It appears now to be over. There has been no shooting for a while, the television news announced that there has been a ceasefire, and Dementia has returned to her house.
We are still, however, being told to stay in our homes.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dovster
Congrats, Jakebeth. Of course, this is not the first I had heard of your son's birth.
My daughter called me to tell me...she heard it from the guy who runs the felafel stand in Kiryat Gat.
Dov
That's all the funnier given that I know the Gedera folks through a wonderful family from where else?....Kiryat Gat. They, of course, were the last to know about baby Jakebeth, as they're currenty vacationing in...Chicago.
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(Complete nonsequiter, but one you might find amusing...I just sent an email to family and friends announcing the birth of our son this morning. Within 3 minutes I then called family in Gedera that I know doesn't have email, and they answered the phone Mazal Tov (congratulations) because someone else in Israel had already called them....at which time I realized, if I don't start calling people over here in the US immediately, the Israeli phone tree is going to spill the beans before I have a chance.)
Within the last few minutes eight Katuysha rockets were shot in my general direction (they sounded like they were very close).
I have a feeling that you are going to be seeing more about this (and Israel's inevitable reaction) on the news very soon.
Earlier this week, I was very happy to bring my daughter back to the kibbutz. She had just finished college near the Gaza Strip and there had been a number of Kassam rockets being fired in her area.
Now, she is experiencing Katuyshas being shot from Lebanon.
(The Army just sent us SMSs telling us to go to our bomb shelters. It was followed by a second SMS telling us that they are now shooting at Hizbollah outposts.)
No news as to whether my ex and her dog will be coming to my house.
What's Hizbollah's excuse for firing rockets this time? As if there has to be one
It's too early for any reason to be given. Right now, they are too busy trying to avoid Israeli return fire.
I got back from Italy on July 4 and put a big American flag in front of my house to celebrate Independence Day. It is still up there and we are close enough to the Lebanese border that it can be seen by Hizbollah with a decent pair of binoculars.
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Sounds like you are living quite a dangerous life out there in your Kibbutz, Dovster. I hope the attacks won't get you hurt, or any of your family and friends. I wonder if/how/when this will ever come to an end.
Merci for your reports mon cher ! Stay safe.
I can think of a few things in Arabic that I'd love to put on a sign for Hizbollah to see
Oh! and I look forward to reading the UN condemnation of this attack on Israel
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dovster
It's too early for any reason to be given. Right now, they are too busy trying to avoid Israeli return fire.
I got back from Italy on July 4 and put a big American flag in front of my house to celebrate Independence Day. It is still up there and we are close enough to the Lebanese border that it can be seen by Hizbollah with a decent pair of binoculars.
Apparently, Hizbollah launched the attacks all along the border (I could only hear what was happening near my own home) usings both mortars and rockets.
Its purpose was to serve as a diversion during which time it entered Israel and kidnapped two Israeli soldiers serving on the border.
Israel is now involved in a number of retaliatory actions (as far as I know, they involve shelling and air attacks but no ground forces).
Given the situation in Gaza after the rocket attacks on Israel and the kidnapping of one soldier by Hamas, it is very possible that South Lebanon will soon be facing a similar situation.
This would be tragic for the people living there, most of whom have no desire for a war with Israel, but on the other hand Israel can not allow its citizens to come under rocket fire and its soldiers to be kidnapped.
Moreover, as Hizbollah operates only with the cooperation/permission of Syria the potential for a much wider-spread conflict can't be ignored.
BEYFlyer and I have a long-standing agreement to meet for drinks somewhere along the border as soon as our respective countries make that possible. Sadly, it seems like today's events have pushed back that meeting even further.
Take care and stay safe. Sorry to hear of more violence over there, but that just seems to come with being in that part of the world, I guess. Please keep us posted so we know you're OK.
Apparently, Hizbollah launched the attacks all along the border (I could only hear what was happening near my own home) usings both mortars and rockets.
Its purpose was to serve as a diversion during which time it entered Israel and kidnapped two Israeli soldiers serving on the border.
Israel is now involved in a number of retaliatory actions (as far as I know, they involve shelling and air attacks but no ground forces).
Given the situation in Gaza after the rocket attacks on Israel and the kidnapping of one soldier by Hamas, it is very possible that South Lebanon will soon be facing a similar situation.
This would be tragic for the people living there, most of whom have no desire for a war with Israel, but on the other hand Israel can not allow its citizens to come under rocket fire and its soldiers to be kidnapped.
