Israelis say offensive could last weeks

An Israeli Heavy artillery piece fires towards target’s in Southern Lebanon on Tuesday July 18,2006.

Israeli warplanes struck an army base outside Beirut in new bombings that killed 16 people.

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Israel Strikes Lebanon's Hapless Military

July 18, 2006

Israeli air strikes on a Lebanese army base in Kfar Chima killed 11 Lebanese soldiers and injured 35 others. The strike on the base, which is located outside of Beirut, is part of a growing number of attacks on Lebanon’s infrastructure. Today’s attack was not the first on Lebanese military sites. On Thursday, Israeli warplanes also dropped bombs on Lebanon’s main military air base in Rayak. Although no casualties were reported there, the strikes caused considerable damage to runways.

However, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has stated that a major condition for a cease-fire must include the deployment of the Lebanese Army along the border, which is currently under the control of Hezbollah. According to most analyses, the government and army of Lebanon are too weak to successfully challenge Hezbollah, and the latest bombing will only hamper efforts to do so.

Analysis by Margaret Griffis for Antiwar.com