According to Turkish sources Hezbollah has said it will attack Israel from Southern Lebanon if ground troops are sent into the Gaza. Israel must be wary of this development given their experiences in the 2006 war against Hezbollah. If Hezbollah does get drawn into the fighting, this could well see Israel at the center of a broader regional conflict. There appears little doubt that Iran and Syria would support Hezbollah in any such offensive. Given the 10,000 plus Syrian troops poised on Lebanos’ Northern border, it seems unlikely that the fragile coalition Lebanese government could do much to inhibit Hezbollah’s offensive.
Iran’s Press TV quotes the Lebanese paper al-Hayat as the the source of the report:
“Turkey and Egypt are reportedly planning to warn Israel that any ground offensive in the Gaza Strip would trigger a response by Hezbollah.
Citing Turkish sources, the Lebanese daily al-Hayat reported Tuesday that the two countries are seeking to warn Tel Aviv that Hezbollah might open a new front against Israel in Southern Lebanon, should Israeli army launch a ground incursion into the costal sliver.
Tel Aviv has deployed thousands of troops along the Gaza Strip border on Tuesday, raising concerns over an imminent ground incursion into the region.
The report came amid the ongoing aerial attacks which have so far left over 385 people killed and 1,800 others wounded in the Hamas-held territory. The military campaign against the region has been ongoing since early Saturday.
According to the report, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit held a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Ali Babacan on Monday to discuss a four-point plan for a truce between Israel and Hamas.
The report added that the plan would include the removal of the Gaza blockade as well as guarantees for respecting the agreement.
The daily claims that Turkey and Egypt believe that they could convince Israel to end its operation and avoid a ground offensive if they worked together.”
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02.01.2009, 15.28
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ERETZ CHECKPOINT (Israel-Gaza border), January 2 (Itar-Tass) — The operation for the evacuation of Russian and CIS citizens from the Gaza Strip has come to a close. A total of 101 Russian citizens and 70 citizens of other CIS member countries crossed the border. Only several people remain at the Eretz checkpoint, who have some unsettled problems with the Israeli security services. Their settlement is going on. A truck column with the refugees will soon go to the Jordanian-Israeli border, and from there to Amman, where two planes of the Russian Emergencies Ministry (EMERCOM) are waiting for them.
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