You knew it was coming.
Ehud Olmert said that the cross-border raid in which the two soldiers were taken and eight others killed was co-ordinated with Tehran.
So does that mean Israel will be setting it’s sights on Damascus or Tehran… apparently this operation will be ongoing for “weeks”… so there appears to be plenty of room for escalation.
I’d like to point out two interesting links I’ve come across.
One is from LiveScience.com, of all places, it provides an interesting history of tensions between Israel and Lebanon
Because Israel and Lebanon have never signed a peace accord, the countries remain officially in a state of war that has existed since 1948 when Lebanon joined other Arab nations against the newly formed Jewish state
I learn something knew everyday…
Also, Kathryn Cramer has posted an excellent map depicting Hezbollahs reach into Israel from Lebanon.
Some might wonder how far Israel can reach in comparison? Well, Israeli missile technology is largely unheralded, but certainly should not be ignored.
It has a well developed Ballistic Missiles program of it’s own… in fact it is thought by the US Department of Commerce that it is a possible missile supplier. (to South Africa, among others).
srael maintains a sizeable arsenal of ballistic missiles that would enable it to deliver an offensive or retaliatory nuclear strike against any potential regional target. The core of Israel’s arsenal is its fleet of two-stage “Jericho” missiles. Israel’s Jericho-I missile is estimated to be capable of carrying a 450 to 650-kilogram payload up to 500 kilometers, and the Jericho-II of carrying a 750 to 1,000-kilogram payload considerably more than 1,500 kilometers. The three-stage Jericho-III missile, reportedly under development, is believed to have a range of 4,800 kilometers. Israel’s NEXT space launch vehicle, also under development, may consist of a bipropellant fourth stage (consisting of liquid fuel plus a liquid oxidizer) added to the three solid fuel stages of the Jericho-III missile.
According to a report by the Congressional Research Service, Israel had deployed, by the year 2000, fifty Jericho-I missiles on mobile launchers and one hundred Jericho-II missiles on underground wheeled transporter-erector-launchers or railroad flat cars.
So it is clear that Israel has significantly more advanced missile technology than any of it’s prospective adversaries in the region… and that doesn’t include its’ fleet of F-15 and F-16 fighter jets which are more than capable of attacking targets as far away as Iran and Bashar…. and, as we saw in Osirak, they are capable of getting ‘in and out’ before anyone even realises what has happened.