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Fighting Grows More Intense in Southern Lebanon; Most Deadly Day of War for Israeli Military; Lamont Beats Lieberman, Implications?; Israeli Cabinet Approves Expansion of War in Lebanon

Aired August 09, 2006 - 19:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks very much Lou. And to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM, where new pictures and information are arriving all the time. Standing by, CNN reporters across the United States and around the world to bring you tonight's top stories. Happening now, breaking news here in the Middle East. Israeli forces take their deadliest hits yet. Israeli troops are on the move and on the attack in southern Lebanon at the same time.
It's 2:00 a.m. Thursday here in Jerusalem, where top Israeli officials have given the go ahead for a bigger and likely bloodier ground war. Hezbollah's leader is vowing to turn southern Lebanon into a graveyard for Israeli soldiers. Tonight, Hassan Nasrallah is lashing out and raising the diplomatic stakes. And in the name of God, Pat Robertson comes to Israel in the midst of this crisis. The religious broadcaster is talking at length about the war, the bible and whether the apocalypse is now. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Jerusalem. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

Tonight, all the breaking news here in the Middle East. Israeli forces pounding southern Lebanon right now, hours after getting a green light for a major expansion of the ground war against Hezbollah. And Israel is paying a heavier price for the month long conflict. The Israeli military now reports 15 Israeli soldiers were killed in combat today. It's the worst one-day death toll yet for Israel. Look at some of the fireworks on the battlefield, within the past few hours alone.

[ sirens ] [ explosions ] [ explosions ]

BLITZER: New defiance meanwhile tonight from the Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. He's threatening new rocket attacks on the Israeli city of Haifa and he's warning Israeli Arabs to get out of Haifa before it happens. We're following all of these stories. Our correspondents are standing by, Brian Todd is in Washington, Jim Clancy is in Beirut. First though to John Roberts once again on duty for us in northern Israel along the border with Lebanon. John, this has been a day that could be a prelude to a much, much worse second month of this war. Update our viewers on what has happened as we hear these loud explosions coming right from behind you.

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Wolf, all last night, all day today and again tonight, a major battle is raging right behind where I am. From our base of operations here, we have been able to look out over the valley and the surrounding hills behind us and watch this battle unfold in real time. Now according to Israeli government spokespeople, this is not the beginning of that major escalation that the security cabinet voted on today.

This is another pinpoint -- quote, "pinpoint attack." But judging by the intensity of the battle, they're using an awful lot of pins or the pins that they're using are awfully fat Wolf because this has been a very intense battle. Along the rest of the border between Israel and Lebanon into the area of southern Lebanon, it has been a very deadly day for Israeli forces. Their worst day yet.

15 soldiers killed, four of them in a town of (INAUDIBLE), where there has been intense fighting for the past week. Nine more and they were paratroopers in the town of Debel, which is a new town that we've heard about now that we haven't heard a lot of news out of Debel, except today. Nine casualties taken there on the Israeli side. Another soldier was killed in that general area. As to when this escalation of the ground war may come, it doesn't appear as though it's going to happen, at least in the next 24 to 48 hours.

Israeli officials say that they want to give diplomacy a little bit more time to see if they can work out an end to the hostilities before increasing the number of the troops on the ground by as many as 5,000, which would up the number by at least a third Wolf. But this also could be that this whole idea of passing this resolution to allow the ground force to expand could really just be a lever or a hammer against the Lebanese government to say, if you don't get a cease-fire settlement or at least a cessation to hostilities, because cease-fire does carry with it some other diplomatic connotations, this is what lies ahead for you. So, Israeli officials are hoping in the next few days Lebanon comes to the table and says, ok, let's make a deal.

BLITZER: You know, as you're talking, we're seeing over the horizon, we're seeing these new live pictures coming in. This battle unfolding and as you accurately point out John, this is not, not what that Israeli cabinet approved today. Six hours of debate here in Jerusalem, overwhelming support giving the Israeli military the authority to dramatically expand the ground war if there is no diplomatic resolution in the next few days. And I've been told authoritatively John that if there is no resolution, if Condoleezza Rice and other diplomats fail to get the U.N. Security Council on board, something Israel can accept, something the Lebanese government and Hezbollah can accept, then all bets are off.

This second month of the war is going to be a whole lot more intense than the first month. The down side John for Israel is, just as today 15 Israeli soldiers killed in battle, the death toll on both sides presumably would dramatically increase if this all-out ground offensive gets going in the next few days. Give our viewers a sense of what you're seeing and hearing.

ROBERTS: Well, again, behind me Wolf, we are hearing many, many explosions. We're hearing outgoing mortar fire, we're hearing outgoing artillery fire, tank fire, machine gun fire on the ground as Israeli forces try to move in. We don't know if it's just covering fire or if they're actually meeting resistance on the other side. You know, as troops advance on the ground, we saw a lot of them going in through the valley, going up on the ridge line. As they advance, the military lays down covering fire to minimize the risk coming from the other side. So -- you hear another artillery shell going out there. So, no idea Wolf if they are meeting resistance yet. We haven't been inside, haven't had reports from inside. But certainly there's an awful lot of fire going that way into Lebanon from the Israeli side.

