Israel Matzav

DEBKAfile: Israel offering concessions for cease fire

DEBKAfile is reporting this evening that Israel is offering concessions to reach a cease fire. According to DEBKAfile, a combined French and Lebanese force will take up positions along Lebanon's borders with Israel and Syria to prevent terrorists from entering Lebanon and from attacking Israel. The deal includes the release of the two Israeli soldiers kidnapped by Hezbullah three weeks ago, and the release of Lebanese prisoners held by Israel. It also includes turning over Shaba Farms/Mount Dov to international control.

The Jerusalem Post reported this morning that only four Lebanese prisoners are known to be held by Israel: Samir Kuntar, Nissim Nasser, Yehia Skaff and Ali Faratan. I doubt Olmert could ever live down releasing Kuntar.

DEBKAfile notes that France has cordial relations with Hezbullah and that it has maintained contact with Hassan Nasrallah throughout the fighting.

DEBKAfile also makes several disturbing points regarding the Israeli concessions:

1. Release of Lebanese prisoner in return for Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev. The argument is still ahead on the exact definition of “Lebanese prisoners.” defined. [See above regarding Kuntar. CiJ]

2. Withdrawal of Israeli positions from the Shebaa Farms and the Mt. Hermon and Mt. Dov slopes and passes for the handover of these strategic points to the multinational force. This would give Nasrallah, who has been fighting to achieve this end for six years, his greatest triumph and give Syria and the Palestinians an object lesson on the application of brute force to obtain results.

3. Israel no longer presses for the disarming of Hizballah. That too is left to the “international community.”

In other words, just as Ariel Sharon and Ehud Olmert handed over the Gaza-Egyptian border terminals to a European unit in 2005 to expedite the pull-out from the Gaza Strip, so too is Olmert again entrusting to a foreign force the Israel-Lebanese border and the security of northern Israel - with the Shebaa Farms thrown in as an extra. This result lets Nasrallah come out on top after provoking a full-scale war and provides a boost for all the forces of fundamentalist Islamic terror waging war on the West. It is also the outcome of the Israeli army’s unfortunate failure to break the back of Hizballah in 18 days of combat. [A failure that would not have occurred had Israel behaved for the last three weeks like it did today in Qana. CiJ]

When this war ends, I hope the country's leadership is seriously taken to task for its ineptitude in conducting this war. You all know that I will attempt to use this blog to do just that.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:54 PM