Crossfire War - Lebanon Orders Army to "Achieve High Combat Readiness"

Lebanon Orders Army to "Achieve High Combat Readiness" to Confront Israel - Iranian Official Visits Damascus - Iran Defense Minister in KhartoumNight Watch: JERUSALEM - As expected the visit to Cairo/Jerusalem/Ramallah by U. S. Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice has had no impact on the ground concerning the fighting going on between Palestinian militants and the Israel Defence Force (IDF). Asharq al-Awsat/AP report Qassam rocket fire is still targeting Sderot and the western Negev so in retaliation Israel launched several air strikes and ground attacks against Palestinian rocket squads. In the meantime Hamas stated Dr. Rice's visit is completely unwelcome and Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said though Israel will still wage its war against the rocket fire Israel is still willing to maintain negotiations with Palestinian moderates. [ASHARQALAWSAT]

As expected the visit to Cairo/Jerusalem/Ramallah by U. S. Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice has had no impact on the ground concerning the fighting going on between Palestinian militants and the Israel Defence Force (IDF). Asharq al-Awsat/AP report Qassam rocket fire is still targeting Sderot and the western Negev so in retaliation Israel launched several air strikes and ground attacks against Palestinian rocket squads. In the meantime Hamas stated Dr. Rice's visit is completely unwelcome and Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said though Israel will still wage its war against the rocket fire Israel is still willing to maintain negotiations with Palestinian moderates. [ASHARQALAWSAT]

Knesset - In the meantime the Jerusalem Post/AP report Israel Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has admitted publicly Israel may have to re-occupy Gaza in order to finally end the rocket attacks. "We cannot afford this kind of extreme Islamic state controlled by Hamas." The situation has obviously become even more alarming with the introduction of the longer range and more powerful Katyusha (Grad) rocket shipped and manufactured by Iran. Livni continued by saying Israel evacuated Gaza "not in order to come back, but we might find ourselves in a situation where we have no choice." They are in the situation Tehran has placed them. I wrote at the time of Israel's withdrawal in August 2005 Israel pulled its people out of the line of fire, now the fire is really here. 2008 is the year Iran's foreign policy, the jihad, runs its course and a regional war revolving around Jerusalem is one of Tehran's objectives as their way of reshaping West Asian governments to be more in harmony with Iran's view than the West. [JPOST]