Israel steps up war on Hizbullah in Lebanon

Israel's long-running battle with the Iranian-backed Hizbullah movement in Lebanon is intensifying dramatically, drawing in the…

Israel's long-running battle with the Iranian-backed Hizbullah movement in Lebanon is intensifying dramatically, drawing in the Lebanese army, and raising the risk of a confrontation that could pull in Syria as well. In attacks and counter-attacks over the past three days alone, at least 11 people have been killed: two Hizbullah gunmen, two Israeli soldiers, six Lebanese army soldiers, and a Lebanese woman.

One of the two Hizbullah fighters, killed in a Friday clash with Israeli troops on the edge of Israel's so-called "security zone" just inside southern Lebanon, was Hadi Nasrallah, the eldest son of the Hizbullah secretary-general, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah.

At a Saturday night rally of 2,000 supporters in Beirut, Sheikh Nasrallah declared: "I thank God and praise him for his ultimate grace and kindness by choosing a martyr from my family."

Hizbullah sources claim that Friday's clash was part of Israel's response to the humiliation of a failed commando raid a week earlier, in which 12 Israeli soldiers died. Israel denies this. But whatever the precise cause and effect, the level of tension and violence has reached a new high.

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This was underlined by an Israeli raid on Lebanese army positions on Friday , in which six soldiers and a Lebanese woman died. An Israeli official acknowledged the Lebanese military post had been targeted, claiming that Lebanese troops from the post had participated alongside Hizbullah in the earlier clashes, thus turning themselves "into a target".

The violence continued on Saturday, with two Israeli soldiers killed by a mine. Their deaths mean Israel has now lost 20 soldiers in the past two weeks alone - as compared with annual death tolls in recent years that have not exceeded 30. The high rate of losses is fuelling a passionate debate inside Israel as to whether there should be a unilateral pullout from the security zone.

Sheikh Nasrallah has indicated on several occasions that his movement is dedicated to forcing Israel off Lebanese soil, but not to pursuing the Israelis into their own territory. Several senior Israeli politicians, from across the spectrum, believe the zone has now outlived its purpose. But the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, has said a pullout can only be arranged in the context of a wider deal with Syria.

The US Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, carried a message from Mr Netanyahu to Syria's President Hafez Assad in Damascus on Friday, but whatever the Israeli prime minister had to say was evidently insufficient to bring the Syrians back to the negotiating table. The fear now is that the fighting in southern Lebanon could draw in the Syrians, who have some 35,000 troops stationed in Lebanon.

David Horovitz is the managing editor of the Jerusalem Report

Israel said last night it would transfer to the Palestinian Authority more of the funds which it withheld after a double suicide bombing in Jerusalem in July killed 20 Israelis. It described the decision as "a goodwill gesture" in view of Palestinian promises to Washington to combat Islamic militants. It also announced that the so-called "internal closure" or siege of Palestinian-ruled towns and cities in the West Bank would be lifted this morning.

Jewish settlers occupied at least two houses in an Arab East Jerusalem neighbourhood where Mr Netanyahu has vowed to bar a new Jewish settlement, witnesses said. They said about 15 Palestinians briefly stoned the settlers' cars, smashing the windows of eight vehicles.