Hizbullah's Surprises.
The Israeli Army's chief of intelligence says the "surprises" Hizbullah keeps promising could go beyond long-range rockets and could mean the capture of more Israeli soldiers or an attack on Israeli targets abroad. "I believe that Hizbullah is trying to fray the nerves of Israeli citizens by promising surprises", Maj-Gen Amos Yadlin said at a news conference in Tel Aviv on July 23. Asked what those "surprises" might be, Yadlin said: "Hizbullah is threatening to fire rockets with an even longer range; therefore, this is no longer a surprise. Hizbullah may try to surprise us by mounting another operation to kidnap soldiers or civilians. It might also attempt to take action against the state of Israel abroad".Israeli Public Security Minister Avi Dichter, who formerly headed Israel's Shin Bet internal security agency, said: "Israel's offensive in Lebanon is not aimed at totally dismantling Hizbullah, but rather at preventing it from returning to the border and attacking the Jewish state". He said Israel wanted to write a new "Dictionary of Terms" for relations with Hizbullah, adding: "Trying to write it with bullets and bombs takes a little longer, but it's going to be written. If they even think of attacking, they will know what price they, or Lebanon, will pay".
Asharq al-Awsat daily reported on July 24 that "the US will soon provide Israel with some 100 'bunker buster' bombs to kill Hizbullah's leader...Hassan Nasrallah and destroy the party's" fortifications. According to the Saudi-owned daily, sources in Washington and Tel Aviv said the bombs, which can penetrate up to 40 metres under ground, would be shipped to Israel from a US military base in Qatar. Citing US officials, the NYT on July 22 reported that the Bush administration was rushing a delivery of satellite- and laser-guided bombs to the Jewish state in response to an Israeli request. The report did not give details on the munitions in question.
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| Publication: | APS Diplomat News Service |
|---|---|
| Geographic Code: | 7ISRA |
| Date: | Jul 31, 2006 |
| Words: | 318 |
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