israelinsider: security: Peretz says he's instructed army to take control of more rocket-firing sites

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Israel's DM Amir Peretz said Israel will press ahead with its war on Hezbollah. (AP file)


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Peretz says he's instructed army to take control of more rocket-firing sites

By Israel Insider staff and partners August 8, 2006

Israel will press ahead with its war on Hezbollah and is poised to take control of more areas of south Lebanon from which rockets are fired, Israel's defense minister said Tuesday.

Israel's Security Cabinet is to meet Wednesday to give final approval to a deeper push into Lebanon, to the Litani River some 18 miles north of the Israel-Lebanon border.

An Israeli Cabinet minister on Tuesday dismissed as a "ploy" a proposal by Lebanon to deploy thousands of soldiers in south Lebanon, as part of a cease-fire deal.

Defense Minister Amir Peretz said he has asked the army to prepare for the next stage of the ground offensive. "I have instructed the army commanders to prepare for an operation to control all the launching sites," Peretz said.

Commenting on efforts by the international community to negotiate a cease-fire deal, Peretz said: "The military cannot be restricted by diplomatic action that stagnates at times."

The remarks by Cabinet minister Tzahi Hanegbi were the first comment by a senior Israeli official, following the offer by the Lebanese government Monday. Israel insists that a multinational force deploy on the Israel-Lebanon border. It was not immediately clear whether Hanegbi spoke for the government or expressed his personal views.

"We know the army of Lebanon," Hanegbi told Israel Army Radio on Tuesday. "It is a virtual army and was never tested in real conflict. It (the proposal) is a ploy to stop growing pressure on Hezbollah."

Hanegbi said Israel should press ahead with its offensive. "When the enemy blinks, hit him with all your force, and don't let him gather strength again," he said of Hezbollah.

The AP contibuted to this report.

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