Israel and Hezbollah observed a cease-fire in their monthlong
conflict, as US President George W. Bush said the war in Lebanon
was part of the international fight against terrorism.
The Israeli military said four mortars were fired at soldiers overnight in southern Lebanon without causing any injuries. At least 10 Hezbollah rockets were launched early today, the Associated Press reported, citing unidentified military officials. The missiles didn't reach Israel, AP said.
“The conflict in Lebanon is part of a broader struggle between freedom and terror that is unfolding across the region,'' Bush said yesterday in Washington. “We must help people in both Lebanon and Israel return to their homes and begin rebuilding their lives without fear of renewed violence and terror.''
The United Nations-brokered cease-fire came into force yesterday after the Security Council unanimously approved a resolution Aug. 11 that demands an end to hostilities and calls for the withdrawal of Israeli troops after UN and Lebanese forces are deployed in southern Lebanon.
The measure aims to create a buffer to protect Israel from Hezbollah rockets, while allowing Lebanon to exert authority and begin recovering from the conflict. It was accepted by Lebanon, Hezbollah and Israel over the past three days.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told parliament yesterday the Israel Defense Forces “had the upper hand'' in every battle with Hezbollah. Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah leader, said his fighters had scored a ``strategic and historic victory.'' Hezbollah and its sponsors in Iran and Syria must take the blame for the suffering of civilians in Lebanon and Israel, Bush said after meeting his security and foreign policy advisers.
“Hezbollah attacked Israel, Hezbollah started the crisis, and Hezbollah suffered a defeat in this crisis,'' Bush said. “We must not allow terrorists to prevent elected leaders from working together toward a Middle East peace agreement.'' Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in a telephone call yesterday with Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, congratulated the Lebanese people on their resistance to Israeli attacks, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.
Ahmadinejad pledged Iran's willingness to help with the reconstruction of Lebanon, the report said.
The conflict began July 12 after Hezbollah abducted two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border attack. It left about 880 Lebanese dead and about 200 missing, Lebanon's police and government said. Some 155 Israelis were killed, Israeli police said. The Lebanese government estimates 1 million people were displaced from their homes by the fighting in the south.
The UN resolution bars “offensive'' actions by Israel.
Soldiers will undertake “defensive'' operations, the military said. Israel will continue its air and naval blockade on Lebanon until a mechanism is in place to prevent arms from being shipped to Hezbollah, the government said.
Ali Fayyad, a member of Hezbollah's Central Council, said in a telephone interview yesterday that Israel's blockade violates the Security Council resolution.
“Every Israeli violation gives the resistance the right to retaliate,'' he said.
Israel will shift all of its forces southward, keeping them on Lebanese soil just inside the border, on condition the Lebanese army begins to move into the region, the daily newspaper Haaretz reported. The Israeli military declined to say how many soldiers will return to Israel, a spokesman said.
Olmert ordered troops on Aug. 11 to penetrate southern Lebanon as far as the Litani River, 30 kilometers (19 miles) from the border. Thirty-two Israelis were killed in the Litani operation while at least 50 Hezbollah gunmen died, the IDF said.
Military spokesmen declined to say how far into Lebanon Israeli forces had pushed before the cease-fire began.
Olmert has appointed a representative to take the lead in securing the release of the captured soldiers. Foreign Ministry spokesman Marc Regev said the UN resolution provides “the platform from which we can bring about the expeditious return of the soldiers.'' The Security Council measure authorizes an expansion of Unifil, the existing UN observer mission in the area, to as many as 15 000 members from about 2 000. That force, with a broader military mandate, will assist 15 000 Lebanese soldiers sent to keep the peace.
The first units of UN soldiers may begin deploying throughout southern Lebanon within 24 to 48 hours, Haaretz reported today, citing unidentified Israeli military officials as saying. The officials didn't give any details.
Hezbollah, which the US and Israel designate a terrorist organization, controls forces independent of Lebanon's army. The group has 14 seats in Lebanon's 128-member Parliament and two members in the Cabinet. While participating in politics, Hezbollah has defied UN resolution 1559, which calls for the disarming and disbanding of militias in Lebanon.
