Israel decides to go to Lebanon.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/07/13/mideast/index.html

Israel strikes Beirut airport, blocks ports

BEIRUT (CNN) -- Israeli aircraft bombed Beirut International Airport on Thursday before blocking naval traffic in Lebanese waters as Israel expanded its military campaign against Hezbollah guerrillas who kidnapped two Israeli soldiers.

Israel Defense Forces said the aim of the naval blockade, announced at midday, was to "block the transfer of terrorists and weaponry."

Earlier, Israeli fighter jets bombed all three runways at Beirut's main airport -- located in the city's southern suburbs -- rendering them unusable, according to the IDF and a Lebanese aviation official. As a result, the airport was closed and flights were diverted to nearby Cyprus, the official said.

IDF said it targeted the airport because it serves as a central hub for the transfer for weapons and supplies to Hezbollah. (Watch first reports on runway bombings -- 6:00)

Israeli Security Cabinet Minister Isaac Herzog said: "We are taking strong measures so that it will be clear to the Lebanese people and government ... that we mean business."

Lebanese Interior Minister Ahmed Fatfat called the airport strikes a "general act of war," saying they had nothing to do with Hezbollah, but were instead an attack against the country's "economic interests," especially its tourism industry.

The airport, which is located in Beirut's southern suburbs, was renamed Rafic Hariri International Airport last year after the former prime minister who was assassinated in the Lebanese capital.

Another airstrike, on al-Manar television station, was carried out because the station is used by Hezbollah to incite and recruit activists, according to IDF.

Despite the strike, al-Manar continued to broadcast, a Lebanese security source said.

The Israeli airstrikes came hours after Israel's Cabinet authorized a "severe and harsh" response to the abduction of the two soldiers.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said the attack and abductions were an "act of war" and blamed the Lebanese government, which he said would be held responsible for the soldiers' safe release.

Israeli artillery and airstrikes have been pounding Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon after a cross-border raid Wednesday took the two captives. In all, eight Israeli soldiers were killed -- three in the initial raid and five others in the fighting that immediately followed, according to the IDF.

The cross-border fighting continued Thursday, with numerous Katyusha rocket strikes in the northern Israeli town of Nahariya, according to CNN's John Vause. He said buildings near the hotel he was staying in have been damaged.

Thursday's casualties throughout northern Israel totaled 29, including one woman killed and 15 injured in the Nahariya rocket attack, according to the IDF.

The Lebanese security source said 26 to 27 people had been killed in Lebanon since the fighting began, including a number of civilians.

The Israeli military said one of its airstrikes on Thursday hit a Hezbollah operational command center in southern Lebanon.

IDF said its strikes have been targeting locations within or adjacent to heavily populated areas that Hezbollah uses for storing rockets and weapons. An IDF spokesman said Hezbollah is responsible for placing the storage sites in areas that would put civilians at risk.

Hezbollah, an Islamic militia backed by Syria and Iran, demanded "direct negotiations" for a prisoner exchange to resolve the crisis. Israel has rejected that call, arguing it would lead to more attacks.

"We expect them to be returned to us alive and safely, immediately without any precondition -- no negotiation," Israeli government spokesman Gideon Meir told CNN.

The identities of the kidnapped soldiers had not been released as of Thursday morning.

Hezbollah is designated a terrorist organization by the United States and Israel, but the Islamic militia is a significant player in Lebanon's fractious politics. Its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, told reporters that abducting the soldiers was "our natural, only and logical right" to win freedom for Hezbollah prisoners held by Israel.

Nasrallah said the two soldiers had been taken to a place "far, far away" and that an Israeli military campaign would not win their release.

The new fighting on Israel's northern border comes amid a two-week-old Israeli campaign in Gaza in search of Israeli army Cpl. Gilad Shalit, a soldier kidnapped by Palestinian militants there
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They're going waaay too far in this. Retarded to blame a whole country for the actions of a few. I wonder how many civilians they're killing this time?
 
I've heard that it's around 45.

I must be an idiot, because I just don't get it.

My country (US) claims to want to fight terrorism. We go ballistic (no pun intended), when North Korea shoots off some test missiles (not that I agree wit that), Iran enriching uranium, yet when a country unilaterally attacks a sovereign country, we don't do squat.

I just don't get it.

Israel has been able to crap like this for way too long.
 
I'm with the Israelis on this. Although the Lebanese can't really help it, now can they? The Lebanese government is just a collection of Syrian and Iranian puppets. I say Israel should just nuke Syria and Iran. That would solve the problem. And I think Belgium should help them with that.

:roll:
 
Nyes...

Anyway, The US has a lot to gain from this, so I don't see why they would be intervening against Israel. You know, Israel was founded in that region for a good reason.
 
The Overseer said:
They're going waaay too far in this. Retarded to blame a whole country for the actions of a few. I wonder how many civilians they're killing this time?
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The Israeli military said one of its airstrikes on Thursday hit a Hezbollah operational command center in southern Lebanon.

IDF said its strikes have been targeting locations within or adjacent to heavily populated areas that Hezbollah uses for storing rockets and weapons. An IDF spokesman said Hezbollah is responsible for placing the storage sites in areas that would put civilians at risk.
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Israel is fighting for their life right now, regardless of how that life came to be. Though I can see plenty of approaches that are far better, I just don't see them happening with both sides wanting to show the world how big their dicks are. I hope the Israeli people can overcome this obstacle in history and survive, but it's not going to be easy, if anything.

In either case, if Israel does plan to unleash its fury on its neighbors, and wins, it will make for one hell of an occupational duty. And you thought Iraq was bad.
 
If I was to write this story as dramatic fiction, I would say that the real parties behind this are the oil companies that want to see prices jacked up, again.