BLITZER: The interesting thing, John, our viewers around the world are now seeing these live pictures coming in from this artillery barrage, coming in from this latest round of fighting. Israeli officials are insisting that they're going after what they say are Hezbollah targets. The source of some of those katyusha rockets coming into northern Israel, nearly 200 of them, once again coming into northern Israel today. What's interesting is that we're seeing this on live television, although I take it you've seen a lot of this not necessarily on live television over the past several days.

ROBERTS: Wolf, we have seen it from inside southern Lebanon when I was embedded with Israeli forces. We have seen it from all points along this border. And I should point out, air raid sirens just went off again. And now it's interesting because the Hezbollah fighters have not been firing katyusha rockets almost as a general rule into northern Israel during the nighttime because the heat signature from the rocket gives them away too easily with those drones flying overhead, with their infrared sensing devices. But we have been seeing all kinds of fighting.

I was on a ridge line overlooking the town of Hula today, that was that town where Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Sinioria came out a couple of days ago and said an Israeli air strike had killed 40 people and later came back a couple of hours later and said, no, that didn't actually happen. He walked back on the whole thing. An intense bombardment continuing there again today. Heavy fighting in (INAUDIBLE), this new town of Debel where the nine Israeli soldiers were killed.

So Wolf, literally, all along the southern area of Lebanon from the Mediterranean all the way up here to the northeastern tip of the Galilee Peninsula, heavy, heavy fighting raging. And I can tell you from being inside and on the outside here, it just seems to be getting more and more intense as both sides try to inflict as much damage as possible before, hopefully, the international community comes in and puts a stop to all of this.

BLITZER: And the sirens going off meaning that incoming katyusha rockets or other rockets might be coming into northern Israel. John I just want to suggest that if you sense there is any real danger to you or your crew, or colleagues there, just let us know and we'll let you relocate to a safer location. But the deaths of these Israeli soldiers, 15 Israeli troops killed today, as you know, this is a small country, Israel. It seems everyone knows everyone else. What's going to be the impact? Based on what your conversations have been with Israeli troops over the past few weeks, when they get word that in one day 15 Israeli soldiers are dead.

ROBERTS: Yeah, it's a big blow you know and these were reservists as well. These were civilian soldiers. They have families back home. Many of them have had to leave their jobs to come up to the front. I was with that reserve unit over the weekend, embedded near the town of (INAUDIBLE). And I remember when I told them that I think it was five Israeli soldiers had died on a Sunday and they said that's absolutely going to kill morale. Somehow it seems that when reservists are killed as they were today, it has a greater impact than when regular Israeli soldiers are killed.

I can't quite figure that out because every loss of life here on either side is a tragedy. But this idea that reservists are dying now, may give some Israelis pause to consider what's going on. But for others it also says, you know, this is why they need to intensify the ground war and the criticism rising again to say we're getting bogged down here, we're taking casualties. Why didn't this happen on the 12th or the 13th of July when this conflict first started.

I talked off the record, confidentially, privately to a group of Israeli soldiers today, who told me that yes, they believe it was a mistake that they went in with this slow advance on the ground forces. That they should have come in right away with the major ground force, the sort that the Israeli government is talking about now.

BLITZER: 24 hours ago, exactly this time, John, you were reporting on this major shakeup in the Israeli military command at the highest levels, bringing in a new general to oversee all military operations in Lebanon. Lots of fallout today in Israel as a result of that. A lot of recriminations, a lot of second guessing. Why did this war, at least at the start, go as badly for Israel as it did? Why is it taking so long to bring back some semblance of peace in the northern part of the country? What's the latest fallout on the frontline form the shakeup at the top command structure of the IDF?

ROBERTS: There's a real difference of opinion. Some Israeli soldiers who I talked to anonymously today said that they thought it was a stupid move to replace Udie Adam(ph) in the middle of a battle, that it sends absolutely the wrong signal. Other people were trying to tell me that well look, you know, by this idea of expanding the war, it involves the air force, it involves the navy as well. What you need is somebody who has overarching authority, somebody like (INAUDIBLE). And I told this guy, I said, you know, you could work at the White House spinning it that well.

This is really seen in no other terms here in Israel as Udie Adam literally being fired. His future somewhat in question. No one knows what he is going to do about it. But there's a difference here to, is that Adam came up through the supply side of the Israeli military, even though his father was a very famous warrior who was killed in Lebanon in the early 1980's in the first Lebanese campaign. Kaplinski comes from very much the military side, he's been in Lebanon before, he supervised the pullout of Israeli troops from Lebanon, even though that didn't go as well as they had hoped.

