IDF Putting Explosives in Lebanese Apartment

In this photo released by the Israeli Defense Force, IDF, Israeli soldiers set up an explosive device in an apartment at the southern Lebanese village of Maroun al-Ras, Saturday, July 29, 2006. (AP Photo/Israeli Defense Force, Abir Sultan, HO)

State radio: Iran to reject U.N. proposal

Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, center, reviews the honor guard with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, left, during an official welcoming ceremony for Chavez in Tehran, Iran Saturday, July 29, 2006. Chavez arrived in Tehran Saturday on his fifth visit to the Islamic country where he will meet with his Iranian counterpart and fellow critic of the United States, Mahmoud Ahmedinejad. Chavez' two-day visit comes as Iran faces renewed international criticism for its nuclear program and as a backer of Hezbollah guerrillas, engaged in fighting with Israel since they captured to Israeli soldiers July 12. (AP Photo/Hasan Sarbakhshian)

July 29, 2006

By NASSER KARIMI, Associated Press Writer

TEHRAN, Iran - Iranian state radio said Saturday that the government would reject a proposed U.N. resolution that would give it until Aug. 31 to suspend uranium enrichment or face the threat of international sanctions.

"Iranians will not accept unfair decisions, even in the framework of resolutions by the international bodies," the commentary on state-run radio said.

There has been no official comment to the draft resolution, but state radio often is thought to provide the Iranian government line.

The resolution was formally circulated to the full 15-member U.N. Security Council late Friday and likely will be adopted next week.

"Ultimatum and deadline cannot be acceptable to us," the commentary said, accusing the United States and its allies of making what it called an illegal demand.

The commentary also said the draft might not be approved because of opposition by China.

Tehran said last week it would reply Aug. 22 to a Western incentive package, but the council decided to go ahead with a resolution and not wait for Iran's response.

The incentive package includes economic incentives and a provision for the United States to offer Iran some nuclear technology, lift some sanctions and join direct negotiations. The proposal also calls for Iran to impose a long-term moratorium on uranium enrichment — which can produce peaceful reactor fuel or fissile bomb material.

The U.S. and some of its allies accuse Iran of seeking nuclear weapons. Tehran maintains its program is purely peaceful and aimed at generating electricity.

Iran has said it will never give up its right under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty to enrich uranium and produce nuclear fuel but has indicated it may temporarily suspend large-scale activities to ease tensions.

Independent: Israel, a Terrorist State Like No Other

By Foreign News Desk
Thursday, July 27, 2006
zaman.com

British newspaper, The Independent, continuing its commentary on the Israeli attacks on Lebanon, published an article condemning the Tel Aviv administration.

In the article written by Dr. Oren Ben-Dor, who teaches the philosophy of law and political philosophy at the University of Southampton, he asks: “Who are the real terrorists in the Middle East?” to which he answers, “Israel.”

Dr. Ben-Dor defends that it is ‘the nature of the Israeli state’ that Israel is trying to protect by carrying out this military offensive; not its citizens as the Israeli administration claims.

Dr. Ben-Dor argues, “Israel's statehood is based on terrorism and to hide this primordial immorality, Israel fosters an image of victimhood.”

“Provoking violence, consciously or unconsciously, against which one must defend oneself is a key feature of the victim-mentality. By perpetuating such a tragic cycle, Israel is a terrorist state like no other,” he writes.

“In 1948, most of the non-Jewish indigenous people were ethnically cleansed from the part of Palestine which became Israel. […] Surely Holocaust memory and Jewish longing for Eretz Israel would not be sufficient to justify ethnic cleansing and ethnocracy,” he stresses.

The article highlights that Israel breeds the conditions of violence in an effort to preserve the impression of being a peace-seeking victim which has "no partner for peace," and that it continually carries out efforts to displace indigenous Palestinians; leaving them no option but to resort to violent resistance.

Ben-Dor wrote that the recent violence in the region reinforces the Israeli victim mentality and the sacred cow status of Israeli statehood.

“The truth is that there never could have been a partition of Palestine by ethically acceptable means. Israel was created through terror and it needs terror to cover-up its core immorality. Whenever there is a glimmer of stability, the state orders a targeted assassination, such as that in Sidon which preceded the current Lebanon crisis, knowing well that this brings not security but more violence. Israel's unilateralism and the cycle of violence nourish one another.”

The writer, calling on the international community to raise its voice against the continuing Israeli violence, ends the article with a warning: “Silence about the immoral core of Israeli statehood makes us all complicit in breeding the terrorism that threatens a catastrophe which could tear the world apart.”

Belgian Jewish Leader: Israel Committing War Crimes

July 28, 2006

The Jewish Advocate

By Selcuk Gultasli

Jewish associations have begun to react against the Israeli offensive into Lebanon. Head of the Union of Belgian Jewish Progressives (UPJB) Dr. Jacques Ravedovitch stated that Israel is committing war crimes in Lebanon.

In an interview with Zaman in Brussels, Ravedovitch said that while former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon committed indirect war crimes, current Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is unquestionably a war criminal.

Dr. Ravedovitch said it is a shame that Jews who were once exposed to the holocaust are doing the same evil things against another nation today. According to Ravedovitch, anti-Semitism is from time to time misused by Israeli statesman, and the recently intensified Israeli offensive into Lebanon has increased hatred for Israel.

The UPJB demands that both the EU and Belgium bring the Israeli attacks to an end.

UPJB, an active Jewish Association in Belgium, accuses Israel of committing war crimes despite the statements issued by the EU and US.

Some Jews still have dreams of a “Great Israel,” Ravedovitch noted, adding that the Israeli government is absolutely against negotiations and is acting aggressively to impose its own interests as a solution.

Seen as a traitor to the Diaspora cause, Ravdeovitch said: “Peace will not be secured without the return of Israel to its pre-1967 borders. Israel should stop destroying Lebanon. It should leave Eastern Jerusalem to the Palestinians and accept that Jerusalem is the common capital; they should sit at the negotiation table for talks.”

Calling the Israeli attacks shameful, Ravedovitch said: “Resistance in Palestine and Lebanon is justified. Israel is an invader. I do not approve of Hamas killing innocent people, but I defend that if there are invaders there will be resistance at the same time. What Israel is doing in Lebanon is terror.”

Accusing the West, and particularly Europe, of fearing to criticize Israel, Ravedovitch said: “The EU keeps saying that they treat Israel and Palestine equally, but how can we behave equally towards both the invader and the invadee? We asked the EU to suspend the Partnership Agreement with Israel, but they didn’t answer.”

Ravedovitch said the EU’s attitude indicates Europe still feels guilty about the holocaust, but that Israel is exploiting anti-Semitism.

He pointed out that anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism are different concepts.

“Anti-Zionism is a political stance. For instance, when a person criticizes Britain, he shouldn’t be called racist or anti- British. Similarly, when people criticize Israel, they do not become anti-Semites.”

