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Israel Hints a Full Invasion
RockinInCanada
Posts: 2,016
So there is a hint of an invasion coming...talk about over over-kill....I think its time for the only man who can somewhat control Israel (which he may actually not and could be vice-versa) to step up and finally say enough is enough...this is disgusting....in Canada our PM should fucking do the same...instead of supporting this nonsense....
BEIRUT (AP) - Israeli troops met fierce resistance from Hezbollah guerrillas Thursday as they crossed into Lebanon to seek tunnels and weapons for a second straight day, and Israel hinted at a full-scale invasion.
Israel warned residents to flee a 30-kilometre swath of south Lebanon along the border. Its warplanes also launched new air strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, shortly after daybreak, followed by strikes in the guerrillas' heartland in the south and eastern Bekaa Valley.
The planes also bombed large parts of the south, from which Hezbollah guerrillas fired more rockets into Israel. On Wednesday, Israeli bombings killed as many as 70 people, according to Lebanese television, making it the deadliest day since the fighting began July 12.
A large fight between Israeli forces and Hezbollah guerrillas broke out Thursday evening on the Lebanese side of the border, the Israeli army said, adding that its troops suffered casualties but did not elaborate. Hezbollah's Al-Manar television said three Israeli soldiers were killed and 10 wounded in fighting.
The forces crossed the border as part of ongoing operations to push back Hezbollah guerrillas who have continued firing rockets into northern Israel despite more than a week of massive bombardment.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan told the Security Council that "hostilities must stop" between Israel and Hezbollah. He also condemned Israel's "excessive use of force" in Lebanon.
"There are serious obstacles to reaching a ceasefire or even to diminishing the violence quickly," Annan said.
The fighting had triggered a humanitarian crisis, he added. The UN estimated that about a half-million people have been displaced in Lebanon, with 130,000 fleeing to Syria and about 45,000 believed to be in need of assistance.
Russia sharply criticized Israel's onslaught, now in its ninth day, sparked when Hezbollah militants captured two Israeli soldiers. Moscow said Israel's actions have gone "far beyond the boundaries of an anti-terrorist operation."
At least 306 people have been killed in Lebanon since Israel's campaign began, according to Lebanese officials. At least 29 Israelis have been killed, including 14 soldiers.
About 40 U.S. marines landed in Beirut to help Americans onto the USS Nashville, which will carry 1,200 evacuees bound for Cyprus in the second mass U.S. exodus from Lebanon. It was the first U.S. military deployment in Lebanon in 22 years.
Thousands of Europeans also fled on ships, continuing one of the largest evacuation operations since the Second World War. An estimated 13,000 foreign nationals have been evacuated.
Hezbollah guerrillas fired 25 rockets into Israel on Thursday. Although they caused no casualties, the continued rocket barrage raised the question of whether Israeli air power alone can suppress them.
The guerrillas have been fighting back hard on the ground, wounding three Israeli soldiers. An Israeli unit sent in to ambush Hezbollah guerrillas also had a fierce gunbattle with a cell of militants.
In another clash, just across the border from the Israeli town of Avivim, guerrillas fired a missile at an Israeli tank, seriously wounding a soldier. Hezbollah said its guerrillas destroyed two tanks trying to enter the Lebanese border village of Maroun al-Ras, across from Avivim.
Israel has mainly limited itself to attacks from the air and sea, reluctant to send in ground troops on terrain dominated by Hezbollah.
But an Israeli army spokesman refused to rule out the possibility of a full-scale invasion. Israel broadcast warnings Wednesday into south Lebanon, telling civilians to leave, a possible prelude to a larger ground operation.
"There is a possibility; all our options are open. At the moment, it's a very limited, specific incursion but all options remain open," Capt. Jacob Dallal, an Israeli army spokesman, told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Leaflets dropped Wednesday night warned that any trucks travelling in Lebanese towns south of the Litani River would be suspected of carrying weapons and rockets and could be targeted by Israeli forces.
A Hezbollah official said it was "fully ready" for an Israeli ground offensive, dismissing Israeli claims to have destroyed half the guerrillas' arsenal of missiles. Mahmoud Koumati, deputy leader of Hezbollah's political bureau, told the Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. the group has enough missiles to fight Israel for "long months."