Moreover, as Hizbollah operates only with the cooperation/permission of Syria the potential for a much wider-spread conflict can't be ignored.
BEYFlyer and I have a long-standing agreement to meet for drinks somewhere along the border as soon as our respective countries make that possible. Sadly, it seems like today's events have pushed back that meeting even further.
Sad day for all of us... This just sickens me ... Don't know what else to say... Stay safe Dovster and hope your ex doesn't make a return visit . God help us all. Excuse me while I go prepare for the wrath of the IDF...
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BEYFlyer, I certainly hope that your preparations prove not to be necessary and that Beirut is spared any military retaliation from Israel but I am not overly optimistic about that.
I am going to attempt to write the rest of this post as objectively as my journalistic experience allows me and try to put aside any personal feelings I might have as a resident of an area which came under fire this morning.
As I am writing this, I can hear constant firing. It all, however, sounds like outgoing artillery and bombs being dropped by the IDF north of my home (in Southern Lebanon).
According to Israeli television, IDF ground troops have moved into Lebanon in an attempt to find the two soldiers. The odds of them being successful, however, are small.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has declared the attacks an "act of war" and says he holds the government of Lebanon responsible for them.
Israeli Army reserve units have been put on alert for call up and a Government meeting is scheduled for 7 pm to determine what action to take.
Under international law, Lebanon is, indeed, responsible for Hizbollah's actions. It would not be had it taken all possible steps to keep Hizbollah from launching any attacks from within its borders, but it has taken no such steps at all. Indeed, Lebanon has repeatedly said that it is not the guarantor of Israel's safety.
On the other hand, it is very doubtful that the Lebanese government could take any effective steps even if it wanted to. The Lebanese military is very weak and I don't know what action it would be able to undertake against Hizbollah -- which certainly is stronger in the southern part of the country.
Moreover, if the Lebanese military were to attack Hizbollah, it would risk having Syria enter on Hizbollah's side. It would also risk re-igniting the tragic civil war the country endured for so long.
The worst possible scenario that Lebanon faces is Israel reacting with unrestrained attacks against the entire South and Beirut. The best that it can hope for is Israel restricting itself solely to Hizbollah targets in the South.
The probability is that Israel will do something in between. It will most likely concentrate on the South, and keep any ground troops in that area, but may well go after Lebanese infrastructure (such as electrical plants) in other parts of the country. This could easily result in widespread problems in Lebanon.
From an economic point of view, the situation is ripe with danger to both countries. The attacks came in the beginning of the tourist season and even the most restrained fighting, in a very restricted area, is liable to frighten off tourism to both Israel and Lebanon. As tourism is a major industry in both countries (albeit more important to the Lebanese economy than to Israel's) the impact is certain to be major.
Okay, that was my objective view. Now for my FlyerTalker view:
With a lot of luck, Israel will find the two soldiers quickly (and alive) and stop all further actions. Hizbollah will have gotten a good scare and not attack again. In the meantime, all the tourists going into Israel and Lebanon will be scared off, cancel their reservations, and you and I will be able to get airline tickets anywhere for pennies.
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Just another note to say 'stay safe'.
And I for one will not be contributing to the lowering of ticket prices. I'm hoping to get over there in the next couple of months, missiles be damned.
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I had hoped against hope that neither BEYFlyer or I would have any further news to contribute to this thread but apparently that is not to be the case.
We have two kinds of shelters on my kibbutz. The first are reinforced rooms attached to most houses and they are used when the situation appears to be somewhat dangerous. (My ex does not have one which is why she came to my house last time.)
The other kind are large, communal, shelters dug deeply into the ground. These are only used when the situation is considered extremely dangerous.
A few minutes ago we received SMS notification that "The Army is about to attack Lebanon. Everybody must go down to the shelters."
As the Army has been active all day in Lebanon -- since the Hizbollah rockets I first posted about -- I can only assume that this means a much serious IDF attack is about to happen (indeed, may already be underway) and that the army expects Hizbollah to return fire with everything it has.
I won't be going down to the shelter but I will sleep tonight in the reinforced room at my house -- the first time I have ever done so.
I very much hope that BEYFlyer's further contributions to this thread (if any) concern only things that he has heard about -- and not experienced first hand.
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Dovster, Mrs. Cholula and I have been watching this all day on FOX News and I just had her read this thread a few minutes ago so she could come up to speed with your first person reports.
Thanks for keeping us updated and watch your butt.
Sad day for all of us... This just sickens me 
... Don't know what else to say... Stay safe Dovster and hope your ex doesn't make a return visit 
