Israel unsure about invasion
2006-07-23 14:19
Jerusalem - Israeli military chief Lieutenant-General Dan Halutz has yet to decide on whether forces need to launch a major ground invasion of Lebanon to cripple Hezbollah, the army said on Sunday.
"The army chief has not made any decision on a large ground incursion into Lebanon," army spokeswoman Brigadier-General Miri Regev told Army Radio.
"We know Hezbollah's capabilities and its weapons arsenal.
We are not underestimating it but we know how to deal with them.
We will do everything so that they stop firing rockets."
Israel has called up thousands of reserve soldiers and been massing troops and tanks on its northern border with Lebanon for days, heightening speculation a land invasion is imminent to halt rocket attacks and drive Hizbollah away from the border.
A heavy aerial bombardment of Lebanon has failed to stop the missile firings on northern Israel.
Military sources have said several hundred soldiers were already inside southern Lebanon trying to destroy Hezbollah guerrilla hideouts, weapons stores and rocket-launching sites.
- Reuters