The Lebanese government is under international pressure to deploy troops in the south to rein in Hezbollah. But even before the fighting, many considered it too weak to do so without deeply fracturing the country.
Brig.-Gen. Ido Nehushtan insisted the Israeli army never targets civilians but has no way of knowing if they are in an area it is striking. "Civilians might be in the area because Hezbollah is operating from civilian territory," he said.
On Thursday, Israeli jets struck houses believed used by Hezbollah officials in the town of Hermel in the western Bekaa Valley, wounding at least three.
Israeli warplanes also destroyed a five-storey residential and commercial building that reportedly once held a Hezbollah office in the Bekaa Valley city of Baalbek, a Hezbollah stronghold, witnesses said. There was no immediate word on casualties.
The destruction and rising death toll deepened a rift between the United States and Europe. The U.S. administration is giving Israel a tacit green light to take the time it needs to neutralize Hezbollah, but the Europeans fear mounting civilian casualties will play into the hands of militants and weaken Lebanon's democratically elected government.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour, a Canadian, criticized the rising toll, saying the shelling was invariably killing innocent civilians.
"International law demands accountability," she said in Geneva. "The scale of the killings in the region, and their predictability, could engage the personal criminal responsibility of those involved, particularly those in a position of command and control."
The European Union on Thursday called for a ceasefire in southern Lebanon before international peacekeepers can be deployed, and pledged the equivalent of $14 million Cdn to help civilian victims of the conflict.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said the money would be dedicated to those in most urgent need "so that we can express our solidarity to the civilians that are suffering for this terrible conflict."
EDit: Missed seeing El's post about the exact samething...my bad!
BEIRUT (AP) - Israeli troops met fierce resistance from Hezbollah guerrillas Thursday as they crossed into Lebanon to seek tunnels and weapons for a second straight day, and Israel hinted at a full-scale invasion.
Israel warned residents to flee a 30-kilometre swath of south Lebanon along the border. Its warplanes also launched new air strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, shortly after daybreak, followed by strikes in the guerrillas' heartland in the south and eastern Bekaa Valley.
The planes also bombed large parts of the south, from which Hezbollah guerrillas fired more rockets into Israel. On Wednesday, Israeli bombings killed as many as 70 people, according to Lebanese television, making it the deadliest day since the fighting began July 12.
A large fight between Israeli forces and Hezbollah guerrillas broke out Thursday evening on the Lebanese side of the border, the Israeli army said, adding that its troops suffered casualties but did not elaborate. Hezbollah's Al-Manar television said three Israeli soldiers were killed and 10 wounded in fighting.
The forces crossed the border as part of ongoing operations to push back Hezbollah guerrillas who have continued firing rockets into northern Israel despite more than a week of massive bombardment.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan told the Security Council that "hostilities must stop" between Israel and Hezbollah. He also condemned Israel's "excessive use of force" in Lebanon.
"There are serious obstacles to reaching a ceasefire or even to diminishing the violence quickly," Annan said.
The fighting had triggered a humanitarian crisis, he added. The UN estimated that about a half-million people have been displaced in Lebanon, with 130,000 fleeing to Syria and about 45,000 believed to be in need of assistance.
Russia sharply criticized Israel's onslaught, now in its ninth day, sparked when Hezbollah militants captured two Israeli soldiers. Moscow said Israel's actions have gone "far beyond the boundaries of an anti-terrorist operation."
At least 306 people have been killed in Lebanon since Israel's campaign began, according to Lebanese officials. At least 29 Israelis have been killed, including 14 soldiers.
About 40 U.S. marines landed in Beirut to help Americans onto the USS Nashville, which will carry 1,200 evacuees bound for Cyprus in the second mass U.S. exodus from Lebanon. It was the first U.S. military deployment in Lebanon in 22 years.
Thousands of Europeans also fled on ships, continuing one of the largest evacuation operations since the Second World War. An estimated 13,000 foreign nationals have been evacuated.
Hezbollah guerrillas fired 25 rockets into Israel on Thursday. Although they caused no casualties, the continued rocket barrage raised the question of whether Israeli air power alone can suppress them.
The guerrillas have been fighting back hard on the ground, wounding three Israeli soldiers. An Israeli unit sent in to ambush Hezbollah guerrillas also had a fierce gunbattle with a cell of militants.