So, a little bit of a difference in career track here, which is why people in Israel may have a little more faith in Kaplinski to be able to prosecute this war in a way that really does accomplish the goals that they're trying to accomplish. But Wolf, from our vantage point, even though we hear all of this going on, got to tell you , it's difficult to ascertain what the strategy is here. Because they have been pounding the same targets for a week now. Military strategists would think that you'd pound those targets for a day, then you overrun them, you take them and you move on to the next goal, the next mile post. But they have been doing this for days, same targets. They insist that this is the strategy that they're just trying to whither Hezbollah down. But many military analysts are questioning what the heck they're doing, Wolf.

BLITZER: All right, we're going to keep these pictures up on the screen John. I'm going to get back to you. I want you to stand by. We're seeing a major Israeli military offensive along the border with south Lebanon, Hezbollah targets unfolding right now. We're going to have much more on this part of the story coming up on this, a day that the Israeli cabinet decided to go ahead and dramatically expand the ground war if the diplomats fail to come up with a solution in the coming days. We're watching all of this.

One of Israel's most important targets in this war, Hezbollah rocket launchers in southern Lebanon. Check these pictures out, the Israeli army says this cockpit video shows a rocket launcher being hit and destroyed. Israel says Hezbollah has fired more than 3,000 rockets into northern Israel in nearly a month of war. Look at this. Also in Beirut now, there has been dramatic developments there as well. Beirut, much of Lebanon continuing to be under fire. And now in the after math of this Israeli cabinet decision, bracing for even worse. Hezbollah's leader still defiant though. CNN's Jim Clancy is on the scene for us in the Lebanese capital with more. Jim?

JIM CLANCY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All right, in the Lebanese capital no one is quite sure what move Israel is going to make. They are not convinced this is any kind of a big push right now. And as John was pointing out, they are not moving northward. A lot of people are happy about the number of casualties that they see the Israelis suffering. They are putting their faith and trust in Hezbollah. They believe that it will be victorious and be able to hold its ground.

Although strategy wise, Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah himself says, their objective isn't to hold on to territory, it isn't to hold on to some outpost and make a last stand there, but rather to melt back into the country side and come back again to attack. Perhaps that's what stalled this Israeli military operation. Perhaps that is the military operation. That is the plan. We may find out in the coming 24 hours. Why is Hezbollah getting so much support? Wolf, I can put it in two words, civilian casualties. I went to a funeral today here in Beirut. What I learned there, the voices that I heard and what I saw, will give you a better picture of why Hezbollah has so much strength. Here, I'm going to take you to a funeral in war time interrupted by war.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[ explosion ]

CLANCY (voice-over): The sound of rockets and artillery reverberated across the heels of southern Lebanon tonight, in intense fighting between Israeli troops and entrenched Hezbollah guerrillas. Farther north, in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, an Israeli airstrike killed at least five and wounded one when it targeted the home of a Hezbollah official. Despite the new fighting and the Israeli approval of a new offensive, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah remained defiant. You will not stay in our land Nasrallah warned on Hezbollah television. If you enter, we will push you out. We will make a graveyard to the Zionist. We will wait for you at every hill or valley.

Nasrallah used his address to brand the proposed U.N. cease-fire resolution back by the United States, unjust and unfair because it doesn't call for an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon. U.S. assistant secretary of state David Welch making a surprise call on Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Sinioria, in Beirut. The two men discussed possible changes to that cease-fire draft. As part of the discussion, they went over details of what the Lebanese army could do and what it would need to take up positions and ensure security along the southern border.

In the embattled city of Tyre, the residents weren't waiting for diplomacy to work. They lined up outside a bakery, hoping to buy enough bread to weather the gathering storm. It is the essentials that count now, with Israel still warning that it considers any moving vehicle a potential target, the south of Lebanon is cut off and it is unlikely more aid will get there. The thunder of artillery does not necessarily mean a full scale Israeli invasion is under way, nor does the diplomatic wrangling mean a compromised cease-fire is assured. Tonight, both Israel and Hezbollah are showing they are ready to push this crisis to the brink.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: There's a lot of confidence as we noted in Hezbollah. As I was saying a little bit earlier, we went to a funeral today in the southern suburbs. This was a funeral for 29 of the 41 victims of Monday's missile strike on an apartment block here in Beirut. All of the people that were gathered here vehemently saying that their relatives had nothing to do with Hezbollah or other militant groups in Lebanon. Among those who were buried, a 10-day-old child. One man buried 12 of his family members. Suddenly in the midst of this funeral, there was another Israeli airstrike, in fact two of them within about 300 yards. Many of the mourners headed home after that. Wolf, back to you.

BLITZER: Is there a sense in Beirut, Jim, that this latest Israeli threat to dramatically escalate the ground war following this Israeli cabinet decision today, could be designed to put the pressure on the Lebanese government, on Hezbollah, to finally accept that U.S.- French draft resolution and as a result perhaps avoid what could be coming in the coming days? If that indeed is the intention of Israel, is it likely to work?