The last point Ravedovitch compared the situation to the US’s failure in Vietnam, and suggested that it’s impossible for Israel to attain its objectives in Lebanon as the latest attacks into Lebanon only increased the hatred against Israel tenfold.

Belgian Jewish Leader: Israel Committing War Crimes

Army of Ansar Al Sunnah Attacks an Iraqi National Guard Recruitment Center

July 28, 2006

Video Part 1

Video Part 2



The Army of Ansar Alsunnah, an Iraqi Resistance group, released a 19 minute video showing a raid on an Iraqi National Guard Recruitment center.

The video shows the group capturing members of the Iraqi center and then executing them on the streets.

The video then ends with the resistance entering the building and destroying the recruitment center with explosives.

The main point of this attack was that the recruitment officer’s were working for the American’s, who are considered the enemy in Iraq.

The destruction of the building was so it couldn’t possibly be used again.

On Patrol in Beirut

An armed man patrols in a Beirut suburb after it was hit by air strikes on Friday. (AFP)

International Criticism Conference: Israeli/Lebanon War

International Criticism Conference expresses solidarity with Lebanon

An IDF M109 self-propelled howitzer fires into Southern Lebanon.

July 28, 2006

Amman-Ma'an- Participants in the 11th International Criticism Conference denounced the Israeli aggression against Lebanon and expressed their solidarity with the Lebanese people and government.

The participants, who represent 13 Arab and Islamic countries, confirmed that this conference is an unusual event in both academic and ideological perspectives. The conference, they said, revealed the common challenges that face the Arab criticism in both the East and the West.The conference was held at the Jordanian University of Petra, and more than 80 researchers, thinkers and academics took part.

Nasrallah's Promise Proves True

July 28, 2007

Ma'an- Hezbollah declared that for the first time it fired rockets called Khaybar 1 towards the Israeli city of Afula which lies 50 kilometers from the Lebanese borders.

They said in a statement that "in fulfillment of promises and in retaliation for the Zionist enemies' aggression, programmed destruction of buildings and targeting civilians, the Islamic resistance has launched five Khaybar 1 missiles towards the Israeli city of Afula after Haifa."

Israeli TV said that the rocket which hit Afula carried 100 kg of explosives. The Israeli police said that it is the first time they have encountered this kind of rocket.

More than 60 rockets landed in Israel since Friday morning. The rockets landed in Kiryat Shmona and the Arab villages of Bqi'a, and Tarshiha in the north. Eight people were lightly injured in Bqi'a, two in Kiryat Shmona in addition to destruction of property.

Link:

Who is Hassan Nasrallah?

More Economy Strangulation for Consumer’s?

Economy slows sharply, inflation heats up

July 28, 2006

By JEANNINE AVERSA, AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON - The economy's growth slowed sharply in the second quarter, logging just a 2.5 percent pace as consumers tightened their belts and spending on home building nose-dived. Inflation, however, shot up.

The latest snapshot of gross domestic product released by the Commerce Department on Friday showed that the overall pace of economic activity in the April-to-June quarter was less than half that of the January-to-March quarter, when the economy zipped along at a 5.6 percent annual rate, the fastest in 2 1/2 years.

Gross domestic product measures the value of all goods and services produced within the United States and is considered the best barometer of the country's economic standing.

"The economy has significantly throttled back but inflation pressures are developing more fully," observed Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Economy.com

On Wall Street, though, stocks rallied on the hope that slowing growth would convince the Federal Reserve to take a break from raising interest rates. The Dow Jones industrials were up 84 points and the Nasdaq gained 25 points in morning trading.

The second-quarter's performance — which reflected the bite of high energy prices and rising interest rates on people and businesses as well as a cooling in the once red-hot housing market — was weaker than the 3 percent pace analysts were forecasting.

The 2.5 percent pace was the slowest since a 1.8 percent growth rate in final quarter of 2005, when the economy was suffering fallout from the devastating Gulf Coast hurricanes.

Even though the economy cooled in the second quarter, inflation heated up.

An inflation gauge closely watched by the Federal Reserve showed that core prices — excluding food and energy — jumped at a 2.9 percent annual rate in the second quarter — far outside the Fed's comfort zone. That was up from a 2.1 percent growth rate in the first quarter and marked the highest inflation reading since the third quarter of 1994, when core inflation rose at a 3.2 percent pace.

The inflation reading was taken before the latest run-up in energy prices. Oil prices hit a record closing high of $77.03 a barrel on July 14. Gasoline prices also have marched higher, topping $3 a gallon in many areas.

In a separate report from the Labor Department, employers' costs to hire and retain workers picked up in the second quarter, a development that also could raise some inflation concerns.

Compensation costs — including wages and benefits — rose by 0.9 percent in the April-to-June period, up from a 0.6 percent increase in the first quarter. Economists were calling for a 0.8 percent rise.

Although Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he is concerned about rising inflation, he told Congress last week that the Fed believes moderating economic activity will eventually lessen inflation pressures.

That assessment raised hopes on Wall Street that the Fed might take a breather in its two-year-old rate-raising campaign at its next meeting, on Aug. 8. Some economists, however, continue to predict that rates will be bumped up again at the August meeting to ward off inflation; after that, they think the Fed may move to the sidelines.

The report comes as President Bush is getting low marks from the public for his handling of the economy, according to a recent AP-Ipsos poll.

With energy prices and borrowing costs rising, consumers turned cautious in the second quarter.

They boosted their spending at just a 2.5 percent pace, down from a 4.8 percent growth rate in the first quarter. Much of the weakness was in consumers' appetite for big-ticket goods, such as cars and appliances.

Businesses also tightened the belt.

Spending on home building was cut by 6.3 percent in the second quarter, the deepest dip in nearly six years — since the third quarter of 2000. Rising mortgage rates are clipping demand.

Businesses sliced spending on equipment and software at a 1 percent pace, the first cut in just over three years.

Government spending also was more subdued, growing at a pace of just 0.6 percent in the second quarter, compared with a 4.9 percent growth rate in the first quarter. The federal government cut spending in the second quarter, while state and local governments boosted spending.

As the economy has moderated, so has job creation.

For the April-to-June quarter, employers added an average of 108,000 jobs a month, the government reported earlier this month. That's down from the average of 176,000 a month for the January-to-March period.

Along with the latest GDP report, the government issued annual revisions that showed economic growth was slightly less than previously estimated for 2003, 2004 and 2005. The main reason for the downgrade: business investment in computer equipment and software wasn't as strong as previously thought.

As a result, the economy last year grew by 3.2 percent, rather than 3.5 percent. In 2004, economic activity expanded by 3.9 percent, instead of 4.2 percent. And in 2003, the economy's growth was 2.5 percent, versus 2.7 percent.

The revisions also showed that core inflation rose by 2.1 percent for all of 2005, a tad higher than the 2 percent reading previously estimated. Core inflation for 2004 was unchanged at 2 percent but was pushed up a notch to 1.4 percent for 2003.

Bush’s Foot on Land Mine over the Middle East?