In another clash, just across the border from the Israeli town of Avivim, guerrillas fired a missile at an Israeli tank, seriously wounding a soldier. Hezbollah said its guerrillas destroyed two tanks trying to enter the Lebanese border village of Maroun al-Ras, across from Avivim.
Israel has mainly limited itself to attacks from the air and sea, reluctant to send in ground troops on terrain dominated by Hezbollah.
But an Israeli army spokesman refused to rule out the possibility of a full-scale invasion. Israel broadcast warnings Wednesday into south Lebanon, telling civilians to leave, a possible prelude to a larger ground operation.
"There is a possibility; all our options are open. At the moment, it's a very limited, specific incursion but all options remain open," Capt. Jacob Dallal, an Israeli army spokesman, told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Leaflets dropped Wednesday night warned that any trucks travelling in Lebanese towns south of the Litani River would be suspected of carrying weapons and rockets and could be targeted by Israeli forces.
A Hezbollah official said it was "fully ready" for an Israeli ground offensive, dismissing Israeli claims to have destroyed half the guerrillas' arsenal of missiles. Mahmoud Koumati, deputy leader of Hezbollah's political bureau, told the Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. the group has enough missiles to fight Israel for "long months."
The Lebanese government is under international pressure to deploy troops in the south to rein in Hezbollah. But even before the fighting, many considered it too weak to do so without deeply fracturing the country.
Brig.-Gen. Ido Nehushtan insisted the Israeli army never targets civilians but has no way of knowing if they are in an area it is striking. "Civilians might be in the area because Hezbollah is operating from civilian territory," he said.
On Thursday, Israeli jets struck houses believed used by Hezbollah officials in the town of Hermel in the western Bekaa Valley, wounding at least three.
Israeli warplanes also destroyed a five-storey residential and commercial building that reportedly once held a Hezbollah office in the Bekaa Valley city of Baalbek, a Hezbollah stronghold, witnesses said. There was no immediate word on casualties.
The destruction and rising death toll deepened a rift between the United States and Europe. The U.S. administration is giving Israel a tacit green light to take the time it needs to neutralize Hezbollah, but the Europeans fear mounting civilian casualties will play into the hands of militants and weaken Lebanon's democratically elected government.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour, a Canadian, criticized the rising toll, saying the shelling was invariably killing innocent civilians.
"International law demands accountability," she said in Geneva. "The scale of the killings in the region, and their predictability, could engage the personal criminal responsibility of those involved, particularly those in a position of command and control."
The European Union on Thursday called for a ceasefire in southern Lebanon before international peacekeepers can be deployed, and pledged the equivalent of $14 million Cdn to help civilian victims of the conflict.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said the money would be dedicated to those in most urgent need "so that we can express our solidarity to the civilians that are suffering for this terrible conflict."
EDit: Missed seeing El's post about the exact samething...my bad!
Post edited by Unknown User on
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Comments
As for Harper ... I don't know. He's being rather pig-headed about retracting his initial comments, but you know ... So? He's not really in a position to do anything about the crisis, beyond Canadian efforts to evacuate our citizens. Admittedly, the latter has sucked ... Too slow and inefficient. My view on why? We have no fucking military capacity to actually pull off such a mission, after years and years of defense cuts. People forget that "military spending" doesn't just mean buying bombs and tanks. It also means ensuring that our forces have the transport and other equipment necessary to intervene in situations like this. We are so pathetic that FRANCE has offered to help us get our own people out of there. I find this embarassing, in all honesty. And its not about Harper. Its about years of poor decision-making with regards to our armed forces.
Harper should have stayed neutral on the subject and just lamented the loss of life and infrasturcture.
when it hits you, you feel to pain.
So brutalize me with music.”
~ Bob Marley
Well, I do feel that our government should help out to the extent possible. I can see your point, in that one of my initial reactions to Canadians dying over there was "why the fuck were they still there to get killed"? Then, it occured to me that Israeli jets shot up the Beirut airport and there was probably no way for these people to leave even if they wanted to. I also see your point about taxes, but that is lower on my list of priorities than saving people's lives. I agree with your take on what Harper should have said.
when it hits you, you feel to pain.
So brutalize me with music.”
~ Bob Marley
Thats kind of cold man.
the bad idea or me befallen by it?