While the war of words is escalating around the clock between Israel on the one side and Hezbollah and Syria on the other, analysts in the Middle East and Europe strongly believe that war is inevitable and will break out within a few months.| Certainly Israeli arms stockpiling seems to indicate their concerns, as does Hizb'allah and Syrian bombast. Not to mention reports of Shiite villagers leaving the area. |
| Thus admitting the division of Lebanon into Lesser Lebanon and Hizb'allahstan. No doubt the IDF strategists and PM Netanyahu have some ideas what to do about that. |
| Don't count on Israel to honor that division. I certainly wouldn't in their shoes. Lebanon admitted the Hezbies into their government. They have cabinet seats. That means Lebanon is responsible for whatever the the Hezbies do, and the Lebanese government and other factions need to be made aware of that in no uncertain terms. |
| *Ring, ring* "Hello?" "Israel calling. Do you have Prince Albert in a can?" |
| Even more so than last time. No doubt Iran has promised to rebuild damaged homes like last time, too, and just look at how shiny the rubble is now! |
| Damascus is ready for unlimited war? Seriously? |
| Since the Zionists are the rightful owners by international law, that statement has null value. |
In a report written by Hamid Ghoriafi, Middle East analyst and journalist, that was published today by the Kuwaiti Daily Al-Seyassah, Ghoriafi drew a very dim picture for the whole situation and predicted a very devastating imminent war that will be according to the Israelis the last one with on their northern borders. Below are some excerpts from this report:
*Reliable European intelligence reports in London unveiled on Monday an extensive secretive Israeli ongoing operation to evacuate hundreds of families living in the Galilee settlements adjacent to the border with Lebanon to safer locations inside Israel, especially west Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and surrounding areas. These families are transported by trucks and buses and priority is given to families with many children, the elderly and the physically disabled. The evacuees' houses are put under the control of the Northern Military Command for reasons not yet known. "
*A German report that was recently distributed to those concerned in the European Union capitals revealed that there is a serious Israeli military intention to reoccupy the former border strip inside Lebanon with a distance of 5 to 6 kilometers. This strip was known as the "security zone" before the Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon in May 2000. Initially it was established in the aftermath of the Israeli invasion of Lebanon and occupation of her capital in 1982. The aim was to create a semi-demilitarized zone along the area of Lebanese Christian and some Shiite villages that are scattered near the Israeli border in a bid to safeguard the Jewish settlements from shelling and infiltration.
*The same intelligence report quoted Israeli Defense Ministry sources saying that their military engineers have finished putting designs for building two military airports inside the Lebanese "new security zone", which will stretch temporally up to the Litani River in the early stages of the war. This area has been under the control of the UNIFIL troops since 2006. Israel expects that the UNIFIL troops will withdraw in case the war breaks out. The first airport will be built on the middle and eastern region boundaries towards Shabaa Farms, Mount Hermon; and the second in the western sector region towards the coastal town of Naqoura.
All technical and logistic equipments required for the erection of these two airports are already in locations situated behind the front lines of the Israeli army that is extensively present on the northern border. Analysts say that this kind of preparations gives the impression that Israel is definitely planning for a long-term occupation to the south Litani area. The Israeli occupation accordingly will not endonce the coming military operations cease."
| If true, the correct terminology would be conquest, not occupation, with the possibility of a Gaza-style border fence going up on the Litani side of the security zone. Perhaps the Egyptians can build it for them, once they finish building the fence on their section of the Gaza border. |
The first plan is for extensive jet plane aerial bombardment of Hezbollah's scattered military weaponry caches and missile bases with phosphorus and cluster bombs,
| Trying to implicate war crimes (phosphorus bombs, really?) here... |
The second plan is to execute for the first time, air-landing operations behind Hezbollah's lines after weakening and destroying its bases in the south, Bekaa Valley and Beirut.
These two plans in contrast to the 2006 war aim to practically occupy many Lebanese areas and locations as was the situation in the 1982 invasion led by Ariel Sharon, who occupied Beirut and its surrounding mountainous and coastal areas.
*British sources claimed that another European intelligence report prepared by the UNIFIL French contingent in southern Lebanon revealed that the Israeli army command has made ready another SOS war scenario to deal with Syrian and the Palestinian troops who might cross from Syria and enter the Bekaa Valley equipped with advanced anti-aircraft missiles to hunt the Israeli jets. The scenario speaks about Israeli war inside Syria in a bid to completely destroy these troops. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem last week threatened that an Israeli attack against Syria would lead to total war.
| And what, pray tell, does Mr. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem think total war is? I'd bet a great deal of money that in this context it does not mean that the entire Arab world sends armies to attack Israel,no matter what might be said at embassy cocktail parties. |
The same French report added that Israel is determined to make this war the last one on her northern borders. The Jewish military command will not spare any advanced and destructive kind of weaponry that is stored in its caches. Hezbollah will not be the only target within the Shiite regions that are under its control, but also the Lebanese army, all Lebanese institutions and infrastructure. Israel is well convinced that Hezbollah is in full control of the Lebanese government and accordingly its army will not spare the country's infrastructure as was the situation in the 2006 war. Israel is planning to end Hezbollah the same way it ended the PLO in the 1982-1983 war.
| That would certainly make for interesting conversations, including the White House. |