Crisis in the Middle East = higher prices at the pumps = happy Oil executives and Petro-state dictators.

I know, I know... to much conspiracy theory. But really, how expensive a project would it be to get the Arabs and the Israelis to start shooting at each other. How much would it be worth to someone with a chance to make a profit?

That said, seems like the tourist season in Beirut is ruined... again.

(By the way- anyone else read than another Enron guy turned up dead- this was of unknown causes/ 'it could be suicide' in London)
 
i heard the airforce has been dropping pamflets around possible military & mostly political targets in Lebanon, urging civilians to get the fuck out of there. "if you remain & get killed, it's your own fault". how nice.

i really hope this isn't a Beirut revisited...
 
Looks like the U.S. vetoed the UN resolution halting Israels attacks.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/07/13/mideast.response/index.html

http://dailytelegraph.news.com.au/story/0,20281,19785089-5001028,00.html

Don't attack Syria, Iran warns Israel

From correspondents in Tehran

July 14, 2006

IRANIAN President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said today an Israeli strike on Syria would be considered an attack on the whole Islamic world that would bring a "fierce response", state television reported.

"If the Zionist regime commits another stupid move and attacks Syria, this will be considered like attacking the whole Islamic world and this regime will receive a very fierce response," Mr Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying in a telephone conversation with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The president made the comments after Israel struck Beirut airport and military airbases and blockaded Lebanese ports in reprisals that have killed 55 civilians in Lebanon since Hezbollah guerrillas captured two Israeli soldiers a day earlier.

"He (Ahmadinejad) also said it was a must for the Organisation of the Islamic Conference to become more active regarding the new crisis created by the Zionist regime," state television reported.

Iran's Islamic government has never recognised Israel and routinely refers to the Jewish state as the "Zionist regime".

Iran has close ties with Syria, and with Hezbollah.
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If I was to write this story as dramatic fiction
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I think you are confusing dramatic fiction with fantasy. There is a diffirence between a wide eyed, blonde haired American boy in Vietnam supporting an anti-imperialist, anti-Communist meglomaniac with explosives, it is another thing entirely for a fucking OIL CORPORATION to engineer a MASSIVE REGIONAL CONFLICT.
 
It's not exactly impossible, but with people's opinions regarding the current state of the oil economy, it'd be a bad move on the part of execs to erode confidence in their business.

I'm interested in what this retaliation Ahmadinejad is talking about would be?
 
If both Siria and Iran teamed up against Israel in a more or less open conflit would the us back israel in a military way ?
 
John Uskglass said:
Kick out ALL of the Palestinians from Lebanon, and kick out Syrian and Iranian influence.
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Yeah, and while we're at it, let's cleanse Palestinians off the face of the world!

Racist much, Johnny?
 
Kharn said:
Yeah, and while we're at it, let's cleanse Palestinians off the face of the world!

Racist much, Johnny?
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What's wrong with being a racist all of a sudden?

:roll:
 
Kharn said:
Yeah, and while we're at it, let's cleanse Palestinians off the face of the world!

Racist much, Johnny?
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It's not Rascism because the Palestinians are not a race. They are Arabs who moved to Israel in order to help build up the economy that was comng with he influx of Zionists at the beggining of the last century.

And if you know anything about Lebanese history you would agree with me. The palestinian influx has literally destroyed Lebanon.
 
John Uskglass said:
It's not Rascism because the Palestinians are not a race.
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Ok. "Discriminate much?" Much better, huh?

John Uskglass said:
And if you know anything about Lebanese history you would agree with me. The palestinian influx has literally destroyed Lebanon.
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Yes, which means, I'm sure, that your Final Solution will no doubt magically undestroy Lebanon and put an end to all suffering.

Insane much, Johnny-boy?

You know, blaming a nation's problem on a certain section of its population generally works well for dictators, but it hardly ever holds true or offers a viable solution to the problems. You should know better than that.
 
Ok. "Discriminate much?" Much better, huh?
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Meh. It's not exactly discrimination. I don't have anything personally against Palestinians, it is just that they have, well, destroyed Lebanon.

They're caught between a rock and a half dozen Arab despotates telling them that they are the least fortunate people on earth and that it is their goal in life to kill Israelis. It's not an enviable position for any group.

Yes, which means, I'm sure, that your Final Solution will no doubt magically undestroy Lebanon and put an end to all suffering.
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'Final Solution' would be me suggesting that someone should kill all of them or kick all of the Muslims out of Lebanon.

Which is crazy. Lebanon was a fully functional, half Christian half Muslim society for a thousand years before the Palestinians showed up.

Truth is, the Palestinians have caused a lot more problems then helping change Lebanon for the better; they destroyed Democracy by upsetting the balance between Lebanese Christians and Muslims, and then they decided to create Hezbollah, that great Islamonazi party.

You know, blaming a nation's problem on a certain section of its population generally works well for dictators, but it hardly ever holds true or offers a viable solution to the problems. You should know better than that.
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You are probably right. I don't see the Palestinians going anywhere as long as the assorted Dictators of the Mid-East work towards keeping Israel as a scapegoat by helping along the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

But that does not change the fact that Lebanon would have been and probably would still be better off without the Palestinian immigrant population. That place was the Mid Eastern Switzerland only half a century back.
 
John Uskglass said:
Meh. It's not exactly discrimination. I don't have anything personally against Palestinians, it is just that they have, well, destroyed Lebanon.
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Meh. It's not exactly discrimination. I don't have anything personally against <s>Palestinians</s>Jews, it is just that they have, well, destroyed <s>Lebanon</s>Germany.

Yes, Johnny, that is discrimination. What 'destroyed' Lebanon was not the Palestinians, but the inability of people of both sides to work together and continue to live the way they did.
 
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