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Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert attends a meeting of the Parliament's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in Jerusalem. (AP)
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| By Associated Press July 27, 2006 |
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Israel must unleash massive air strikes against villages in south Lebanon to clear out Hezbollah gunmen, an Israeli Cabinet minister said Thursday, as the Israeli government weighed whether to broaden the military offensive against the Lebanese guerrillas.
The call for greater firepower came as Israel suffered its heaviest casualty toll in the 15-day campaign, with nine soldiers killed and 25 wounded in house-to-house fighting in Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon on Wednesday.
Israeli army commanders have said troops would seize additional towns and villages in south Lebanon to force out Hezbollah gunmen.
On Wednesday, a high-level Mideast conference in Rome ended in disagreement, with most European leaders urging an immediate cease-fire, but the U.S. willing to give Israel more time to punish the guerrilla group.
Justice Minister Haim Ramon, who is close to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, said Israel interprets this as a green light to continue its offensive. "We received yesterday at the Rome conference permission from the world .... to continue the operation, this war, until Hezbollah won't be located in Lebanon and until it is disarmed," he told Israel Army Radio. "Everyone understands that a victory for Hezbollah is a victory for world terror."
Ramon also said that the Israeli air force must bomb villages before ground forces enter, suggesting that this would help prevent Israeli casualties in the future.
Asked whether entire villages should be flattened, he said: "These places are not villages. They are military bases in which Hezbollah people are hiding and from which they are operating."
Ramon said Israel has given civilians in south Lebanon sufficient warning to leave the area, and that those left behind should be considered Hezbollah sympathizers. "All those now in south Lebanon are terrorists who are related in some way to Hezbollah," he said.
However, it is believed civilians remain in these communities. A Red Cross doctor who visited the town of Bint Jbail, scene of the heaviest fighting, before the Israelis advanced on it, said that while the majority of residents have fled, a considerable number were taking cover in schools and other areas.
Ramon said military should not hold back. "What we need to activate in south Lebanon is tremendous firepower before ground forces enter," he said. "Our great advantage against Hezbollah is firepower, not hand-to-hand combat."
Top army commanders have recommended that the government approve a wider campaign, military and government officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity since they were not authorized to discuss such matters with the press.
Defense Minister Amir Peretz opposes a larger ground operation, the officials said. Olmert's aides refused to comment on the prime minister's position on the matter.
The Israeli daily Haaretz said military officials have criticized the government for not ordering a broader ground offensive, which they said would give troops an advantage over Hezbollah. Several thousand Israeli soldiers are currently fighting against several hundred Hezbollah gunmen. Military commanders also demanded greater air support of the ground troops, Haaretz said.
One of the aims of the ground offensive is to push Hezbollah out of a two-kilometer-wide strip along the Israeli-Lebanese border to prevent future attacks by the militia. However, Israel's offensive has failed to stop Hezbollah rocket attacks on northern Israel.
On Wednesday, 151 rockets hit Israel, the highest daily total since the start of the fighting, the army said. By mid-morning Thursday, 30 rockets had already hit three northern Israeli towns.
Israel's offensive has killed 423 people in Lebanon since July 12. It was launched after Hezbollah attacked an Israeli border patrol, killing three soldiers and kidnapping two. Fifty-two Israelis have been killed in the fighting, including 34 soldiers.
The growing Israeli casualty toll was accompanied by criticism of the military operation. Some politicians warned that Israel could get dragged into a long offensive in Lebanon. Israel withdrew from south Lebanon in 2000 after an 18-year occupation of the area.
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