The Israeli military said four mortars were fired at soldiers overnight in southern Lebanon without causing any injuries. At least 10 Hezbollah rockets were launched early today, the Associated Press reported, citing unidentified military officials. The missiles didn't reach Israel, AP said.
“The conflict in Lebanon is part of a broader struggle between freedom and terror that is unfolding across the region,'' Bush said yesterday in Washington. “We must help people in both Lebanon and Israel return to their homes and begin rebuilding their lives without fear of renewed violence and terror.''
The United Nations-brokered cease-fire came into force yesterday after the Security Council unanimously approved a resolution Aug. 11 that demands an end to hostilities and calls for the withdrawal of Israeli troops after UN and Lebanese forces are deployed in southern Lebanon.
The measure aims to create a buffer to protect Israel from Hezbollah rockets, while allowing Lebanon to exert authority and begin recovering from the conflict. It was accepted by Lebanon, Hezbollah and Israel over the past three days.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told parliament yesterday the Israel Defense Forces “had the upper hand'' in every battle with Hezbollah. Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah leader, said his fighters had scored a ``strategic and historic victory.'' Hezbollah and its sponsors in Iran and Syria must take the blame for the suffering of civilians in Lebanon and Israel, Bush said after meeting his security and foreign policy advisers.
“Hezbollah attacked Israel, Hezbollah started the crisis, and Hezbollah suffered a defeat in this crisis,'' Bush said. “We must not allow terrorists to prevent elected leaders from working together toward a Middle East peace agreement.'' Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in a telephone call yesterday with Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, congratulated the Lebanese people on their resistance to Israeli attacks, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.
Ahmadinejad pledged Iran's willingness to help with the reconstruction of Lebanon, the report said.
The conflict began July 12 after Hezbollah abducted two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border attack. It left about 880 Lebanese dead and about 200 missing, Lebanon's police and government said. Some 155 Israelis were killed, Israeli police said. The Lebanese government estimates 1 million people were displaced from their homes by the fighting in the south.
The UN resolution bars “offensive'' actions by Israel.
Soldiers will undertake “defensive'' operations, the military said. Israel will continue its air and naval blockade on Lebanon until a mechanism is in place to prevent arms from being shipped to Hezbollah, the government said.
Ali Fayyad, a member of Hezbollah's Central Council, said in a telephone interview yesterday that Israel's blockade violates the Security Council resolution.
“Every Israeli violation gives the resistance the right to retaliate,'' he said.
Israel will shift all of its forces southward, keeping them on Lebanese soil just inside the border, on condition the Lebanese army begins to move into the region, the daily newspaper Haaretz reported. The Israeli military declined to say how many soldiers will return to Israel, a spokesman said.
Olmert ordered troops on Aug. 11 to penetrate southern Lebanon as far as the Litani River, 30 kilometers (19 miles) from the border. Thirty-two Israelis were killed in the Litani operation while at least 50 Hezbollah gunmen died, the IDF said.
Military spokesmen declined to say how far into Lebanon Israeli forces had pushed before the cease-fire began.
Olmert has appointed a representative to take the lead in securing the release of the captured soldiers. Foreign Ministry spokesman Marc Regev said the UN resolution provides “the platform from which we can bring about the expeditious return of the soldiers.'' The Security Council measure authorizes an expansion of Unifil, the existing UN observer mission in the area, to as many as 15 000 members from about 2 000. That force, with a broader military mandate, will assist 15 000 Lebanese soldiers sent to keep the peace.
The first units of UN soldiers may begin deploying throughout southern Lebanon within 24 to 48 hours, Haaretz reported today, citing unidentified Israeli military officials as saying. The officials didn't give any details.
Hezbollah, which the US and Israel designate a terrorist organization, controls forces independent of Lebanon's army. The group has 14 seats in Lebanon's 128-member Parliament and two members in the Cabinet. While participating in politics, Hezbollah has defied UN resolution 1559, which calls for the disarming and disbanding of militias in Lebanon.
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