Bush cites Iran's role in Lebanon conflict


President Bush pauses before answering questions during his meeting with the President of Romania Traian Basescu, in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, July 27, 2006 in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

July 27, 2006

By JENNIFER LOVEN, Associated Press Writer

President Bush declined Thursday to criticize Israel's tactics in its continuing offensive against Hezbollah guerrillas in southern Lebanon, and gave a sharp condemnation of Iran's role in the bloody fighting.

"Hezbollah attacked Israel. I know Hezbollah is connected to Iran," Bush said tersely at the end of Oval Office meetings with Romanian President Traian Basescu. "Now is the time for the world to confront this danger," Bush said.

The president was responding to statements from top Israeli officials that fighting could continue for several weeks more. Israeli Justice Minister Haim Ramon said world leaders, in failing to call for an immediate cease-fire during a Rome summit, gave Israel a green light to push harder to wipe out Hezbollah.

Bush said he hoped to see the violence end "as quickly as possible" and repeated his call for Israel to try to limit the impact on civilians. But he suggested that the Israeli campaign has his support for as long as it takes to eliminate Hezbollah's influence in Lebanon and its ability to attack neighbor Israel.

"Now is the time to address the root cause of the problem and the root cause of the problem is terrorist groups trying to stop the advance of democracy," he said. "Our objective is to make sure that those who use terrorist tactics are not rewarded."

The Israeli offensive, which began after Hezbollah crossed the border and captured two Israeli soldiers, continued Thursday as Bush spoke. Israeli jets pounded suspected Hezbollah positions across Lebanon on Thursday, and guerrilla rockets continued to hit northern Israel.

In response, the al-Qaida terrorist network threatened new attacks, its first comment on fighting now in its third week. The videotape by Osama bin Laden deputy Ayman al-Zawahri also was the first sign that al-Qaida aimed to exploit Israel's two-pronged offensive — against Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas-linked militants in Gaza — to rally Islamic militants.

"I'm not surprised people who use terrorist tactics would start speaking out," the president said. "Here's a fellow who is in a remote region of the world putting out statements basically encouraging people to use terrorist tactics to kill innocent people to achieve their political objectives. And the United States of America stands strong against Mr. Zawahri and his types."

The United States is isolated on the crisis from most of its allies, who want an immediate cease-fire to end the fighting. Washington is willing to give Israel more time to weaken Hezbollah, whose principal backers are Syria and Iran.

Talks are continuing about the makeup of an international peacekeeping force with State Department counselor Philip Zelikow working in Brussels with European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana and his staff, White House press secretary Tony Snow said. The United States believes the Lebanese army also should be strengthened so it can disarm Hezbollah.

Amid plans for consultations at the United Nations, two U.S. Middle East envoys also were continuing diplomatic talks in the region. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice may return to the Middle East this weekend.

"Whatgever is done diplomatically must address the root cause and the root cause is terrorist activites," Bush said. "I view this as a clash of forms of government."

Source

Ayman al-Zawahiri's Video Message Against Israel

July 27, 2006

Video

Al-Jazeera released a video today from Al-Qaeda's second in command calling for Low Jihad against Israel.

In the video he issues key points stating that the reach of Al Qaeda encompasses the entire globe and the conflict with Israel and Lebanon cannot be ended by ceasefires or treaties.

Related Story:

Al-Qaeda calls for holy war against Israel

Islamic Link:

Islam, Jihad, and Terrorism

Police detain panda cub fur smuggler

A newly-born panda cub is seen on the back of its mother at the Wolong Giant Panda Protection Center, in southwest China's Sichuan province, July 22, 2006. A 16-year-old panda named Bai Xue gave birth to the 160-gram female cub on July 22. The panda cub was the first to be born at the Wolong center this year. Picture taken July 22, 2006. CHINA OUT REUTERS/China Daily (CHINA)


As far back as I can remember the Panda has always been an endangered animal and the following story I found a bit heart breaking.

July 24, 2006

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese police have detained a man trying to sell the fur of a young panda -- seen as a national treasure in the country -- for about $30,000, the official Xinhua news agency said Monday.

The man, surnamed Yang, was caught when he was about to finish the 250,000 yuan ($31,310) sale in the southeastern port city of Xiamen, Xinhua said.

"The fur is 60 centimetres (24 inches) long and belonged to a panda cub," it quoted experts as saying.

Yang and his accomplice, who is wanted by police, bought the fur with 6,000 yuan seven years ago from a man in the country's southwest where most pandas live, the report said, adding police also found the pelt of a clouded leopard with Yang.

The giant panda is one of the world's most exotic and endangered species and is found only in China. An estimated 1,500 wild pandas live in isolated nature reserves in Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces.

Xinhua did not say what charges Yang would face, but poachers and smugglers of endangered animals could be jailed for more than 10 years and fined in China.

Five Killed in Gaza Attacks

At least 150 Gazans have died since the Israeli assault began

28 July 2006

Israeli attacks have killed five civilians in the Gaza Strip, a day after fighting that left 24 Palestinians dead, Palestinian medical workers and witnesses have said.


A 75-year-old woman was hit by shrapnel from an Israeli tank shell fired at her house near the town of Jebaliya.

Later on Thursday, a 12-year-old boy was killed by Israeli gunfire as he stood on the roof of his house at the edge of the Jebaliya camp.

Two civilians, aged 16 and 23, were killed in an air strike in eastern Gaza City.

An 18-year-old man was hit when a tank shell fell near his house in northern Gaza.

Also on Thursday, Israeli troops surrounded a house in the West Bank city of Jenin. Residents said they opened fire at stone throwers, slightly wounding two.

At least 150 Palestinians, about half of them fighters, have been killed since the Israeli assault on Gaza began after the capture of an Israeli soldier by Palestinian fighters in a cross-border raid on June 25.

Wednesday's toll was the highest since Israeli troops returned to the territory last month, less than a year after they withdrew after a 38-year occupation.

Demands rejected

Israel's offensive into Gaza to end cross-border rocket attacks has largely been overshadowed by fighting against Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon, but shows no sign of slackening.

Early on Wednesday, tanks and troops pushed into north-eastern Gaza, a stronghold of fighters firing rockets into Israel.

Fighters have also kept up attacks with homemade rockets despite the Israeli offensive.

Israel has rejected demands for a prisoner exchange by the fighters who captured Corporal Gilad Shalit in the raid, in which two other Israeli soldiers and two Palestinian fighters were killed.

Some of those involved in the kidnapping were from the armed wing of the governing Hamas group.

Source

Humanitarianism in Israeli Prison’s?

Longest incarcerated Jordanian prisoner in Israel transferred because of health collapse

July 26, 2006

Amman-Ma'an-The head of the Committee for Jordanian prisoners' families, Salih Al-Ajloni, announced that the longest detained Jordanian prisoner in Israeli jails, Sultan Al-Ajloni, was transferred from Ramla prison hospital to another Israeli hospital, Assaf Harofeh, because of a collapse in his health condition.

