Israel's Attack on Lebanon and Hezbollah

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U.S. blocks Security Council statement condemning Israel`s attack on UN post (AP)

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Diplomats: Top Iranian security official flew to Syria to meet senior officials (Reuters)

Report: Nasrallah will arrive in Damascus Thursday, will meet Syria`s Assad (Haaretz)

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Can we please start a separate thread for the news monitoring as opposed to political discussions?

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Hezbollah's answer to why their fighters are hiding in mosques...

Rahhal, a Hizbullah spokesman, angrily responded to a question about the mosque refuge. "What's the Israelis business that our fighters were in the mosque? Maybe they were praying at the time!" he said.

[Copernicus]

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Hezbollah's answer to why their fighters are hiding in mosques...

Rahhal, a Hizbullah spokesman, angrily responded to a question about the mosque refuge. "What's the Israelis business that our fighters were in the mosque? Maybe they were praying at the time!" he said.

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Yeah, Catholics bring in the rosary beads and bibles, Muslims bring in their Koran and their missiles.

[Olof]

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Report: Nasrallah will arrive in Damascus Thursday, will meet Syria`s Assad (Haaretz)

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This looks like the perfect opportunity for a precision airstrike. Though I'm sure it won't happen.

[jman220]

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that seems to have gone out the window now, as it always does once Israeli "doves" get into power

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Peretz has been "in power" in various different cabinet positions, for quite a number of years. His peace positions have never "gone out the window."

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He's been a mayor and in parliament and led a trades union, but he's not been a government minister or leading his party in government until now. In the past months his peace positions clearly have gone out the window as he attempts to secure his political role by playing tough.

EDIT Perhaps you're thinking of Shimon Peres? Amir Peretz, whom we're talking about, has never held a cabinet position before now.

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You're right, I'm confusing him with Peres.

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Diplomats: Top Iranian security official flew to Syria to meet senior officials (Reuters)

Report: Nasrallah will arrive in Damascus Thursday, will meet Syria`s Assad (Haaretz)

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Hizbullah head Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah is currently in Damascus, the Kuwait based a-Siasa newspaper reported Thursday. Nasrallah was apparently taken to Damascus by Syrian intelligence for a series of meetings.

According to the report, Nasrallah is scheduled to meet with Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, Ali Larijani and perhaps with Syrian President Bashar Assad.

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Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas said on Wednesday night that Lebanon and the Palestinian Authority were on the verge of total annihilation, since there was no cease-fire agreement that both Arab countries and Europe supported.

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The security cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, decided Thursday morning against expanding the Israel Defense Forces operation in southern Lebanon, Israel Radio reported.

During the meeting, Olmert said the goals of Israel's 17-day offensive are being met, the radio said. The ministers also decided to call up additional reserves to refresh troops in Lebanon, it added.

"It was decided to continue the offensive with the same strategy, using pinpointed ground incursions and air strikes, not to bring in massive forces," said a source om Jerusalem. "At the moment the army is not bound by time, it can act as long as needed."

Senior military personnel requested a widespread call-up of reserve soldiers for a two-month long ground operation to "cleanse" the area south of the Litani River of Hezbollah infrastructure.

Officials have expressed concerns that expanding the operation would be misinterpreted by Syria as preparation for an attack against it, even though Israel has repeatedly stated that it has no plans against Damascus.

Ministers taking part in the Thursday meeting were told that the Syrians are on high alert, and fear an Israeli attack. Participants discussed how to ease Syrian concerns and prevent an unwanted conflagration. Peretz is of the opinion that a wide-scale call up of reservists would exacerbate Syrian concerns that the operation is directed at them.