Archive for the 'Beirut 2006' Category

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Finally Israel admits Hezbollah’s victory in Lebanon

Published on January 9, 2007

After all, why you do think they are quivering in their boots each time the word “Hizbullah” comes up?

The most significant result of the recent conflict in Lebanon is a change to the balance of fear in the Middle East, and this is why Israel has been resisting the fact that its army got defeated by Hezbollah fighters in the war.

But after months of denial, Israel admitted finally that Hezbollah won the war.

Speaking at a Tel Aviv news conference summing up the Israeli army’s investigation of its behavior during the war, Israeli chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz, who’s under fire because of the shortcomings of the war, conceded that the military made serious errors during the war. However, he rejected calls to resign as a result, saying only if the committee called for his resignation, he would comply. “I have not heard my superiors calling on me to resign,” he said. “If they do, I will respond.”

In Beirut 2006 and News and Events

Israeli Army Inquiry Cites Failures of Lebanon War

Published on January 4, 2007

ap halutz israel lebanon 3jan07 Israeli Army Inquiry Cites Failures of Lebanon War

Israel admits to the failure of its war in Lebanon. Not only did they fail to weaken Hizbullah, they also failed to rescue the two kidnapped soldiers they claim they were trying to get back. Preparing for a new war with Iran?

The Israeli army has completed a series of internal probes into the war in Lebanon, which was fought in July and August of last year. As Robert Berger reports from VOA’s Jerusalem bureau, the final report is highly critical of the handling of the war but does not recommend the dismissal of the military brass.

Summing up 50 internal military inquiries, Israeli army Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Dan Halutz said there were major failures during the war in Lebanon.

He said Israel failed to achieve its main objectives of dealing a knockout blow to the Islamic guerrilla group Hezbollah and preventing it from firing rockets across the border. Hezbollah fired more than 4,000 rockets at northern Israel during the 34-day conflict.

Halutz said a major ground offensive should have been launched earlier and that there was faulty work in command centers.

But he rejected calls from across the political spectrum to resign.

Continue reading ‘Israeli Army Inquiry Cites Failures of Lebanon War’

In Beirut 2006, News and Events, Politics and Zionism

Ceasefire Campaign: Peace in the Middle East?

Published on December 23, 2006

Dear friends,

Earlier this year, more than 300,000 of us came together to successfully petition for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon. Since then, we’ve campaigned together on other critical global issues like the war in Iraq and Israel/Palestine. Thank you for being a part of Ceasefire Campaign and continuing to believe in peace during this difficult year.

Now to close 2006, please join with us again to help the people of Lebanon. Massive numbers of unexploded mines and cluster bombs continue to kill and maim civilians – a horrific legacy of war. MAG (Mines Advisory Group) is one of the leading organizations helping to address this problem. Please click below to support their crucial de-mining work.

http://www.ceasefirecampaign.org/mines

The UN has reported over 100,000 unexploded cluster bomblets at 359 separate sites in Lebanon. Unexploded ordnance prevents farmers from cultivating their land, families from returning to their homes, and children from playing safely outside. These bombs kill or maim unsuspecting civilians; a number of children in Lebanon recently suffered severe injury after mistaking the small explosive packages for toys.

Continue reading ‘Ceasefire Campaign: Peace in the Middle East?’

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In Beirut 2006 and Letters & Statements

UN report says Israel should compensate Lebanon for war

Published on December 3, 2006

UN places full blame for unwarranted Lebanese war on Israel. Time for Israel to pay compensation to Lebanon, the country which it bullied.

A United Nations human rights inquiry said on Friday that Israel should be made to pay compensation for damage caused by its month-long war in Lebanon this past summer, especially losses incurred by civilians. It suggested setting up an international compensation program similar to the one which has paid out billions of dollars to cover losses due to Iraq’s 1990-91 invasion and occupation of Kuwait.

But the three-member commission of inquiry – which also rejected Israeli and US charges that its recent report accusing Israel of “flagrant violations” in the war was one-sided – left any decision to the UN Human Rights Council.

The council “should consider creation of a commission competent to examine individual claims for reparations and compensation,” commission member Joao Clemente Baena Soares told a press briefing.

But Israel denounced the report, saying the UN probe ignored the actions of Hizbullah fighters who fired 4,000 rockets at Israel during the war, as political fallout from the conflict continued to plague Israel’s military leaders.

Continue reading ‘UN report says Israel should compensate Lebanon for war’

In Beirut 2006 and News and Events

Annan: Israel’s actions compromise efforts to stabilize the Israeli-Lebanon border

Published on December 3, 2006

There you have it. Chief honco of the United Nations admits that Israel’s belligerence in violating Lebanese airspace is provoking and destabilising the peace that was achieved during the “ceasefire” (read: Zionist defeat by Hizbullah).

Annan: Israel’s actions compromise efforts to stabilize the Israeli-Lebanon border
Published: December 1, 2006
The Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS: Israel’s violations of Lebanon’s airspace compromise efforts to stabilize the situation along the border between the two countries where U.N. peacekeepers have come across 13 instances of unauthorized arms or material since September, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in a letter.

Despite these incidents, Annan said in a letter to the U.N. Security Council on Friday that the August cease-fire that ended this summer’s Israeli-Hezbollah war has been maintained “and there were no serious incidents or confrontations.”

But he said U.N. peacekeepers reported air violations by Israeli jets and unmanned aerial vehicles “almost on a daily basis,” which Lebanon has protested as a serious violation of its sovereignty.

Israel maintains the overflights are a security measure, and the country’s defense minister has linked the flights to the return of two Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah on July 12, Annan said.

Full story can be seen here.

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In Beirut 2006, Politics and Zionism