The lawyer of The Prisoner's Supporters Society, Muhammad 'Abda, visited the Jordanian prisoner to check up on his health. A medical report showed that he suffered from fever for a month which is a sign that severe enteritis has caused a hole in his intestine. He urgently needs surgery.

Ajloni was arrested after an operation he performed while he was 17 years old in retaliation for the Al-Aqsa massacre of 1990.

In the Israeli jails there are 30 Jordanian detainees of whom 8 are sentenced to life imprisonment. Four of those prisoners were abducted before Oslo: Sultan Al-Ajloni, Amin As-Sani', Salem and Khalid Abu Ghalyon. In addition, there are 25 Jordanians whose fate remains unknown and Israel does not acknowledge killing or capturing them.

A Joint Wedding Ceremony Broken Up by Israeli Police

July 27, 2006

Jerusalem- Ma'an- Israeli police were hit by a state of panic following the announcement of a Turkish-Palestinian organization to hold a joint marriage ceremony for 76 young couples on Thursday afternoon on the Al Haram Al Sharif, the courtyard of the Dome of the Rock and the Al Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem.

The police had issued a decree prohibiting the Turkish-Palestinian organization, "Ofoq-Mafar", from holding the celebration, and rushed to deploy a large number of policemen at the gates of the Old City and at the gates of the Al Aqsa Mosque. The police then prevented citizens from entering the Al Haram compound.

The police arrested seven of the bridegrooms and took them to the Al Qashlah police station inside the Old City's walls.

Police also set up checkpoints outside the Old City and checked citizens' IDs in order to prevent spouses and guests from entering and participating in the wedding. The ceremony was scheduled to start after the noon prayers under the slogan "Happiness despite the wounds".

The Ma'an correspondent in Jerusalem reported that there was "a state of confusion and uncertainty" among the police and said that they acted in an unprecedented and extraordinary manner regarding this celebration. The organizers said that the aim of the celebration was to encourage young people to marry.

The police justified their measures saying that the organizers of the wedding were intending to carry out acts of protest after completing the joint wedding ceremony.

Note:

Whether or not the wedding party planned to carry out any form of protesting was never really clarified, just this was another Israeli excuse to stop the weddings.

Being married in Islam is very important and this time of year it is very common for numerous marriages to take place, myself I was remarried this very month.

Also, I can greatly understand anyone wishing to be married at the Al Aqsa Mosque in particular because it is one of the most holiest sights in Islam and as far as the Israeli police stopping or arresting anyone was unwarranted harassment which occurs to many times among the Israeli’s against the Palestinians.

Also it is kind of ironic for me that these people were Turkish-Palestinian group because I to have Turkish in me and yes I am a true Palestinian. I say this with a very large smile.

My Senses

I watch the sun as it rises from the sea
O, thank you Allah, for blessing me
Thank you, my Lord, for giving me sight
With awe, I praise You, Your Glory, Your Might

I smell sweet aromas, the flowers, the rain
I thank You, Allah, again and again
Thank You, my Lord, for my sense of smell
Your Mercies, Your Bounties, I know so well

I hear birds chirping, sounds near and far,
I thank You, most Loving, most Gracious Allah
Thank You, my Lord, for making me hear
Your Power, Your Majesty, I shall always fear

I eat fresh fruit, some honey, a date
O, thank You, Allah, for my sense of taste
Thank You, my Lord, for the gifts You’ve given me
I am grateful to You, my Creator, eternally

I touch a rosebud, so perfect, so lovely
O, thank You, Allah, I pray gratefully
Thank You, my Lord, for my sense of touch
I am indebted to You, my Creator, for so much

What would I do, if I lost every sense?
I’d be in a black hole, in a thick cloud so dense
My Gracious Allah, You have been so kind to me
I can touch, and taste, hear, and smell and see!

Author Unknown

Prince Turki: Palestinian-Israeli crisis must be resolved

July 24, 2006

Saudi Ambassador to the US Prince Turki Al-Faisal stressed the importance of resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in an address titled “Considerations for a New Age of Diplomacy” at the Georgetown University President’s Classroom Future World Leaders Summit last night.

In his remarks, Prince Turki said that globalization and the advent of the Information Age has brought about an increasing global interdependency and changed the face of diplomacy.

“The old rules no longer apply. We now live in a world in which national borders are blurred, hierarchies have been flattened, and ambiguity about our allies is heightened,” he said.

As a result, today’s challenges require international cooperation, he said: “Nations can no longer define their strength solely by individual might; they must define it by the level of cooperation they can achieve to reach their goals.”

A prime example of the need for greater cooperation among nations is the current crisis in Lebanon, Prince Turki remarked. He also warned that the situation in Lebanon has grown out of the deeper problem, which is the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

“The situation in Lebanon should not be allowed to be a distraction from the fact that we all know what the solution to this deeper conflict is,” Prince Turki said. “The Palestinians know it; the Israelis know it; the Americans know it; the Saudis know it. It is a two-state solution, primarily dealing with a piece of territory that will have to be settled between these two peoples.”

The ambassador called on the United States to move the peace process ahead. Saudi Arabia in particular supports the Arab Peace Intiative proposed by then-Crown Prince Abdullah at Beirut in 2002, he noted.

“In this new age of diplomacy – in which the problems of one nation or one people are the problems of the world – it is imperative we truly consider how our political decisions impact the people, not just of our particular nations but those of the global community,” he said.

“Because it is their well being that is ultimately affected. And it is within their power to create change.”

Source

__________________________________

Link:

Saudi Arabia Announces Massive Aid Package to Lebanon, Palestine to Help Relief Efforts

PM orders probe into killing of 4 UN men, blasts Annan for saying it was deliberate

July 27, 2006

By Haaretz Correspondents and Agencies, By Amos Harel, Yoav Stern and Yuval Azoulay

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has informed United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan that he has ordered a thorough investigation into an Israel Air Force strike on a UN position in southern Lebanon that killed four UN observers early yesterday morning.

Following a preliminary Israel Defense Forces investigation yesterday, the army said that it was responsible for the deaths of the four peacekeepers. The IDF said that it was continuing to investigate the incident and that arrangements were being made for the evacuation of the bodies of the four dead through Israel.

During a telephone conversation with the Annan yesterday, Olmert expressed ?deep sorrow? for the mistaken killing of the four peacekeepers and promised to share the results of the IDF investigation with the secretary-general.

Olmert also voiced criticism yesterday of a statement by Annan that Israel had deliberately targeted the UN position. ?It?s inconceivable for the UN to define an error as an apparently deliberate action,? Olmert said.

The four dead UN observers were officers from Austria, Canada, China and Finland.

Later in the day, Olmert called Finnish Prime Minister Matti Vahanen and expressed his sorrow for the death of the Finnish officer.

The four UN observers were killed when a bomb directly struck the building and shelter of an Indian patrol base in the town of Khiyam, near the eastern end of the border with Israel, said Milos Struger, spokesman for the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, UNIFIL.

At UN headquarters in New York, Annan said he was ?trying to get the details? of the attack. According to details of a preliminary UN report on the incident released yesterday, the peacekeepers called the IDF 10 times in a six-hour period to ask it to halt its nearby bombing before their observation post was hit.