CLANCY: Well, it could be a squeeze, certainly. And that's one of the possibilities that everybody has to consider. But at the same time, in the Lebanese view, it's the Israelis that are going to suffer or the international peacekeepers that are going to suffer, if the Lebanese army isn't deployed along the border. The reason for that is they believe Hezbollah will remain active in that area, just as in the former occupation of southern Lebanon by Israel that lasted so many years before they did finally pull out. Wolf?

BLITZER: All right Jim, thanks very much. Jim Clancy reporting for us from Beirut.

Coming up, much more on the breaking news we're following. Also, the religious broadcaster Pat Robertson, he's here in Jerusalem saying he was compelled to come right now. I'll ask him why in a one on one interview. Also, new threats from the leader of Hezbollah in the face of an expanded Israeli ground offensive. We have details on what he's saying right now. And we're also following a major political story back home. There's new fallout from Senator Joe Lieberman's primary loss, we're going to show you the latest. Live from Jerusalem, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Israel television is reporting tonight that members of Iran's revolutionary guard have been found along with the bodies of Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon. We're watching this story. We're going to have more on it coming up. But as the fighting escalates, support for Hezbollah by all accounts, surging in Iran right now. CNN's Aneesh Raman has finally made his way to Teheran from Damascus where he's been reporting on this war for the past several weeks. Aneesh is one of the few western reporters now in the Iranian capital. He's joining us live with more. Aneesh?

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, it's been like this now for about a month. Today, again, demonstrations in support for Hezbollah, today again denials by the government that they are arming the group.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RAMAN (voice-over): Fists in the air, they chant praise for Hassan Nasrallah. They chant as well, death to the United States, death to Israel. As smoke rises from burned American and Israeli flags. This is the scene almost daily in Tehran. And while the numbers vary from a few hundreds to thousands, support for Hezbollah does not. The hero status of its leader Hassan Nasrallah has risen to the point that he shares posters with Iran's current and past supreme leaders, and analysts say he is inspiring a new generation.

PROF. SADEQ ZIBAKALAM, TEHRAN UNIVRERSITY: There are thousands and thousands of Iranians who if the Islamic regime let them, would volunteer and rush to Lebanon to support Hezbollah against Israelis.

RAMAN: Iran calls Hezbollah an offspring of it's own Shia Islamic revolution and has maintained close ties, with Nasrallah repeatedly visiting Tehran. But how close. In a recent newspaper interview, Iran's former envoy to Syria said that in 1982, Iran was involved in 30 Hezbollah training courses, each with some 300 fighters. Iran denies that today it is still training or supplying Hezbollah as is widely alleged. Instead, Iran says it wants to be a broker of peace, so that in turn it can be acknowledged as a major power in the region. It's the same reason Iran has sought engagement with the U.S. on the issue of nuclear development, with Iran facing a deadline by the end of this month on possible U.N. sanction. Some have suggested Iran engineered this latest Mideast crisis as a way to distract attention from the nuclear standoff. Tehran denies that's the case.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

RAMAN: And Wolf, while there's visceral support for Hezbollah, there's an uneasy tense atmosphere on the streets about the nuclear issue. I was here some weeks ago, at that time everyone was stock, lock and barrel behind the government. But now they really feel that sanctions are inevitable, that a deal simply won't come before that deadline. Wolf?

BLITZER: Aneesh Raman in Teheran for us. CNN covering every angle of this crisis in the Middle East. And still to come tonight in THE SITUATION ROOM, we're following the breaking news out of the Middle East. A relentless offensive with the toll rising on both sides.

Plus, coming up, my interview with Pat Robertson, the Christian leader here in Jerusalem. We're going to talk about the fighting and what it means to his followers. Live from Jerusalem, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: To our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM, where new pictures and information are arriving all the time. Happening now, breaking news on the bloodshed here in the Middle East. Israel now reporting 15 of its soldiers killed in combat today. This, the heaviest one day death toll for Israel. So far in this one month war.

Southern Lebanon under heavy fire once again tonight, just hours after a critical decision by the Israeli cabinet. The Security Cabinet as it's called, agreeing to a major expansion of the ground war against Hezbollah. But an Israeli spokeswoman telling me tonight, attacks are not the beginning of the next phase of the war. That could come if diplomacy fails. And Israel is going after one of Hezbollah's most threatening weapons, those launchers lobbing rockets into northern Israel. The Israeli army releasing cockpit video showing a rocket launcher being destroyed. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Jerusalem. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

The Middle East war is getting bigger and potentially about to get a lot bloodier. With Israel's military suffering its largest single day death toll so far. And fierce explosions rocking southern Lebanon right now. Israel is trying to beat Hezbollah to a distance from which it's no longer a threat. John Roberts once again joining us from the Israeli/Lebanese border. We hear that constant shelling, those huge explosions coming from right behind you, John.

ROBERTS: Hey Wolf, this has been going on here for more than 24 hours and it looks like it's going to continue all night again. This is the latest of what Israeli officials call pinpoint attack in this war. It seems to be far more than a pinpoint though, it looks like somebody is taking a sledgehammer to these Hezbollah positions. All last night, all day today and again tonight and it is now 2:30 in the morning here in Israel. Outgoing artillery fire.

