Cognitive Dissonance
Israel Says No Halt to Strikes in Support of Ground Forces
By STEVEN ERLANGER and HASSAN M. FATTAH
Published: July 31, 2006
JERUSALEM, Monday, July 31 — Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice said today that she believes a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah can be reached this week, and returned home to work on the plan after persuading Israel to suspend its air campaign for 48 hours in the face of an outcry over the air raid on Sunday that left dozens of Lebanese civilians dead.Israeli warplanes did conduct air strikes this morning, but army officials said they were in support of ground forces and so not covered by the 48-hour halt.
And Israel’s defense minister, Amir Peretz, made it clear in a speech to the Knesset today that Israel intends to continue its ground operations against Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon.
“We must not agree to a ceasefire that would be implemented immediately,’’ Mr. Peretz said. “If an immediate cease-fire is declared, the extremists will rear their heads anew.’’
At the end of a turbulent 8-day trip, Ms. Rice laid out what she called an “emerging consensus” for a ceasefire package. Under the proposal, Israel and Lebanon - presumably representing Hezbollah -- would agree to a ceasefire as part of a larger pact that would include installing international peacekeepers throughout southern Lebanon.
The Lebanese government would work to disarm Hezbollah, and the United States and other countries would funnel money and send military officials to help train the Lebanese army, so that it can work to prevent future attacks on Israel.
The package described by Ms. Rice calls for armed groups to be prohibited where the international force is deployed, and an international embargo against the delivery of weapons to anyone other than the government of Lebanon and the international force.
She said the United States would call for United Nations Security Council action this week on the package.
“I have been deeply grieved by the tragic losses we have witnessed, especially the death of children, Lebanese and Israeli,” Ms. Rice told reporters before heading back to Washington. “Too many families have been displaced from their homes. Too many people urgently need medical care, or are living in shelters.”
Ms. Rice had been making little progress in her talks on a cease-fire package before news broke about the raid in Qana, a village in southern Lebanon, whose death toll made Sunday the bloodiest day of the conflict so far.
Israel said the Qana raid was aimed at Hezbollah fighters firing rockets into Israel from the area, but the strike collapsed a residential apartment building, crushing Lebanese civilians who were taking shelter for the night in the basement.
There were different accounts of the death toll. Residents said as many as 60 people had been inside. News agencies reported that 56 had been killed, and that 34 of them were children. The Lebanese Red Cross, which conducted the rescue, counted 27 bodies, as many of 17 of them children. The youngest of the dead was 10 months old, and the oldest was 95. One was in a wheelchair.
Here's your Culture of Life.