The peacekeepers at the post said the area within a kilometer of the post was hit with precision munitions, including 17 bombs and 12 artillery shells, four of which directly hit the post on Tuesday, the report said.

Ireland?s Foreign Ministry said on yesterday that an Irish army officer in south Lebanon had warned the IDF six times that its attacks in the area were putting the lives of UN observers at risk.

?On six separate occasions he was in contact with the Israelis to warn them that their bombardment was endangering the lives of UN staff in south Lebanon,? a Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman said.

?He warned: ?You have to address this problem or lives may be lost,?? the spokesman said of comments by a senior Irish soldier working as a liaison officer between UN forces in South Lebanon and the IDF.

U.S. promotes alternative plan as Rome meet fails

July 27, 2006

By Assaf Uni?and Yoav Stern

The Rome summit on the situation in Lebanon ended with no clear results yesterday, after the United States shot down a joint European-Arab demand for an immediate cease-fire.

The 18 participants, including the U.S., Russia and European and Arab states, issued a joint statement expressing their ?determination to work immediately to reach with the utmost urgency a cease-fire that puts an end to the current violence and hostilities.? The statement, which was being hashed out until the last moment, also called for an international force to be deployed in South Lebanon under a UN mandate in order to help the Beirut government implement Security Council Resolution 1559, which calls for disarming Hezbollah and deploying the Lebanese army in the south. The statement also called for humanitarian aid to Lebanon.

The U.S., which fiercely opposed the calls for an immediate cease-fire, has been working on its own proposal for solving the conflict in Lebanon. Its initiative calls for Israel?s withdrawal from the Shaba Farms and a deployment of NATO forces to guarantee Hezbollah?s disarmament.

The London-based Arabic newspaper Al-Hayat quoted Lebanese sources yesterday as saying that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice presented this proposal to officials in Beirut earlier this week.

While the U.S. initiative calls for transferring control of Shaba Farms to Lebanon, it stipulates that the permanent international border will not be determined if Syria continues to refuse to agree on the boundaries of this area. The UN is to be in charge of handing Shaba Farms over to Lebanon. Beirut claims that the international border in this area would extend Lebanon?s territory a few dozen kilometers into the Golan Heights. Syria has been keeping mum on its territorial demands in this area.

The American proposal also calls for a 20-kilometer-wide strip of southern Lebanon, starting at the Israeli border, to be declared a no-go zone for Hezbollah. An international force headed by NATO commanders, with authority to use both deterrent and offensive force, would be deployed in this strip to monitor and stabilize the situation. Ninety days after being deployed, this force would become a part of the UN-sponsored force, with the option of incorporating the UNIFIL troops currently serving in southern Lebanon.

One of the international force?s most difficult assignments will be to ensure that the Lebanese army controls all the weapons in the country. This would involve making the international force responsible for disarming Hezbollah and the Palestinian militias operating in Lebanon. The force would also monitor the Lebanese-Syrian border, an Israeli demand whose aim is to prevent Syria from continuing to supply Hezbollah with weapons.


According to Lebanese sources, Rice added Israel?s withdrawal from Shaba Farms to the initiative under pressure from Lebanese officials, including Prime Minister Fuad Siniora. However, neither Rice nor Lebanese leaders made statements to the media following her visit, the atmosphere of which was described as ?tense.?

Syria, meanwhile, reiterated its willingness to contribute to an arrangement in Lebanon yesterday. Foreign Minister Walid Muallem told the Italian newspaper La Repubblica: ?We are ready to intervene and take a positive role. We ask the U.S. to pressure Israel to agree to a cease-fire and prisoner release.?


Source

Link:

Saudi Arabia: Foreign Minister attends Rome conference on Lebanon

GAO: Terror groups could easily buy military items in U.S.

July 25, 2006

WASHINGTON — U.S. defense contractors sell surplus military equipment to virtually any buyer, a new government report said.

The Government Accountability Office has determined that sensitive surplus military equipment sought by Al Qaida-aligned groups could be easily purchased in the United States. The GAO report said the components included launcher mounts for shoulder-fired missiles and guided missile radar test sets.

"Many of the other military items have weapons applications that would also be useful to terrorists," GAO said.

The congressional watchdog sent investigators to purchase U.S. military surplus equipment from defense contractors. In June, two GAO investigators purchased $1.1 million worth of body armor inserts used by troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, an all-band antenna to track aircraft, and a digital signal converter for naval surveillance.

"The body armor could be used by terrorists or other criminal activity," the report said.

This was the latest in a series of GAO investigations that reported the Pentagon's failure to control the sale of military surplus. A House subcommittee has scheduled a hearing on the issue on Tuesday.

"Based on GAO's most recent undercover investigation it looks like the store is still open," House defense subcommittee chairman Rep. Christopher Shays said. "We've seen partial changes that have resulted in over $34 million savings, but they still have a long way to go to make this system functional."

The report said surplus equipment meant for destruction was sold to the public. GAO said the components — including circuit cards used in U.S. Navy systems, a cesium technology timing unit with global positioning capabilities and 12 digital microcircuits used in F-14 fighter-jets — were sold at tremendous discounts.

In all, at least 2,669 sensitive military items were sold to 79 buyers in 216 transactions from November 2005 to June 2006. GAO concluded that the Pentagon failed to enforce regulations to prevent the sale of such equipment.

"DoD has not enforced security controls for preventing sensitive excess military equipment from release to the public," the report said. "GAO was able to purchase these items because controls broke down at virtually every step in the excess property turn-in and disposal process."

Israel Fakes a Provocation

(the "kidnapping" of Cpl Gilad Shalit)


The Washington Monthly


The following passages in italics are from

Soldier kidnapped and two killed in Gaza tunnel attack

Last night two Israeli soldiers were killed and another kidnapped in a dawn attack by Palestinian militants who tunnelled under Gazas heavily protected border.

The attackers, believed to number seven or eight, surprised Israeli forces when they appeared at first light through a tunnel on open ground 300 yards inside Israel near a kibbutz.

Gaza is built on old semi-consolidated sand dunes. It is extremely unlikely that anyone could tunnel 500, or more, yards in the sandy ground of Gaza (300 yards into Israel plus 200 yards of no-mans land plus more to the tunnel entrance), without the tunnel collapsing at some point.

They split into three groups before launching simultaneous attacks on three Israeli defensive positions - a look-out tower, plus a tank and an armoured personnel carrier, both dug in, facing Gaza.

If you were only seven or eight, would you split into three groups? If you were only two, or three, would you attack a tank over flat ground, manned by four soldiers waiting inside to kill you?

They blew open the tanks rear doors with a missile fired from point-blank range before tossing grenades inside. Two of the tank crew died and another was severely wounded but the final crew member, the gunner, was forced out of the wreckage at gunpoint.