We hear mortar fire and machine gun fire off in the distance, tank fire as well, rolling through the valley in the surrounding hills as the Israeli military moves forward into Hezbollah territory. They have got troops on the ground in there as well. We saw them in the valley, we saw them on the ridge line as they advance on these Hezbollah positions. This is not though the expansion of the ground war that the Israeli security cabinet approved today. That may come in the next 48-to-72 hours.

But for the moment, Israel wants to give some time to diplomacy. But here's a look at what we saw on the ground today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTS (voice-over): The intensity of the ground war kicked up another notch today as Israeli forces battled for control of territory just north of the town of Metula.

It is the eastern most front of the war, an area dotted with Arab villages where the Israeli army says Hezbollah is well dug in. Tank, artillery and rocket fire rained down ahead of the advancing force. Israeli troops move along the ridge lines taking the high ground while heavy armor rolls in to provide covering fire.

(on camera): We have been watching this valley and the surrounding hills for the past week now. We have seen a lot of artillery softening up Hezbollah positions and some small cross-border incursions. But in just the past 24 hours, there has been a significant increase of the amount of activity here. Hundreds of Israeli troops streaming across the border backed by tanks and armor. And now that the Israeli political leadership has approved an expansion of the ground campaign, this may be just a small part of what's ahead in the coming days.

OLIVIER RAFOWICZ, IDF SPOKESMAN: The Israeli army is ready for any hostility. We're continuing to fight Hezbollah and to make the job because we need to protect our population. We need to protect our people. We need to protect our state.

ROBERTS (voice-over): The amount of armor on the border has risen dramatically, an almost nonstop flow of tanks and troop carriers to the frontlines. Much of it is massed in the eastern and northern sectors, an indication the Israeli army may be preparing for a drive to Lebanon's Litani River, which this far north is only three miles away.

There is broad support among the Israeli people for an expansion of the ground war, an operation that would take on Hezbollah face-to- face and they hope avoid the grim images of civilian casualties in Lebanon produced by the air campaign.

Privately some army officers admit it was a mistake to rely too much on air power in the early going and that a massive ground campaign should have been launched from the beginning. Military sources say fighting on the ground may also be a better way to root out those short-range Katyusha rocket launch sites. More than 170 fell in northern Israel today, including this hit about a half a mile from where a rocket killed 12 soldiers on Sunday.

There were no deaths today, but the number of Katyusha strikes remains terrifying high. An expansion of the ground war would also likely mean more casualties for the Israeli army. It was the military's deadliest day yet, 15 soldiers died today in fierce clashes with guerrillas in places the army has been pounding for days.

Hezbollah has shown it will not run in the face of Israeli armor. As its troops march deeper into Lebanon, each new advance will present grave new risks.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTS: Now Israeli officials won't talk about it publicly, but sources tell CNN that an expansion of the ground war would add about another 50 percent to the number of troops that are on the ground in southern Lebanon, bringing it up to about 15,000 or so. But at this moment, that expansion remains only a threat. Perhaps Israeli officials using it's a lever against Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora to say if you don't agree to some sort of end of hostilities, this is what awaits you -- Wolf?

BLITZER: What a pounding going on behind you, John, thank you very much. John Roberts on the front lines for us. And as we're speaking, we're getting this word in from the IDF, the Israel Defense Forces releasing information.

There's a second front in this war, namely down in Gaza. The IDF saying that the Israeli air force has completed a strike on a munitions warehouse in Gaza operated by what it calls militants in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. We're watching this for you, as well. Get more information as it becomes available. We're following all of the latest developments in the Middle East crisis, including a new threat from the Hezbollah leader. He's vowing to strike back, to strike back hard against any expanded Israeli military offensive in Lebanon. Let's bring in Zain Verjee, she's in Washington with details -- Zain?

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, a defiant stance from the leader of Hezbollah saying intense Israeli air strikes are not breaking Hezbollah's military power or its spirit.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE (voice over): Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah says if Israel further invades, his fighters will turn south Lebanon into a graveyard for Israeli forces.

HASSAN NASRALLAH, HEZBOLLAH LEADER (through translator): To the Zionists, you can come anywhere. You can invade, land your airborne forces, and to enter this village or that. And this is not something I said anew, but at any rate, all of this will cost you a high price.

VERJEE: As Israel expands strikes against Hezbollah, Nasrallah went on Lebanese TV to lash out, insisting Hezbollah's rocket power is as strong as ever.

NASRALLAH (through translator): As far as the rocket launching, the resistance is still as effective as it was in the first days.

VERJEE: Along with his military bluster, Nasrallah sought to raise the diplomatic stakes, saying he backs Lebanon's plan to send 15,000 troops to the south. He says that could speed up negotiations at the U.N.

