez and others..scheiße für gehirn stirred the pot...let them eat their own residue..
I must admit it had occurred to me as well, but I didn't want to sound like a wack-job.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.