The rear doors are blown off and a few grenades popped inside. Tanks are not made to fall apart. Blowing off the rear doors would have taken a blast sufficient to seriously hurt those inside. The grenades would have then made mincemeat of them. One wonders if it is standard practice to wear a bulletproof vest inside a hot tank. One would think that the tank would be bulletproof enough not to require such a vest. Can Israeli tanks stop bullets, or not?

Later reports, from the New York Times and Guardian, tell use that Shalit suffered only minor injuries to his abdomen and one arm, even though everyone else in the tank was severely wounded or killed. Shalit would have been less than three feet away from those killed (there is no spare room in a tank).

Israeli trackers said they found his blood-stained bulletproof vest close to the Gaza perimeter fence.

The militants force Shalit to take off his bulletproof vest and leave it close to the Gaza concentration camp fence, in order to help the Israelis with their investigation.

By the way, whose blood is it on his bulletproof vest? Since later reports indicate it wasn't his, I guess he had the other soldiers blood and guts all over him. This means that he was very close to those killed by the grenades, which means he should have been severely injured, or killed, himself.

Meanwhile, two other militants attacked a nearby concrete watchtower.... The troop carrier was also damaged in another attack but it was unoccupied. The attackers then escaped back into Gaza by cutting their way through the perimeter fence.

Interestingly, the attackers escaped easily by cutting through the (electrified) perimeter fence, yet cutting through the perimeter fence in order to get in, was so hard to do, that they burrowed through half a mile of sandy ground instead. Something wrong with this story, perhaps?

After all this commotion, the soldiers in all the nearby Gaza concentration camp guard-towers, manage to miss a few Arabs running the 300 yards, over flat ground, back to the perimeter fence, miss them when they cut through it, and miss them running across no-mans land to safety. And why, you may ask, did they not return through the tunnel they had painstakingly dug? Perhaps, they wanted to prove the total incompetence of the Israeli soldiers.

If you believe this sad tale, I have a bridge to sell you.

The Hamas political leadership sought to distance itself from the incident last night when a spokesman said it had no knowledge of the fate of Cpl Shilat. Ghazi Hamad, a spokesman, said: "We are calling on the resistance groups, if they do have the missing soldier to protect his life and treat him well."

Yes, the Hamas political leadership had no idea of the fate of Cpl Shilat, as the story is a total fabrication.

If you are not already convinced that the whole story is a fabrication, ask yourself; What were the four Israeli soldiers doing in the tiny confines of that dug-in tank? Ask your self; How long were they going to continue sitting in that tank? All day perhaps, or till they roasted in the desert sun? Or, till another group of four took over on the next shift? And of course, having four soldiers in just one tank, wont provide a defense, so there will have to be hundreds of tanks and hundreds of soldiers all sitting in these tanks,...

all waiting,... all waiting,... all waiting,.... for exactly what?

Waiting for Palestinian children to throw stones at them, perhaps? Perhaps, waiting attentively for militants to dig a half mile tunnel through sandy soil, pop up, and rush them over flat ground, but not attentively enough to see them approach? Perhaps, they were waiting for the Egyptian army to materialize, Star Trek like, from their bases hundreds of miles away on the other side of the Suez canal? I don't know ... you tell me why?

Yes, the story is a total fabrication. A fake provocation to start a war.

________________________________________

What Really Happened


Note:

This article found it’s way into my email and thought it would be interesting for my reader’s to see.

Families plea for kidnapped soldiers

Video

Jul. 26 - The family of an Israeli soldier captured by Hizbollah has spoken out against the war.

The mother, brother and father-in-law of Ehud Goldwasser gave a news conference in Paris, together with the brother of Eldad Regev. They claim the Israeli army won't help them find their children.

Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev were taken prisoner by Hizbollah militants in a cross-border raid on July 12th, sparking a bombing campaign by Israel aimed at shutting down the militant organization.

Sonia Legg reports.

SOUNDBITE: (English) Ehud Goldwasser's father-in-law, Omri Avni

SOUNDBITE: Israeli soldier, Tommer Weinberg, saying (Hebrew with French translations):''It was a quiet day. Everything was normal. Then we were caught in a Hizbollah ambush. They shot at us from all sides. Two of my friends, who were in the same truck as me were kidnapped by Hizbollah. Everyone in the second truck was killed.''

SOUNDBITE: Ehud Goldwasser's mother, Malka Goldwasser, saying (Hebrew):''I don't want war. I have three sons and I want them at home. I want to have grandchildren - I want a normal life. And I am certain there are many Lebanese who think the same thing.''

Bush Administration Delivering Precision-guided Bombs to Israel

“The Bush administration is rushing a delivery of precision-guided bombs to Israel, which requested the expedited shipment last week after beginning its air campaign against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, America officials said.”

-The New York Times, 22 July 2006

Israel's long-standing practice of unlawful collective punishment

A Palestinian man inspects the rubble of his house after it was demolished overnight by Israeli air attack in Rafah refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, 25 July 2006. (MaanImages/Hatem Omar)

Shane Darcy, The Electronic Intifada, 26 July 2006

The extensive military operations that have been conducted by the Israeli army in and around the Gaza Strip over the past weeks have displayed a marked disregard for international humanitarian law and have involved the imposition of grave and unlawful measures of collective punishment on the Palestinian population. The principle of proportionality has been completely abandoned. As part of its attempt to secure the release of a single captured Israeli soldier, the army has destroyed bridges, government offices and civilian property, and cut off the electricity to over half the population of Gaza. One Israeli journalist has described the operation simply as an "act of vengeance".

Israel has long taken the view that it is justified in inflicting collective punishment because the Palestinian population is collectively responsible for any acts committed within its midst. Politicians frequently speak of the "heavy price" that must be paid for attacks on Israeli citizens or the army.

There is considerable historical precedent for such conduct. Reliance on collective responsibility was hitherto viewed as a lawful means of deterring the commission of hostile acts by a population in occupied territory. During the United States-Mexico War of 1847-48, US General Winfield Scott ordered that if individuals responsible for attacks on troops and army property were not handed over by the Mexican authorities then "the punishment shall fall upon entire cities, towns, or neighborhoods". The tactic of punishing on the basis of a notion of collective responsibility was also a common feature in colonial era conflicts - in the Boer War the British would respond to hostility by imposing fines, burning farms and destroying private property. The Black and Tans relied on similar means in pre-independence Ireland, as exemplified by notorious incidents such as 'The Sack of Balbriggan'.

It was during the Second World War, however, that this concept of collective responsibility was relied on in the bloodiest of ways. The treatment of the Russian population by the Nazis, for example, was described as a "punitive expedition in continuous operation", in which widespread collective penalties were inflicted in the form of mass executions and extensive destruction of property. On the Allied side, Winston Churchill proposed in the aftermath of several massacres in Czechoslovakia that three German villages should be razed for every one which had been destroyed by German troops. In the aftermath of the war several Nazi war criminals were convicted of the crime of collective punishment by Allied military tribunals.

