JERUSALEM - Three Israeli-soldiers and at least two Hizbullah gunmen were killed in clashes in south Lebanon as tensions rose again in the Middle East yesterday, writes David Horovitz. Throughout the day, while the dead soldiers were being buried inside Israel, Israeli warplanes fired missiles at suspected Hizbullah bases close to the clash site. Five Hizbullah gunmen had been killed in confrontations earlier this week.
Hizbullah is fighting to force the Israelis out of their "security zone" along the south Lebanon border. And in an unprecedented sign of growing support for Hizbullah in the Beirut government, Lebanese army units fired anti-aircraft guns at the Israeli helicopters when they came to extricate casualties.
The clashes came as regional peace efforts dipped to a new low. The US mediator, Mr Dennis Ross, has failed to get the Israeli and Palestinians talking again after two months of deadlock. Late on Thursday night, he was rebuffed by the Palestinian Authority President, Mr Yasser Arafat, who cancelled a meeting with him at short notice, to underline Palestinian claims that Mr Ross, who is Jewish, is guilty of pro-Israeli bias. Mr Arafat yesterday sent a telegram to President Clinton.
(David Horovitz is managing editor of the Jerusalem Report)