NASRALLAH (through translator): If the government declared its readiness to send the Lebanese army, the 15,000 to be deployed in this area, therefore, this will very much help Lebanon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: Nasrallah said the resolution on the table is unfair. He accused the U.S. of doing Israel's bidding and he warned Israel, get out of Lebanon or the rockets will continue to rain down -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Thank you, Zain -- Zain Verjee reporting. As we monitor all the latest developments in the Middle East crisis, including all the breaking news, we want to bring back CNN's Tom Foreman. He has got some additional perspective on the latest fighting -- Tom?

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks Wolf. We're looking at the big picture here. And think about those rockets that Zain just mentioned. That's one of the reasons that we've reached the point we are today. More than 3,000, according to Israel, have been lobbed out of this area into Israel. Their targeted strikes have done nothing about it, so now they're talking about -- or at least not enough about it, as far as they're concerned.

So now they're talking about a major movement of troops up into and to control this entire region. Look at the big picture of what's happening though. Lebanon is now talking about 15,000 of its troops possibly coming down into the region. And right in this area, we've got at least 3,000 Hezbollah fighters, all in an area that is less than half the size of New Jersey.

Look at this, all converging on one area trying to control it and this is what they're trying to control. These are all the major roads in that region and more importantly, even though they've been bogged down now in fighting over maybe a dozen towns and areas, there are more than 100 in this region.

All of these forces are now coming together or potentially coming together in the coming weeks as we look at the possibility of some kind of cease-fire or agreement being worked out. If it looks like a mess, that's what has world leaders worried all over the place because they're afraid that's exactly what it's going to be -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Tom Foreman in THE SITUATION ROOM for us, thank you, Tom. Just ahead, putting a biblical spin on the fighting here in the Middle East. An American evangelical leader comes to Jerusalem and gives moral support to Israel's prime minister. My interview with Pat Robertson here in Jerusalem. That's coming up, stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back. Does the Bible foretell this war here in the Middle East? One American religious broadcaster says he thinks so. He flew here to Israel, he met with the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to talk about the crisis.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Reverend Robertson, thanks very much for spending a few moments with us. It's unusual meeting you here in Jerusalem.

PAT ROBERTSON, RELIGIOUS BROADCASTER: It is.

BLITZER: But why did you decide to come at this very sensitive moment to Israel?

ROBERTSON: Wolf, I love Israel. And I wanted to let the Jewish people and people of Israel know that I stood with them.

And I wasn't afraid. I did my show from Metulla. I was up where the Katyushas were falling. And I wanted to let them know that the evangelicals of America love them and we're supporting in this struggle.

BLITZER: I know you've had a chance to meet with the prime minister of Israel...

ROBERTSON: Yes.

BLITZER: ... on this, a day when the Israeli cabinet has made a major decision.

Give our viewers a sense of how your meeting with the prime minister went, what he said to you.

ROBERTSON: Well, I said -- I quoted from Shakespeare. I said, "Some men are born great and others have greatness thrust upon them, and you have come out great. I am so proud of you," of the strength that he's shown.

And he was so calm and relaxed. I said, "You decided now to go fully engaged into this?" He said, "We're going to do it. We're going to move."

And then he also spoke about Nasrallah. He doesn't particularly like him. He said, "He wants to find 72 virgins and we're going to help him."

I said, "Do you know where he is?" He said, "If I know where he was within a few seconds he wouldn't be there."

So he said, basically, he's -- this man is evil and he's going to target him. BLITZER: Were you impressed by the determination -- this is now entering the second month of this war and clearly things have not necessarily gone as well for the Israelis as they would have hoped for.

ROBERTSON: Wolf, I was so impressed with the calm nature of the prime minister. You know he showed me a picture of Auschwitz, that gate going in, and three Israeli jets flying overhead. It was so moving. We talked about the Oslo Accords and really what a mistake it was to deal with Yasser Arafat.

I think he gets it, but he gets it in such a calm fashion. He wasn't rattled, he wasn't frantic. He had this calm peace about him and the determination that he was going to see this thing through to victory.

BLITZER: Now this is a man, Ehud Olmert, that you've met with on many earlier occasions.

ROBERTSON: Yes.

BLITZER: A lot of people out there don't understand the relationship between the evangelical community in the United States, religious Christians, and Israel. Talk a little bit about the religious aspect of what motivated you to come here now.

ROBERTSON: Well, this is what is so deep. It isn't that this is one more democracy, this isn't some floating battle -- I mean permanent, battleship in the Mediterranean and all of that thing. We believe firmly that the Jewish people are the people of God. We believe that this nation is the nation of destiny and that somehow we are inextricably linked with the destiny of Israel.

I was taught when I was a little child by my mother the words of God of Abraham, blessed are those that bless you and cursed are those that curse you. And she always said you must bless the Jewish people. And from a little boy I learned that. So this is deep in the DNA if you will of the evangelicals of America.

BLITZER: But is there the whole apocalypse, the whole issue of that, the second coming of Christ. How does Israel and the destruction of Israel fit into that, because you've spoken about that over the years?