Universal repugnance to the conduct of the Second World War led to the adoption in 1949 of the Geneva Conventions, marking a turning point in the way in which States would conduct themselves during warfare. More States have signed up to these important treaties than the United Nations Charter, demonstrating a universal commitment to be bound by the rules of international humanitarian law. The Fourth Geneva Convention protects civilians in occupied territories and states clearly that "[n]o protected person may be punished for an offence he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited." While reliance on collective responsibility was not relegated to the past - Saddam Hussein is currently being tried for the murder of 143 people in Dujail as a collective punishment for an attack on his life there in 1982 - the unlawful character of such conduct is now established beyond doubt and can no longer be justified on the basis of some perceived deterrent effect.

Despite being a signatory to the 1949 Geneva Conventions, Israel has frequently resorted to collective punishment since the beginning of the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza in 1967. It has illegally demolished thousands of houses in response to hostile acts committed by one or more of the inhabitants. The Supreme Court has regularly upheld the lawfulness of this practice, regardless of the clear conflict with the rules of international law, and Justice Ben-Dror once commented that an individual who engages in terrorism "should know that his criminal acts will not only hurt him but also are apt to cause great suffering to his family". Although the practice of house demolition was temporarily suspended in 2004, the Israeli army has indicated a willingness to resurrect the practice if circumstances require it.

The imposition of collective punishment is a war crime under customary international law. Numerous individuals being tried before the Special Court of Sierra Leone have been charged with just such a crime. But in the most comprehensive codification of international crimes, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, collective punishment does not feature among the dozens of listed war crimes over which the Court has jurisdiction. Although Israel is not a party to the Rome Statute, its representatives did attend the 1998 diplomatic conference which led to the adoption of the instrument. It was at their behest that the war crime of collective punishment was excluded from the Court's jurisdiction.

The Israeli armed forces' actions in Gaza continue its long-standing tradition of taking harsh collective punitive measures against the Palestinian population. History has shown that such repressive measures rarely achieve their stated objectives. Rather than deter hostile conduct, such actions have tended to antagonize and embitter the local population, and provoke even further violent acts of resistance. In the context of this particular conflict, and especially in light of the political compromise that had been achieved between Hamas and Fatah days before the commencement of the Gaza offensive, it seems that a revival of hostilities may very well have been what the Israeli authorities had intended when they allowed the armed forces to take such extreme and disproportionate measures.

Related Links


BY TOPIC: Israel invades Gaza (27 June 2006)

Dr. Shane Darcy is a lecturer at the Transitional Justice Institute, University of Ulster and a founding member of Human Rights for Change. He is author of 'Accountability in International Law; The Use of Collective Responsibility' (forthcoming 2007, Transnational Publishers).

Palestinian government issues an urgent appeal to the world

July 26, 2006

Gaza- Ma'an- The Palestinian government issued an urgent appeal on Wednesday to all the international and humanitarian organizations asking them to put pressure on the Israeli government in order to stop the Israeli targeting of civilians, residential homes and governmental institutions which are violations of international resolutions.

Palestinian governmental spokesman, Ghazi Hamad, told the press: "In addition to its crazy destruction and killing, Israel also carries out a psychological war against the Palestinians through threatening to bomb residential homes and governmental properties".

Hamad said that the aim of such policies is to pressure the Palestinians into leaving their houses and to paralyze the government, and so create a state of fear amongst the citizens.

Palestinian dies at an Israeli check point while trying to reach hospital

July 26, 2006

Qalqilia-Ma'an- Palestinian citizen, Mahmoud Ahmad Samha, 60, died at the Israeli checkpoint of 'Azzon in eastern Qalqilia after the Israeli soldiers forbade him to pass on hi way to the hospital.

Eyewitnesses said that the soldiers denied permission to the car which was transporting Samha, who was suffering a serious health collapse, to pass through the check point. He died as a result of his detention at the check point.

Link:

Israeli soldiers detain dozens at a flying checkpoint near Tulkarem

Israeli aggression on Gaza kills 23 Palestinians Wednesday including three children

July 26, 2006

Gaza- Ma'an- As a result of the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, eighteen Palestinians lost their lives on Wednesday, of which four were children.

The Palestinian death toll rose yet again on Wednesday evening when Israeli artillery bombarded the east of Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, killing two young sisters.

Eight-year-old Mariya, and five-month-old Shahd 'Ukal were killed in the bombardment, while their mother and various other family members were injured.

On Wednesday afternoon, an Israeli reconnaissance plane killed Mahmoud Al Barsh with a deadly rocket fired at Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip.

Earlier in the day, Israeli shelling of the At Tuffah neighborhood in east Gaza City killed Hani Hijlah, a Palestinian man in his 20s. At least 65 were reported to have been injured, with at least five of them suffering from critical injuries.

The Israeli forces also bombed a group of resistance fighters in the Abu Safiyya area, east of Jabalia refugee camp in the north of the Gaza Strip, allegedly killing one member of the Hamas-affiliated Al Qassam Brigades.

Israeli tanks also targeted a crowd of Palestinian civilians in the Ash Shuja'iyya district in eastern Gaza City. Medical sources said that three of the victims were from one single family. Two remained anonymous and the third was named as 18-year-old Salih Hassanein.

In addition, Israeli tanks killed a three-year-old girl, Su'ad Nasir Habib, and Muhammad Salah Al Bahiti, 22.

In the morning, an activist from the Islamic Jihad-affiliated Al Quds Brigades, Yaser Banat, was killed when a reconnaissance plane fired a rocket at him that destroyed his car as it traveled along Salah Addin Street in the southern Gaza Strip.

A member of the Palestinian ministry of interior's Executive Force, Muhammad Adas, was also killed and five others injured after the Israeli forces shelled the forces' headquarters in the north of Gaza.

The residential tower block of "An Nada Towers" was also bombed on Wednesday afternoon; one Palestinian sustained a head injury. The residential tower block has been targeted several times this week.

The spokesperson of the Ministry of Health, Khlid Radi reported to Ma'an that the dead are: Mariya, Shahd 'Ukal, Sabah Hasanin, 3, Majid Al-Husaini, 23, Muhammad Haniyya, Husam, Salam and Yahya As-Sa'udi, Yasir Banat, Salih Hasanin, Muhammad Adas, Muhammad Al-Bahtini, Nabil Zeno, Hani Hjaila, Nafith Hannona, Mahmoud Al-Barsh, Muhammad Habib and another one who remained unknown

9:30 pm, a Ma'an correspondent reported recently that 5 Palestinians died in Gaza in the last hour. Those who were known are: Adnan As-Saudi, 18, who died of his wounds from the morning and Ziad Salem, 50, the identities of the other three are not known. The death toll rises to 23.

Hezbollah Kills Up to 14 Israeli Troops

Israeli soldiers carry a wounded soldier on the Israeli-Lebanese border Monday July 24, 2006. Israeli ground forces pushed deeper into Lebanon on Monday, entering a Hezbollah stronghold amid heavy fighting that wounded at least 10 Israeli soldiers, the military said. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

July 26, 2006

By SAM F. GHATTAS

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) - Hezbollah inflicted heavy casualties on Israeli troops as they battled for a key hilltop town in southern Lebanon for a fourth day Wednesday, with as many as 14 soldiers reported killed.

