Israel readies its reserves
Published 9:00 pm Thursday, July 27, 2006
JERUSALEM – Israel’s government decided Thursday not to expand its battle with Hezbollah in southern Lebanon for now, but authorized the army to call up 30,000 reserve soldiers in case the fighting intensifies. Lebanese officials estimated a civilian death toll as high as 600.
Israeli Radio reported that Israeli aircraft hit 130 targets in Lebanon on Thursday and early today, including a Hezbollah base in the Bekaa Valley, where long-range rockets were stored.
With Hezbollah allies Iran and Syria reportedly meeting in Damascus, Syria, to discuss the crisis, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she was “willing and ready” to return to the region to work for a sustainable peace agreement.
But President Bush suggested he would support the offensive for as long as it takes to cripple Hezbollah. He also sharply condemned Iran for its support of the Shiite Muslim militant group.
The call-up signaled that Israel was settling in for a much longer battle than had initially been expected, one that could grow far bloodier if Israel decides its air attacks and small-scale invasion into Lebanon are not working and sends in thousands of more ground forces.
With no end in sight after 16 days of intense fighting, al-Qaida’s No. 2 man vowed to attack “everywhere” until Islam prevails.
In recent days, senior Israeli generals urged the government to authorize a broader ground campaign in southern Lebanon, which they said would help the thousands of troops already engaged in bloody battles there.
Israel’s security cabinet authorized the army to call up three additional reserve divisions to refresh the troops in Lebanon if they are needed, but rejected the generals’ advice to expand the offensive.
However, Justice Minister Haim Ramon said the failure of world leaders to call for an immediate cease-fire at a summit in Rome gave Israel a green light to carry on with its campaign to crush Hezbollah – an assertion hotly rejected by European officials.
Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon on Thursday struck roads and houses, many believed to be the deserted homes of Hezbollah activists, in the apple-growing region of Iqlim al-Tuffah. The strikes caused casualties, but fighting kept ambulances and civil defense crews from the areas, security officials said.
Up to 600 civilians in Lebanon have been killed in a campaign of airstrikes, artillery shelling and clashes. Lebanese Health Minister Jawad Khalifeh said Thursday that 382 were confirmed dead and the rest either known to be buried under the rubble of buildings or missing.
Fifty-two Israelis have been killed in 16 days of fighting, including 33 soldiers and 19 civilians who died in Hezbollah rocket attacks into northern Israel. The guerrillas shot 110 rockets into Israel on Thursday, wounding 20 people and bringing the total of rockets launched to 1,564.