ROBERTSON: Well, my feeling is, is that God is going to defend this country and maybe the next thing down the road, if you read the Prophet Ezekiel, the 38th chapter, it is very amazing where he foretells of time when Israel will be under attack by Russia, Iran, Libya and Sudan. And he leaves out Saudi Arabia, he leaves out Jordan. It's remarkable, he leaves out Egypt.

But yet it's down there, when Israel has been gathered together from the nations of the earth and are living at peace in the land of Israel. But this talks of a great victory against the forces who would come against Israel. And the Bible is full, the Old Testament, not the new, the Old Testament is full of references to God's protection for Israel and that's what we feel. We feel that God will fight for the Jewish people.

BLITZER: What about the innocent civilians who are dying in this war in Lebanon?

ROBERTSON: It always grieves me and grieves all of us to see war. But you know, in order to take Omaha Beach, the United States lost 8,000 men to take down Adolph Hitler. It costs to fight terrorism. It costs to fight for freedom.

This is one of those things and, unfortunately, we're dealing with an enemy here that hides itself among the civilians, hides these Katyushas rockets in innocent villages, sometimes does not permit the villagers to leave their villages and makes them stay so they're targets.

That kind of thing is barbaric but that's what's being done and regrettably, if a civilian government like the government of Lebanon allows it to happen, then there will be collateral damage. But Israel I think is trying its best to restrain the amount of damage and to target strikes only on military targets.

BLITZER: You remember, you caused quite a stir a few months ago when the former prime minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon, had a stroke. He remains in a coma even as we speak right now. And you suggested, but correct me if I'm wrong, that perhaps God was punishing Sharon for giving up Gaza.

ROBERTSON: You know I was misquoted on that Wolf. It happens and you don't have a chance to call it all back. If you read the tape, the transcript of what I actually said, I talked about my love of this man. I prayed with him, I met with him on a number of occasions. He had a luncheon here for me in my honor.

And I was just pointing out what the Prophet Joel had to say about this being God's land and God looks at it very seriously. And I said woe unto those who would under the pressure of the United States of the United Nations give up God's land. But I didn't say this was God's judgment on this man that I was very fond of. I was misquoted.

BLITZER: Reverend Robertson, thanks very much.

ROBERTSON: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And still ahead tonight, more on the breaking news out of Middle East. A fiercer, wider war in southern Lebanon, a major battle raging right now along the border between Israel and Lebanon. CNN's Anderson Cooper is in northern Israel along the boarder. We're going to be speaking with him live. That's coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: There's fierce new fighting and it's happening right now along the border between Israel and Lebanon. Let's bring in CNN's Anderson Cooper. He's got the very latest. Anderson, what's going on?

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you know, the Israeli War Cabinet has voted to extend the ground campaign to push Israeli forces all the way up to the Litani River. There has been intense fighting all evening long, so far, even on the hill right behind me, tracer fires that are attacking Hezbollah positions.

It's very telling though, that there is a battle raging just right over my shoulder which is right in Lebanon right pressed hard across the border. The fact that four plus weeks into this thing, that they are still fight this close to the borders gives you a sense on just how tough the battle is that they haven't been able to secure these towns that are pressed hard across the border.

You can only imagine how difficult it is as they move five or 10 miles further into Lebanon. As they attempt to move deeper and deeper, they're going to have problems with their supply lines. It's going to be in a very difficult time ahead for Israeli forces. It has a lot of people no doubt, concerned.

But here the mood, as you know, Wolf, in Israel is the sense that people -- this is something they have to do, that they have no other choice at this point, Wolf.

BLITZER: And it's especially somber today as the Israeli public, Anderson, is beginning to get word that 15 Israeli soldiers, 15 killed today in fierce fighting in south Lebanon, some 40 others injured in those battles, this being a small country. And if you look at the Israeli newspapers, as you and I have over these past several days, you for the past several weeks, you know there's always these pictures of these young Israeli soldiers, these biographical sketches on radio and television. In Israel, they focus extensively on it. It could have a really, rather debilitating impact on the morale of this country. What's your sense Anderson?

COOPER: Absolutely. I mean those memoriums in the paper are heartbreaking, every one of them. They remind me and the "New York Times" ran after 9/11, you know, those profiles of the people killed in the towers and killed in the Pentagon. I think it has that effect here in Israel. But I do think it hardens people's resolve. I don't think that this is a war, while it gets wide spread support in polls here in Israel, it's not something which people are excited about or that they are fervently behind. I think it's something that people feel, look, they were attacked. This is something that they have to do.

There is sort-of this grim resignation that you know, we have no other choice. I think a lot of people are waiting to see what happens on the diplomatic front. But at this point, the fighting seems, there's no sign that this fighting's letting up any time soon, no matter what happens on the diplomatic front. And if anything, today we learned the fighting is only going to get more intense.

BLITZER: It's only going to get a lot more intense unless there's some diplomatic miracle that unfolds and very few people anticipating that. Anderson thanks very much. Anderson's going to have a lot more coming up at 10:00 p.m. Eastern tonight. "ANDERSON COOPER 360" from the front lines in the war here in the Middle East. Stay with us for that.

