Prime Minister Ehud Olmert attacked the leaders of Syria and said they are hasty, immature and irresponsible. He also blamed the leaders of Syria in backing terrorism and said there is no use asking the Syrians to help settle the dispute in Lebanon.
In interviews to the press, Olmert said that he is proud of the Israeli commando raid in Baalbek, located 100 kilometers from the Israeli border. “The commandoes achieved an impressive result. The Hizballah people will be interrogated and they will be treated according to international humanitarian law which Israel enforces. It is too early to speak about their release. They need to get used to being in an Israeli prison.”
Olmert emphasized that Israel will not end the fighting in Lebanon before a strong and effective multinational force is deployed in southern Lebanon. We do not intend to stop the fighting and wait for weeks until the force arrives because until then, the Hizballah will return to the south and we will have achieved nothing.”
---
Olmert said that the Lebanon campaign has unearthed Iran’s strategic plan to use Hizballah as a strategic arm. “This realization allows the west to prepare for the Iranian nuclear threat sooner, something that is not favorable to Iran, but is favorable to the west.”
IsraelToday