Posted on 08/12/2006 1:35:22 AM PDT by familyop
Just hours after the United Nations voted on a plan to stop the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, Israel has begun broadening its ground offensive in southern Lebanon.
Israeli Government spokesman Avi Pazner says the ground operation is "open-ended".
"This operation is aimed at preventing Hezbollah from firing rockets into northern Israel and is not limited in time," Mr Pazner said.
Several people have been killed in Israeli air attacks on the southern Lebanese cities of Sidon and Tyre.
Four times during the night Israel struck at the main southern city of Sidon, destroying a power plant.
Israel jets also hit a village to the east of Tyre, destroying a house.
During a second bombing run, bystanders who had gathered to survey the damage were hit, leaving about a dozen people dead or wounded.
The jets also targeted a key bridge at Akkar in the Bekaa Valley and minor roads nearby, as well as the coastal road north of Tripoli which leads on to Syria.
In another attack, Israeli aircraft fired rockets at a convoy of hundreds of cars carrying people fleeing southern Lebanon, killing at least seven and wounding 36.
The Israeli Army says it acted on the mistaken suspicion Hezbollah guerrillas were smuggling weapons in the vehicles and that it regretted any harm to non-combatants.
It says a military inquiry has concluded the convoy had been denied a request for permission to move but that it had set out anyway.
"The attack was carried out based on a suspicion. It was found to be incorrect," an Army spokeswoman said. UN resolution
Israel's Prime Minister and his Cabinet will discuss the Security Council's resolution tomorrow.
The resolution calls for a cessation of hostilities and the deployment of a 15,000-strong international force in Lebanon.
Resolution 1701, which was drafted by the United States and France, also calls for all Israeli troops to withdraw from southern Lebanon after an end to the fighting.
The timing for that is yet to be agreed by Lebanon and Israel.
The agreement calls for "a full cessation of hostilities based upon, in particular, the immediate cessation by Hezbollah of all attacks and the immediate cessation by Israel of all offensive military operations".
The Israeli ambassador to the UN, Dan Gillerman, says Israel is prepared to give the deal a chance.
"Israel like any state has the right and the duty to defend its citizens from Hezbollah's unprovoked attacks," he said.
"However, Israel is ready to respond to the calls of this council and to give another chance to the Government of Lebanon and the international community to create a new reality on the ground."
(Go Israel, Go! Slap 'Em Down Hezbullies.)
bump
...related.
US pressure prompts delay of [Israel's] offensive ("We do not want escalations" - White House)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1680983/posts
Israel Asks U.S. to Ship Rockets With Wide Blast-State Department seeks to delay supply
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1681771/posts
Bottom line Iran is not done with the Propaganda this is generating. Israel may stop their offensive however, Lebanon's military will not be able to stop the newly emboldened Hassan Nasrallah
Hopefully they will quickly run the bums out of the country, since they are not worthy of walking the same ground as the people!
Hmmm... Lets see if I got this right.
The Hezzies, knowing full well that a ground offensive was coming and that a peace deal was signed, went to ground so as not to be killed in the Israeli mop up.
The MSM and everyone else basically told the Hezzies where this attack was coming from. Even showed them pictures of the buildup.
The Hezzies already declared victory and the media basically said, yeah, you win.
So what are the Israelis actually doing for the next two days?
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