Jerusalem
13 October 2009
Israel is accusing the Islamic guerrilla group Hezbollah of endangering stability in Lebanon after a mysterious explosion.
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| U.N peacekeepers patrol near the southern Lebanese port city of Tyre after an explosion at a Hezbollah member's home, 12 Oct 2009 |
There are conflicting reports about the blast and casualties, but Israel says it was caused by Hezbollah ammunition that is forbidden in that area under the ceasefire that ended the Lebanon War in 2006.
Israeli President Shimon Peres said Hezbollah is turning Lebanon into a barrel of explosives. He said it is not Israel that is endangering Lebanon but Hezbollah.
Peres accused Hezbollah of preventing a peace agreement with Israel that could turn Lebanon irael launched a 34-day assault on Lebanon in 2006 after Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers and killed three others in a cross-border raid. Hezbollah fired more than 4,000 rockets at Israel during the war.
After the explosion, the Israeli army lodged a complaint with UNIFIL, the United Nations peacekeeping force in South Lebanon. Israeli analyst Mordechai Kedar says the explosion shows the 13,000 U.N. troops deployed after the war are ineffective.
"It only is a sign that the southern part of Lebanon is full with storages, which Hezbollah brought after the war of 2006 in order to renew their missile arsenal vis-à-vis Israel," Kedar said.
Israel says Hezbollah now has more than 40,000 rockets in South Lebanon, and many here believe that the next war is just a matter of time.