And there are new questions unfolding right now over the authenticity of some images coming out of the Middle East crisis. Earlier this week Reuters withdrew more than 900 photographs by one of its free-lance photographers after concluding he altered two of them. Let's bring in our Internet reporter Jacki Schechner. She has more on this story, Jacki.

JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Wolf, this photograph appeared on a "New York Times" online on July 27th with the caption indicating that bodies were being pulled from the rubble of a building in Tyre, Lebanon. Now, in a series, the same series of photographs, there's also this one and it indicates that this man is helping dig through the rubble. This appears to be the same man here who looks like it's a body within the rubble. Well, this led bloggers to cry foul, wondering what was going on.

The "New York Times" responded to that, issuing a correction on its website today, saying that the caption was wrong. That the correct caption was issued in print and that said that the man had been injured and was being helped and when it was changed online by a junior employee, the caption was changed. It was incorrect. Now take a look at this photograph. Now, according to the caption on this one, the photo was taking on July 22 by Reuters News Agency and the woman appears to be upset over the loss of her home in southern Beirut.

Then there's this photo taken two weeks later by the Associated Press and it appears to be the same woman, again distressed, according to the caption, over the loss of her home. Well again, bloggers started to wonder what was going on. We spoke to Reuters today, and they said, quote, we do not pose photos. They stand by the accuracy and the authenticity of this photograph. The Associated Press says yes, it does appear to be the same woman, but she's in an area that is heavily attacked by Israeli air strikes, often. And they again stand by the authenticity of this original photo, taken by their photographer. Wolf.

BLITZER: Jacki, thank you very much. And just ahead, Democrats facing a very difficult decision in Connecticut. Should they be loyal to a friend or to their party? We're going to tell you who is lining up right now behind newly independent Senator Joe Lieberman and why? Live from Jerusalem, your in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back. We're live here in Jerusalem following the fierce new fighting in southern Lebanon. But back in the United States is also some very important political news to report regarding the war in Iraq and who some are now saying could be a political casualty of that war. That would be Senator Joe Lieberman. He is seeking reelection now as an independent after losing the primary to an anti-war newcomer. CNN's Mary Snow explains, Mary.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, Connecticut Democrats have been turning up the pressure on Senator Joseph Lieberman to drop his bid to run as an independent. But Lieberman insists he is not going to cave in. He's in this race through November.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW (voice-over): The grass-roots candidate meets the Democratic establishment. Ned Lamont made friends quickly, embraced by some who had campaigned against him. He touted a record 43 percent voter turnout as a victory in itself.

NED LAMONT, CON. DEM. PRIMARY WINNER: I think we can change Washington, DC, challenge the Bush administration and put forward a strong, constructive alternative agenda to what he's doing to this country.

SNOW: With the new kid on the block calling for Democratic unity, Senator Joseph Lieberman is now relying on Republicans, independents and divided Democrats. He filed petitions to run in November as an independent candidate, saying his four-point loss to Lamont was not a mandate.

SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (D), CONNECTICUT: I'm fighting on for that cause of a government of unity and purpose and solving problems, not one that spending all its time, as Lamont has done and will do, distorting the opposition. I don't want these folks to take over my party or American politics.

SNOW: Those folks are the Internet bloggers, who many credit with putting Lamont on the political map, challenging traditional Democrats. Now those traditional Democrats are endorsing Lamont, including long-time Lieberman supporter Senator Christopher Dodd. He made it clear he doesn't support Lieberman's independent bid.

SEN. CHRISTOPHER DODD (D), CONNECTICUT: I regret that decision, but that was his decision to make. And certainly we'll have, I hope, a spirited campaign if he says in it.

SNOW: And Lieberman insist he will.

LIEBERMAN: I've made up my mind. I'm in this until November.

SNOW: While pressure bills for Lieberman to back out, he did get a vote of support, but from a Republican. New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg.

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (R), NEW YORK: This country needs non- partisan elected officials who think that doing the right thing for the public is more important than supporting some party.

SNOW: Some political observers point out that Lieberman will have to run like a Republican and its his association with Republicans that became the cornerstone of the opposition against him in a race that spawned 30,000 new Democrats in Connecticut.

(END VIDEOTAPE) SNOW: Polls done before primary day show Lieberman would win in a three-way race in November. But as this state has learned, polls three months before a race can't always be trusted, Wolf.

BLITZER: Mary Snow reporting to us from Connecticut. Mary, thank you very much. And just updating all the breaking news that we have been following from here in the Middle East, the Israeli Defense Force now confirming 15 of its soldiers killed today in fierce fighting in southern Lebanon. This is the highest single death toll for the Israeli military since the start of the war and it comes on a day when that death toll could increase dramatically, given what the Israeli cabinet has decided today, namely to set the stage for an even more massive Israeli ground assault into southern Lebanon to try to take out Hezbollah targets. We're going to be covering this throughout the night. Paula Zahn is standing by in New York. She's going to be picking up our coverage right now, Paula.

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