Posted on 07/20/2006 2:49:24 PM PDT by BradtotheBone
WASHINGTON — Officials said the Bush administration, after initial hesitation, has determined that the Israeli military campaign against Hizbullah was vital in the effort to reduce the threat from Iran and Syria in the Middle East. They said the administration would not pressure Israel to agree to an immediate ceasefire.
Officials said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice initially sought to halt Israel's massive retaliation against Hizbullah, which abducted two Israeli soldiers on July 12. They said Ms. Rice, in twice-a-day phone calls, pressed Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to significantly reduce the operation to prevent casualties and maintain the Lebanese government.
"Olmert politely and respectfully told Condi that the operation must continue until the rocket attacks end and the Israeli soldiers are released," another official said. "The issue eventually came to the president and Condi backed off."
On Tuesday, President George Bush displayed his greatest support yet for the Israeli war. Bush said Iran and Syria were behind Hizbullah rocket attacks as part of Teheran's campaign to undermine the West. On July 15, Bush's national security adviser said the U.S. intelligence community did not have evidence of Iranian or Syrian involvement. "It is now clear for all to see that there are terrorist elements who want to destroy our democratic friends and allies, and the world must work to prevent them from doing so," Bush said.
Officials said the administration has been pressed by Congress and conservative circles to support Israel during its war against Hizbullah. On Tuesday, the Senate passed a resolution that held Syria and Iran responsible for the "acts of aggression carried out by Hizbullah and Hamas against Israel." The House was expected to pass a similar resolution on Wednesday.
"The Senate has spoken loud and clear: Israel has the right to defend itself against aggression," Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said. "While I urge the Israeli government to act carefully, there should be no doubt as to where we stand in this conflict."
Saudi Arabia has also relayed alarm to the United States over the Iranian intervention, officials said. They said Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Cooperation Council states were concerned that Teheran plans to order a Shi'ite revolt in the region. On Tuesday, Bush spoke by telephone with Saudi King Abdullah in a discussion that focused on the Israeli-Hizbullah war.
As a result, Ms. Rice has postponed her visit to the Middle East to help arrange a ceasefire. Officials said the secretary, who had been expected to arrive in Israel on Wednesday, would delay her visit until around July 25.
"A ceasefire that would leave intact a [Hizbullah] terrorist infrastructure is unacceptable," White House spokesman Tony Snow said.
On Tuesday, Ms. Rice disagreed with a call by visiting Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abu Al Gheit during the start of the Egyptian-U.S. strategic dialogue. Ms. Rice dismissed Al Gheit's call for an immediate ceasefire, saying Hizbullah must first release prisoners and withdraw from the Israeli border.
"We have to make certain that anything that we do is going to be of lasting value," Ms. Rice said. "The Middle East has been through too many spasms of violence and we have to deal with underlying conditions so that we can create sustainable conditions for political progress there."
Officials said the administration has been coordinating with Israel to help evacuate the 25,000-member American community in Lebanon. They said Central Command has sent nine ships to Lebanon to evacuate at least 5,000 Americans.
"We have a changing situation [in Lebanon]," U.S. Naval Forces Central Command chief Vice Adm. Patrick Walsh told a Pentagon briefing on Tuesday. "We have a very complex environment that we're about to put a substantial number more of American citizens into, and the security and safety of those people are paramount to us, and that's our No. 1 mission."
Yea!
Words fail me. The President really needs to get these people playing on our team, or replace them. Our "intelligence community" might as well be the NY Times, and the same goes for the State Dept.
Makes me feel warm and fuzzy all over. Just one of many good things in this article.
Once again Israel does the dirty work the rest of the world seems incapable of doing. But thank God somebody is doing it!
Snow has made a difference.
BS
They keep using this word, "unacceptable." I do not think it means what they think it means.
She should have read Krauthammer before making a fool of herself.
I don't know what happens to someone when they go to work for the State Department, but they seem to lose all common sense or understanding of the nature of the threats facing the country. They think terrorists and rogues can be made to change their ways through endless jabber-jawing. I don't get it.
I would say that Snow brings a "coolness" to the PS job that has been heretofore lacking.
>>Snow has made a difference.<<
I have to admit I underestimated him - he's more in his element in Washington than he was on a message board - the messages from the White House are clearer and have the right tone.
That's okay -- everyone else in the world knows Hezbollah and Hammas are merely proxy armies for Syria and Iran. If our intelligence community wants to look even more foolish, that's on them.
World Tribune? Quoting unnamed officials? More MSM disinformation.
Isn't it ironic.
That it's the Jewish state that is taking up the cross (pun intended) in a fight that almost the entire world of Christendom have decided to lay down their arms?
Sometimes I think God has too much sense of humor.
Tony has the "pair" that McClellan was missing.
I was wondering about that, too. It seems that Bush is more out front and confident than he was before Tony Snow arrived.
I thought Condi would be great, but she has turned out to be yet another State Dept. creature. I realize that I don't know what's going on behind the scenes, and it's highly possible that she's making all sorts of big changes, etc., etc., but she hasn't seemed a lot different from Powell. I've been very disappointed in her Latin American non-policy, since the region is important to us and it doesn't seem to me that she's treating it that way. And she has been very "Powellish" on the ME.
I was just thinking along the same lines:
"Officials said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice initially sought to halt Israel's massive retaliation against Hizbullah, which abducted two Israeli soldiers on July 12. They said Ms. Rice, in twice-a-day phone calls, pressed Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to significantly reduce the operation to prevent casualties and maintain the Lebanese government."
When she first came in she was SO SMART, I was in awe, and then, I don't know if it's the job, or just the subject of Israel and the Middle East, that just turns people into stupid shadows of themselves.
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