Lebanese officials, meanwhile, confirmed that four U.N. observers had died were killed in an Israeli airstrike on their post Tuesday night.

With Israel facing fiercer resistance than expected in its campaign against the Islamic militants, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Israel wants to establish a 1.2 mile-wide strip in south Lebanon that will be free of Hezbollah guerrillas - ruling out a larger occupation.

In Rome, U.S., European and Arab officials holding crisis talks on Lebanon failed to agree on details for a cease-fire to end 15 days of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice faced intense pressure for Washington to change its stance and call for an immediate halt to the violence.

Rice insisted any cease-fire must be "sustainable" and that there could be "no return to the status quo" - a reference to the U.S. and Israeli stance that Hezbollah must first be pushed back from the border and the Lebanese army backed by international forces deployed in the south.

Olmert outlined for the first time the dimensions of Israel's new "security zone" in a closed-door meeting of parliament's Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee, according to participants.

Defense Minister Amir Peretz first raised the idea of such a buffer zone Tuesday, but left somewhat unclear whether Israeli troops would patrol such a no-go area or try to keep out Hezbollah fighters from a distance, by artillery fire and airstrikes.

Israeli soldiers patrolled a much larger "security zone" during Israel's 18-year occupation of south Lebanon, but Olmert indicated the new buffer zone would be different. "We do not have any intention of returning to the security zone but want to create an area where there will be no Hezbollah," he was quoted as saying.

Olmert also reiterated Israel's call for an international force with muscle to be deployed along the border, as opposed to the U.N. force already there that has failed to prevent the violence. The current crisis began July 12 when guerrilla forces crossed the border. The fighting left eight Israeli troops dead and two captured.

Despite two weeks of Israeli bombardment of Hezbollah rocket launchers and positions, the guerrillas fired one of their largest barrages in days into northern Israel - 119 rockets that wounded at least 31 people and damaged property.

Since the fighting began, at least 422 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Lebanon, according to the Health Ministry. Up to 750,000 Lebanese have been driven from their homes. At least 42 Israelis have been killed, including 24 troops, according to authorities.

There were conflicting reports about Israeli casualties in the heavy fighting at Bint Jbail, which Israeli forces have been trying to take for four days.

Hezbollah said its guerrillas ambushed an Israeli unit from three sides as it tried to advance from a ridge on the outskirts of the town. "The bodies of the soldiers remained on the ground amid the destroyed and burning vehicles," an announcer on Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV said.

The pan-Arab satellite station Al-Arabiya said at least 14 Israeli soldiers had been killed, while Al-Jazeera said 13 were killed and 12 wounded in the fighting. Hezbollah's chief spokesman Hussein Rahhal said 13 Israelis were killed.

The Israeli military said there were 20 Israeli casualties, but it would not say if any soldiers had been killed. If confirmed, it would be the largest death toll suffered by the Israeli military in a single attack since the offensive began two weeks ago.

Hezbollah said Israeli forces were trying to advance toward a hospital in Bint Jbail. Israeli forces had managed to seize a few points inside the town, but not yet its center, a senior Hezbollah official, Mahmoud Komati, told The Associated Press.

The Israeli army said several Hezbollah fighters took cover in a town mosque. Komati denied the allegation and suggested those in the mosque were civilians, while Rahhal said they could be fighters who were praying.

Bint Jbail, a town of at least 30,000 - though most are believed to have fled - has great symbolic importance for the Shiite Muslim Hezbollah guerrillas. It holds the largest Shiite community in the border area and was known as the "capital of the resistance" during Israel's 1982-90 occupation because of its support for Hezbollah.

An Israeli seizure of the town, about 2 1/2 miles from the border, would rob Hezbollah of a significant refuge overlooking northern Israel and force its fighters to operate from smaller, more vulnerable villages in the south.

The town is in a tiny pocket of about six square miles where significant Israeli ground forces have entered southern Lebanon - including the village of Maroun al-Ras seized over the weekend and the outskirts of the villages of Yaroun and Aitaroun.

About 100 foreigners - mostly Americans - who had been visiting relatives in Yaroun fled to the port city of Tyre, and described a village ravaged by bombardment.

"It was worse than a nightmare. I saw dogs and cats on bodies that couldn't be taken from bombed-out houses. We ran from one building to another trying to escape the bombing," said Ali Abbas Tehfi, of Los Angeles.

"It didn't stop. It didn't stop even for a day. Everything is finished," he said. He said an unknown number of Americans were still trapped in the town.

The Israeli bombardment of a U.N. observation post in the southern Lebanese town of Khiam provoked a sharp exchange between the world body and Israel.

Olmert expressed "deep regret" over the deaths and said they were "mistaken." But he rejected a charge by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan that the direct hit on the position was apparently deliberate.

"It's inconceivable for the U.N. to define an error as an apparently deliberate action," Olmert said, adding that he ordered an investigation
.
Three bodies were pulled from the ruins, but workers were still trying to reach the fourth, the U.N. observer force said.

One was identified as Chinese U.N. observer Du Zhaoyu, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported. China demanded that Israel apologize. The other three U.N. observers were from Austria, Canada and Finland.

The bodies of a Nigerian civilian worker for the U.N. observers and his wife were finally dug out of building outside Tyre where they were killed in fighting last week.

In the past two weeks, there have been several dozen incidents of firing close to U.N. peacekeepers and observers, including direct hits on nine positions, some of them repeatedly. As a result of these attacks, 12 U.N. personnel have been killed or injured, U.N. officials said.

Proposals for disarming the Shiite Islamic militant group and assembling an international peacekeeping force to be deployed along the border were discussed at the Rome meeting.

Annan called for the formation of a multinational force to help Lebanon assert its authority and implement U.N. resolutions that would disarm Hezbollah.

After listening to an appeal from Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora for them to stop the killing, the officials said they had agreed on the need to deploy an international force under the aegis of the United Nations in southern Lebanon.

But there was no agreement on when a cease-fire could take place.

"Participants expressed their determination to work immediately to reach, with utmost urgency, a cease-fire that puts an end to the current violence and hostilities. The cease-fire must be lasting, permanent and sustainable," said Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema at the close of the meeting.

Israel, meanwhile, pressed ahead with its nearly month-old offensive against Palestinian militants in Gaza. At least 13 Palestinians, including a young girl, were killed in airstrikes and artillery bombardment that also wounded more than three dozen.

About 50 Israeli tanks and bulldozers drove into northern Gaza, flattening orchards and greenhouses to deprive militants firing rockets of cover. Aircraft also blasted several houses of Hamas and Islamic Jihad activists after warning people to leave.
---
AP correspondents Kathy Gannon in Tyre, Hamza Hendawi in Sidon, Sheherezade Faramarzi in Beirut and Katherine Shrader and Victor L. Simpson in Rome contributed to this story.

Link:

Hezbollah claims victories in Wednesday's fighting