Friday, July 14, 2006

Hezbollah Declares Open War

From the BBC:
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Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has promised "open war" against Israel, in an address broadcast shortly after his Beirut offices were bombed by Israel.

The militant group said its leader was unhurt in the attack. It was not clear when his remarks were recorded.
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Sheikh Nasrallah, in an address on Hezbollah's TV channel in Lebanon, threatened Israel, saying: "You wanted an open war and we are ready for an open war."
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The Hezbollah leader promised "war on every level". He said the Israeli coastal city of Haifa would come under attack, "and believe me, even beyond Haifa".
Our homes will not be the only ones to be destroyed, our children will not be the only ones to die," he said.
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Hezbollah has said the captured soldiers will not be returned without a release deal for Palestinian, Lebanese and other Arab prisoners held in Israeli jails.

Full Article

I have no doubt that right now Hezbollah means every word. Which means the only short term solution for a cease fire is for the international community to become involved or the Lebanese people to pressure them to stop. While Israel could withdraw Hezbollah would only declare some sort of victory and stage more attacks within Israel's border.

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Robert Tracinski has a thought provoking article on the siuation that is too long to post in its entirety here but well worth checking out:

"Iran has revealed its hand, challenging the US and its allies and openly demonstrating its desire to dominate the Middle East through force and terror. While we have been trying to delay the war with Iran, it has brought the war to us, in a manner so obvious that even the mainstream media cannot evade it."

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"In doing so, they have made their threat to America and its interests more obvious and more urgent--providing a stronger case for war than their nuclear program could provide. There can be no question here about whether Iran really has aggressive designs in the Middle East, whether it really seeks the weapons to attack the US and its allies, and how long it might take for such a threat to materialize. The threat is here and Iran's newest war on the West has already begun."

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"Iran is risking everything on this new strategy, and the only hope they have of success is the expectation that, as they bring the war closer and closer to America, we won't fight back."

full article