AMNON & JONATHAN: Hezbollah's 'tourist complex'

Hizbullah getting advanced Iran missiles from Syria 'on regular basis'

| 5/21/2010 | Geostrategy Direct

The Israeli intelligence community has determined that Hizbullah received a shipment of solid-fuel rockets from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Officials said the solid-fuel rockets were said to have included the Fateh-110, with a range of more than 200 kilometers.

"Hizbullah in 2010 is very different to Hizbullah in 2006 in terms of military capability, which has advanced a great deal," Brig. Gen. Yossi Baidatz, a senior Israeli military intelligence officer, said. "Hizbullah is now regarded by the Syrians as a component of their defense establishment." On May 4, Baidatz, head of military intelligence's research department, told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that Hizbullah was acquiring advanced missiles and rockets through Syria. The brigadier said the Iran was sponsoring the weapons shipments to Hizbullah bases in Lebanon.

"Syria plays a significant role in the growing strength of Hizbullah's rocket arsenal," Baidatz said. "Weapons are sent to Hizbullah from Syria on a regular basis under the direction of the Syrian and Iranian regimes."

Baidatz said Hizbullah has also received an extended-range version of the Scud-class missile. The officer did not identify the missile, although Western intelligence sources said this was the Scud C, with a range of 550 kilometers.

"The shipments of long-range missiles which have been reported recently are only the tip of the iceberg," Baidatz said. "The long ranges of the missiles in the hands of Hizbullah enable them to place their launchers deep inside of Lebanon, and they cover ranges that are much longer than what we have seen in the past."

Hizbullah has also received the Syrian-origin variant of Fateh-110. Officials identified this as the M-600 rocket, with an extended range of 300 kilometers.

Hezbollah's 'tourist complex'

Lebanese tourists look at a Hezbollah militant manning a multi-rocket launcher on display in the area of Sujud in southern Lebanon on May 22, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated on May 21 a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

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Lebanese tourists look at a Hezbollah's anti-aircraft machine-gun displayed in the area of Sujud in southern Lebanon on May 22, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated on May 21 a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

Lebanese tourists look at a Hezbollah militant manning an anti-aircraft machine-gun as he sits at his post in the area of Sujud in southern Lebanon on May 22, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated on May 21 a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

Visitors look at destroyed Israeli tanks displayed at Hezbollah's 'Tourist Complex' in Mlita in southern Lebanon on May 21, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

A picture of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah hangs on the wall of an underground field operations room at Hezbollah's 'Tourist Complex' in Mlita in southern Lebanon on May 21, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

A mannequin depicting a Hezbollah militant during a military operation is displayed at Hezbollah's 'Tourist Complex' in Mlita in southern Lebanon on May 21, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

A radio-controlled rocket is displayed at Hezbollah's 'Tourist Complex' in Mlita in southern Lebanon on May 21, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

A 'Raad' rocket which was used by Lebanon's Hezbollah the 2006 war with Israel is displayed at Hezbollah's 'Tourist Complex' in Mlita in southern Lebanon on May 21, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

A 82-mm mortar launcher is displayed at Hezbollah's 'Tourist Complex' in Mlita in southern Lebanon on May 21, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

A anti-aircraft machine gun is displayed at Hezbollah's 'Tourist Complex' in Mlita in southern Lebanon on May 21, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

A short range multi-rocket launcher is displayed at Hezbollah's 'Tourist Complex' in Mlita in southern Lebanon on May 21, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

A 106-mm cannon is displayed at Hezbollah's 'Tourist Complex' in Mlita in southern Lebanon on May 21, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those left by Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

A multi-rocket launcher is displayed at Hezbollah's 'Tourist Complex' in Mlita in southern Lebanon on May 21, 2010. The Hezbollah Shiite militia inaugurated a 'tourist complex' displaying its own heavy weapons and those leftby Israel, to mark the 10th anniversary of Israel's pullout from south Lebanon.

Relatives of suspected Hezbollah members react after learning of the court's verdict following their trial in the outskirts of Cairo on April 28, 2010. An Egyptian court handed down jail sentences to 26 defendants it convicted of working for Hezbollah in a trial that highlighted difficult relations with the Lebanese militant group.

Lebanon PM slams Israel defense drill

Saad Hariri says Israeli decision to launch week of military exercises 'runs counter to peace efforts... How can you launch peace negotiations with Palestinians while holding military maneuvers?'

AFP

Published:

05.22.10, 15:33 / Israel News

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Saturday lashed out at Israel's defense exercises and said they ran counter to current Middle East peace efforts.

"Israel has to go to the negotiating table in order to achieve peace. To launch military exercises at such a time runs counter to peace efforts," Hariri told reporters in Cairo after a meeting with Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak.

"How can you launch peace negotiations with the Palestinians while holding military maneuvers?" asked Hariri, who is to travel to Washington on Sunday for his first visit as premier.

Israel's annual week-long civil defense exercises, which start on Sunday, are designed to prepare emergency responses to rocket strikes on Israel.

Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai has stressed that the exercises were planned long in advance and had no bearing on the Jewish state's present relations with its northern neighbors, Lebanon and Syria.

As in previous years, Israel has made contact through intermediaries with its neighbors, notably Syria, to reassure them of its non-belligerent intentions, he said.

But on Friday, Lebanon's Hezbollah mobilized thousands of militants in southern Lebanon in response to the exercises, said an official from the Shiite group which is backed by Damascus and Tehran.

Israel and Hezbollah fought a month-long war in 2006 that destroyed much of southern Lebanon, largely a Hezbollah stronghold. It estimates Hezbollah has since stockpiled more than 40,000 rockets.

And last month, Israeli President Shimon Peres accused Syria of providing Scud missiles to Hezbollah, charges that Damascus has denied.

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