GAZA CITY, 24 November 2005 — An Israeli piloting a hang glider landed into south Lebanon yesterday, leading to renewed clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah as the fighters tried to grab him and the soldiers covered his dash back across the border.
Meanwhile, a prominent politician from the moderate Labour joined Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s new party yesterday, the first defection from Israel’s dovish wing, adding impetus to a movement that could break a decades-long stalemate over peace policies in a March 28 vote.
The brief Israeli-Hezbollah hostilities reflected the increased volatility in the area, two days after the worst crossborder clashes in years — violence that has been fueled by tensions on another front: The disputes between Lebanon and Syria.
Both Syria and Israel appear to be exploiting the intertwining conflicts. Syria is seen as pushing a flare-up with Israel through its ally Hezbollah to salvage some support among Lebanese and alleviate international pressure over a standoff with the United Nations.
Israel, meanwhile, is trying to undermine popular support for Hezbollah, using Lebanese anger at Damascus as a wedge.
Israeli planes dropped thousands of leaflets over Beirut and towns in the south yesterday morning, calling Hezbollah a tool of Syria and urging Lebanese not to back the group.
The latest clashes erupted yesterday afternoon in the Meiss El-Jabal area of the border, when an Israeli piloting a hang glider drifted across the frontier and landed a few meters on the Lebanese side, according to Israeli security officials.
Israeli troops opened fire on Hezbollah fighters and opened a gate in the border fence to allow the pilot to run back into Israel, the officials said.
There were no reports of casualties in the exchange. The guerrillas were apparently trying to capture the Israeli, who would have been a prize asset for Hezbollah in future negotiations for a prisoner exchange with Israel.
Hezbollah’s Al-Manar television said the fighters engaged an Israeli Army unit that crossed the border and that an Israeli “paratrooper” was stuck on the Lebanese side.
Israel said its troops did not enter Lebanon. Lebanese security officials appeared to back the Israeli account, saying the hang glider was likely blown off course by the wind.
Israel has accused Hezbollah of attempting to kidnap Israelis to trade them for Arab prisoners. Such an attempt sparked Monday’s sudden and heavy round of fighting, during which four fighters were killed and 11 Israeli soldiers injured. Israeli warplanes and artillery pounded Hezbollah targets and Hezbollah missiles blasted Israeli outposts for several hours.
Hezbollah, a close ally of Syria, may have been encouraged to attack to take pressure off the Damascus government.
An escalation of tension in southern Lebanon would strengthen Syria’s hand with the UN by underlining the need for a stable Syria as a key to peace in Lebanon.
In Jerusalem, turning away from the Labour Party, Cabinet minister Haim Ramon joined forces with Sharon and took the opportunity to open fire on new Labour leader Amir Peretz — who had some harsh words of his own for the defector.
Ramon disparaged Peretz as inexperienced, since he has never served as a Cabinet minister. Peretz “has good intentions, but these paths lead to hell,” said Ramon, “and if we would have adopted them, then we would still be in Gaza.”
Ramon said he supported Sharon from the day he presented his plan to pull out of Gaza and part of the West Bank, a task he completed in September.
Hitting back, Peretz said Ramon “ruined the Histadrut” labor union — Peretz succeeded Ramon as its head — “and now he is ruining the Labour Party.”
Mudslinging and personal attacks are a traditional part of Israeli election campaigns, highlighted in the past with secret recordings of politicians in compromising positions, criminal cases, wild accusations and emotional slogans — but this time they were unlikely to overshadow the possibility of a historic realignment in the new Parliament.
Palestinian officials said Sharon’s approach would lead to deadlock and is a cover for Israel drawing its borders unilaterally, including by building a separation barrier in the West Bank. “I think this is more lip service and diversional tactics than a political platform,” said Palestinian legislator Hannan Ashrawi.
In the leaderless Likud, meanwhile, the race for the top spot was heating up, with Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz sharply attacking rival Benjamin Netanyahu over his social spending cuts as Sharon’s finance minister. The Likud primary, tentatively set for Dec. 19, is expected to be waged over economic issues. Mofaz, who comes from a working class background, also disparaged what he said was Netanyahu’s “silver spoon” upbringing.
Also yesterday, the Palestinian Parliament rejected a proposal to change the election law at the last minute, clearing the way for Palestinian parliamentary elections to be held as scheduled on Jan. 25.
— With input from agencies
