posted July 14, 2006 03:36 PM              

Reuters cameraman Rami Amichai gets first aid from Israeli soldier for shrapnel wounds from Hezbollah rocket fired into northern Israel town of Nahariya. Similar attacks killed at least two and wounded 90.

The fighting between Israel and Hezbollah escalated into a bloody slugfest yesterday that left dozens dead and threatened to erupt into a regional war.
Israel, determined to have two kidnapped soldiers returned, used planes, helicopters, tanks and warships to blockade Lebanon and bomb more than 100 sites.

The Israeli offensive put Beirut International Airport out of commission, cut the road to Damascus, shattered bridges throughout the country and targeted Hezbollah weapons depots.

Hezbollah in return fired more than 100 rockets into Israeli towns and introduced a longer range rocket with a more powerful warhead that can threaten Israeli cities more than 40 miles from the Lebanese border.

For the first time, the city of Haifa, 30 miles from Lebanon, was hit by rockets. It was Hezbollah's deepest penetration into Israel and what Israeli Ambassador to the United States Daniel Ayalon called "a major, major escalation."

"Those who fire into such a densely populated area will pay a heavy price," said David Baker, an official in the Israeli prime minister's office.

Soon after the Haifa attack, Israeli helicopter gunships raked fuel depots at Beirut's airport with machine guns and missiles. The tanks exploded, sending gigantic flames into the night sky just outside Beirut.

Israeli warships turned away three tankers heading for Beirut yesterday, and Hezbollah's television station was blown up.

Israel's military chief of staff Dan Halutz warned that nothing was immune from attack unless the two soldiers abducted Wednesday near the Lebanon border were freed.

"Nothing is safe," Halutz said. "It's as simple as that."

Israeli warplanes struck Hezbollah's stronghold in Beirut's southern neighborhoods early today. Earlier, planes dropped leaflets warning residents to get out of the area.

About 50 Lebanese died and more than 100 were wounded in the two days of attacks, along with eight Israeli soldiers and two civilians killed. About 90 Israelis have been wounded.

There were no indications that the fighting was about to die down. Instead, Israel threatened to ramp up its offensive and repeatedly said Syria and Iran - Hezbollah's main patrons - were responsible for Hezbollah's actions.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said any Israeli attack against Syria would be an aggression on the whole Islamic world and warned of a harsh reaction, the official Iranian news agency reported yesterday.

The violent outburst sent oil prices to record highs, rocked the stock market and triggered frantic diplomacy.

The United States used its veto at the UN to block a resolution demanding Israel halt its attacks, but the White House also urged its ally to show restraint.

President Bush backed Israel's right to defend itself and denounced Hezbollah, but he expressed worries the Israeli assault could cause the fall of Lebanon's anti-Syrian government. "We're concerned about the fragile democracy in Lebanon," Bush said in Germany.

In an unusual switch of positions, the European Union scolded Israel for its "disproportionate" use of force, while Saudi Arabia indirectly criticized Hezbollah, saying "it is time for those elements to alone shoulder the full responsibility for this irresponsible behavior."

Israel is also battling Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip, trying to win the release of a third soldier kidnapped last month and to stop the firing of rockets at Israeli towns near Gaza. Israel destroyed a bridge in Gaza yesterday in its campaign to hamper the movements of whoever is holding the missing soldier.

Originally published on July 14, 2006
http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/435065p-366485c.html