US and Chinese Weapons and Technology Being Used in Israeli Hezbollah Conflict – Israelis Were Surprised by Attacks on Warship and Cities

July16th 2006

F-16

Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon have been able to launch rockets into southern Israel while Israeli artillery has fired into Lebanon. An estimated 45 people were killed and 100 injured in attacks on Lebanon by the Israeli military. The Canadian government says that eight vacationing Canadians were killed and six were critically wounded in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah has been able to strike deep into Israel, which was not expected by the Israelis. Evidently some Israeli analysts were under the impression that they could launch an offensive into Lebanon with impunity. The International Herald Tribune reported that the Israelis claim that the rockets were a Syrian-produced copy of an Iranian Fajr-3 model. These rockets have a range of about 30 miles. This is a change from the smaller Katyushas rockets that Hezbollah has been using.

On Sunday there were at least 90 rockets fired into Israel, according to the Los Angeles Times. There has been numerous rocket attacks on the Israeli town of Haifa, and elsewhere in Northern Israel. Some areas have been put under a form of martial law after the Syrian made rockets hit a busy railroad maintenance building, killing 8 and wounding more than 20.

On Saturday Hezbollah was able to launch a rocket at an Israeli warship. This was the first time Hezbollah was able to attack on an Israeli warship. According to the AFP news agency, Hezbollah employed radar-guided C-802 missile, developed by Iran using Chinese technology. These missiles have a 100 km range. The agency reported that one was killed and three were injured in the attack. Comment on this article at our Forum

The attacks by Hezbollah were in retaliation for Israel’s bombardment of Lebanon. The leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, promised "new surprises" and said Hezbollah had "no choice" but to hit Haifa. "As long as the enemy acts without limitations or red lines, it's our right to continue the confrontation without limits," he said in a taped speech televised on Hezbollah's Al Manar television.

Earlier reports from Israel said Nasrallah was injured, but he did not appear injured on TV. The images showed him from waist up and uninjured. Both Israel and Hezbollah are under international pressure to stop the fighting.

The fighting in Lebanon began Wednesday when Hezbollah guerillas crossed one of the most heavily protected borders in the world, ambushing a two-Humvee border patrol. They killed two Israelis and took two others prisoner. Soon after that, the Israelis realized their tanks were no match for mines or Hezbollah missiles, so they began their artillery bombardment and air strikes by US made F-16’s, according to the Sunday Herald.