MORE ISRAELIS ARE CONVINCED THAT ASAD DOES NOT WANT PEACE
By Safa Haeri in Tel Aviv
TEL AVIV 9TH Feb. (IPS) Senior Israeli officials expressed cautious satisfaction Wednesday at the "mild reaction" of the Islamic Republic to the latest spat of violence between Israel and Lebanon.
In an exchange of messages concerning the bombing of three power plants in Beirut and Tripoli and on positions of the Iranian and Syrian-backed hezbollah organisation, Iranian and Russian Foreign Ministers called on all sides for restrain and an end to the escalation.
Responding to the latest attack of the Lebanese Hezbollah against Israeli positions carried Tuesday in revenge of Israel's bombing of power stations in Lebanon, the Shi'a-based organisation had mounted another successful operation, killing one more Israeli soldier in the security zone.
The Israeli Air Force retaliated hours latter by hitting three Hezbollah targets, including the organisation's naval radar system based in the twelfth floor of an apartment in the city of Tyre, the Capital of South Lebanon region.
The two other targets were in the B'albak region that is under tight Syrian control.
The new raid on Hezbollah came as the Israeli government had declared a state of emergency in all northern areas situated under the range of hezbollah Katuysahas and mortars, forcing thousands of people to stay out of work and children out of schools, cramped in shelters.
Lebanese Energy Minister Suleiman Trebulsi estimated the total damages to the three power stations destroyed by Israel at more than 200 millions US Dollars. Lebanese experts said it will take about a year to fully repair the plants.
The latest Hezbollah attack came as the embattled Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak was sending frantically messages to the Damascus, via Washington, urging them to rein in the Party of God and come back to the negotiation table "before it's too late", according to informed Israeli sources.
In a series of messages sent to President Hafez Asad of Syria via the United States, Mr. Barak made it clear that Israel will not stand for Hezbollah systematically violating the "Grapes of Wrath" understanding and will ignore it as long as the Hezbollah does, said the right-wing Jerusalem Post, adding that however, the prime Minister had indicated to the Syrian President that the "window of opportunity is still open".
The sudden flare up of the situation on the borders between Israel and Lebanon, coupled with the deterioration of negotiations between Israeli and Palestinians and the stalemated talks with the Syrians have placed Mr. Barak in very delicate position.
"The only real way to resolve the problems is by moving forward with the peace talks", said one Israeli official.
But a quick look at the Wednesday Israel press editorials give the impression that few believe the Syrian President is ready for signing peace with the Jewish State.
"The magician played with his handkerchief for months. He made knots in it, folded it, stretched it, shrank it…. And nothing happened. No pigeon. No wand. No flower and no bud. To be exact, even the handkerchief disappeared", said Nahum Barnea, a leading columnist wit the mass circulation daily "Yedioth Ahoronoth".
As things stands, the Hesbollah, this successful Iranian arm is being wisely used by the Syrians against Israel. Ironically, only Israel is interested in the evacuation the security zone, for, the operation deprives Asad of this weapon, the Iranians of a foothold at the Mediterranean, the SLA from a source of revenue and the population in the enclave from a better standard of living compared to that of other lebanese living in the neighbourhood.
Though Iran is the main supporter of the Hezbollah, providing it with money to pay its fighters, weapons, military experts and training facilities, yet everyone here agree that the "key" to the Hezbollah problem is in Damascus and Barak, supported by the Americans, believe that Asad will soon return to the negotiation to sign a peace accord.
The problem is that "Barak's optimism is shared by fewer political partners in Israel, as time goes by and the Syrians continue to dig in their heels, willing to return to the discussion table only after Barak agrees to withdraw to the 4 June 1967 borders, bringing the Syrians back to the banks of the Dead Sea. While declaring his willingness to do so would bring Asad out of his bomb shelter, it would also spell the end to the Prime Minister's political career", wrote Aluf Benn in Ha'aretz. ENDS ISRAEL SYRIA HEZBOLLAH 9200