Assad. Doesn't want war
Photo: Reuters
Nasrallah. UNIFIL effective
Photo: AFP
Senior officer: Talks of impending war 'irresponsible'
Senior Northern Command officer reports that Syria does not plan to ignite war, UNIFIL and Lebanese Military effective, Hizbullah will have hard time realigning in area
A senior Northern Command officer said Sunday morning that "we don’t have any information that Syria plans to go to war this summer, or to heat up the border with acts of resistance or fighting."
The officer continued to say that "any talk of a war in the summer of 2007 is irresponsible and not based on what is actually going on on the Syrian front and the Lebanese front."
International Monitors
Ron Ben Yishai
International force operating in Lebanon manages to locate Hizbullah weapons caches, destroy two. Israel-UNIFIL coordination improving; Israel emphasizes, overflights important in preventing Hizbullah re-entrenchment
He pointed out that there are two additional forces in Lebanon that are gaining strength which Israel should keep an eye on.
The first is World Jihad members, namely al-Qaeda, which views Lebanon as a comfortable work zone against European forces.
The second is Palestinian sources, especially the Islamic Jihad and Ahmad Jibril's Popular Front General Command. Both of these Palestinian organizations are associated with Hizbullah, they were not damaged by the war and have been renewing activity.
The senior official also noted that UNIFIL and the Lebanese army are functioning very effectively in south Lebanon. He specifically pointed out the good work of the French and Spanish UNIFIL forces in the area.
As a result of the activity of these forces, Hizbullah has been scarcely present across the border, and has been unable to renew it's alignment in southern Lebanon.
Regarding Hizbullah, the senior officer said that the organization was hit hard during the last war and as a result has no intention of renewing battle.
'War weakened Hizbullah'
The senior officer added that Syria and Iran do reinforce Hizbullah with ammunition, but not in significant amounts.
There is Iranian presence in Lebanon that has been attempting to influence the regime and the political balance in Lebanon.
The senior official said that he believed the Golan Heights are more important to Syria than Lebanon is, and that they were impressed by Hizbullah's achievements in field combat and antitank missile activation.
Nonetheless, the Syrians are well aware of the fact that the IDF is much stronger than the Syrian military and that Israel has the power to threaten the Syrian regime, and of that they should beware.
The senior official further stated that the second Lebanon war has led to a great improvement in the situation in southern Lebanon, and to the weakening of Hizbullah.
Still, only time and the political developments within Lebanon will tell what the long term effects will be.
