DATE=5/25/2000
TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT
TITLE=ISRAEL / LEBANON
NUMBER=5-46378
BYLINE=MEREDITH BUEL
DATELINE=JERUSALEM
CONTENT=
VOICE AT:
INTRO: There is a new reality in the Middle East now
that Israel has withdrawn its soldiers from southern
Lebanon after more than two decades of occupation. As
V-O-A Jerusalem Correspondent Meredith Buel reports,
Israel's sudden pullback from Lebanon could force
nations in the region to choose peace or renewed war.
TEXT: Israelis are feeling a sense of both relief and
apprehension after the chaotic but mostly peaceful
withdrawal from southern Lebanon.
After decades of occupying a 15-kilometer-wide buffer
zone in south Lebanon, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud
Barak ordered a lightening quick pullback from the
occupation zone.
The redeployment left a military vacuum that for now
has been filled mostly by Iranian-backed Hezbollah
guerrillas armed with rockets, automatic weapons, and
a sense of victory.
Prime Minister Barak has made it clear that any firing
over the border, a common occurrence in recent years,
will be considered an act of war -- a war he says
Lebanon and Syria will be responsible for starting.
/// BARAK ACT ///
We expect that no one will dare to shoot over
the border into Israel against either military
targets or civilians. We hold the Lebanese
government and the Syrian government responsible
for any violation of these quite obvious rules
of the game of sovereignty.
/// END ACT ///
In the past, Israel has responded to cross-border
attacks by sending war planes to bomb Lebanese
infrastructure and other targets. The attacks and the
measured responses were familiar to both sides.
Syria has 35-thousand soldiers in Lebanon and is
considered the major power broker in the country.
Those Syrian soldiers are expected to be added to
Israel's target list.
Analysts say Syria also is facing a new political
reality. Syria's support for Hezbollah guerrillas
attacking Israel in the former occupation zone gave it
a crucial card to play in the now-stalled peace talks
with the Jewish state.
Today, heavily armed Israeli soldiers and Hezbollah
guerrillas are literally eyeball to eyeball across the
border. Israeli soldiers are defending Israeli
citizens from their own backyard.
After the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, the border
has become a potential powder keg. And, if violence
erupts, no one is sure how it will end.
The chief of staff of Israel's armed forces is
Lieutenant-General Shaul Mofaz.
/// MOFAZ ACT ///
We come in peace and yet we warn our enemies we
shall not hesitate to unleash our full power to
defend our people.
/// END ACT ///
Israeli government spokesman Moshe Fogel says the
region has entered a period of uncertainty.
/// FOGEL ACT ///
I don't think the Israeli public, indeed the
Israeli government, will stand for having
Israeli residents living along the border being
targeted by terrorist attacks. I think in the
coming days, indeed in the coming months, we
will have a test period and we will see how the
situation will pan out.
/// OPT /// Hopefully, being optimistic, we
hope that there will be quiet along the border.
But we are not dependent on the United Nations,
we are not dependent on third parties, we know
how to take care of ourselves, and we will
certainly take the necessary action to make sure
that Israelis will continue to live along the
border in peace. /// END OPT ///
/// END ACT ///
Opposition parties in parliament have been critical of
the chaotic nature of Israel's withdrawal from south
Lebanon. Likud Party leader Ariel Sharon is calling
the operation a disgraceful retreat.
Mr. Sharon accuses Prime Minister Barak of selling out
fighters of the South Lebanon Army -- the Israeli-
supported militia that collapsed just before the
pullback.
Thousands of militiamen and their families fled to
Israel, while many others surrendered in Lebanon.
/// SHARON ACT ///
They fought together with us, all those years
suffered heavy casualties. To leave them behind
and disappear, without taking necessary steps,
that was a major mistake.
/// END ACT ///
The Israeli public appears to overwhelmingly support
the withdrawal from south Lebanon, and if the border
remains quiet, the situation could boost the
popularity of Prime Minister Barak and his efforts to
succeed in regional peace negotiations.
If fighting breaks out, some analysts say it could
lead to another war in the Middle East. (Signed)
NEB/MB/JWH/JP
25-May-2000 11:52 AM EDT (25-May-2000 1552 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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