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Thursday, July 20, 2006
Some headlines and summaries from JTA
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Hezbollah kills two Israeli soldiers
Hezbollah gunmen killed two Israeli commandos in southern Lebanon.
Israel sent special forces to a Lebanese village just over the border from Avivim on Wednesday to flush out a Hezbollah squad hiding in the hilly countryside.
Two soldiers, Staff Sgt. Yotam Gilboa, 21, and Staff Sgt. Yonatan Hadasi, were killed in the ensuing clash and at least seven others were wounded. There also were unconfirmed reports of Hezbollah casualties.
Avivim saw a recent infiltration attempt by Hezbollah gunmen at the height of Israel’s shelling of southern Lebanon.
Assad wants cease-fire
Syria’s president called for a cease-fire between Hezbollah and Israel.
The official Syrian news agency reported that Bashar Assad made the comments Wednesday in a meeting with the Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Israel has made the return of its soldiers taken hostage last week by Hezbollah a precondition for a cease-fire.
Also Wednesday, Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said he would demand compensation from Israel for destruction caused during its military campaign in Lebanon.
Rice, U.N. to discuss cease-fire
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will meet with U.N. officials in New York on Thursday to convey America’s opposition to an immediate cease-fire in Lebanon.
“Our view is that a cease-fire is not the first thing required,” John Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, told JTA on Wednesday at a gathering of Jewish leaders in New York.
Bolton said Rice would meet with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who is returning from the Middle East and is expected to push for a cease-fire and an international peacekeeping force.
Evangelicals unite for Israel
More than 3,400 evangelical Christians converged on Washington to urge stronger support for Israel.
Christians United for Israel, with representatives from 50 states, attended a banquet Tuesday night and heard speakers including Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.); Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Daniel Ayalon; Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.); and Ken Mehlman, chairman of the Republican National Committee. The conference was the Christian group’s inaugural event.
Members of the group met Wednesday with legislators and attended a pro-Israel rally near the White House.
“Israel has been a longtime friend and ally of the United States, and Christians everywhere have a biblical responsibility to support the Jewish people,” said the Rev. John Hagee, the organization’s founder.
N.Y. demonstrators protest Israeli actions
Hundreds of anti-Israel protesters gathered outside Israel’s mission to the United Nations on Tuesday.
Chanting “Stop the killing, stop the bombs, Israel out of Lebanon,” many wore headscarves and waved signs that said “Hands off Lebanon.”
The event was organized by a coalition that included U.S.-based Arab and Muslim organizations, The Associated Press reported.
The rally followed a larger pro-Israel demonstration Monday.
Conscientious objector in Hezbollah conflict
An Israeli reserve soldier refused to report for duty in Israel’s conflict with Hezbollah.
Ha’aretz reported that Staff Sgt. Itzik Shabbat, a 28-year-old Sderot resident, is the conflict’s first conscientious objector.
Shabbat previously served 28 days in prison in 2002 for refusing to serve in the Palestinian territories.
'Spies’ rounded up in Beirut
Lebanese security forces rounded up Beirut residents suspected of spying on behalf of Israel.
Authoritative news reports out of Lebanon on Wednesday said as many as two dozens people were in custody of the internal security service on suspicion of “marking” buildings in the capital for Israeli airstrikes.
Israeli officials were not available for comment, but a security source said that given the aerial technology available to the armed forces such spotters on the ground were not necessary.
Anti-Israel rally staged near Detroit
An estimated 10,000 people near Detroit rallied against Israel’s military actions in Lebanon.
Carrying banners that read “Stop Israeli Terrorism,” demonstrators in Dearborn, Mich., also criticized the Bush administration for its support of Israel.
Dearborn is home to one of the largest concentrations of Arab Americans in the United States.
Detroit’s Jewish community scheduled a pro-Israel rally for Wednesday evening.
http://www.jta.org/
posted by Somebody @ 12:21 AM Permanent Link
 
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