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The Situation Room
Israel Suffers More Losses in Fight Against Hezbollah; Investigation Into Killing of Four U.N. Military Observers; Condoleezza Rice Pushes International Pressure in Rome
Aired July 26, 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, Israel suffers its heaviest losses yet in its fight against Hezbollah. It's 2:00 a.m. Thursday in southern Lebanon, the scene of fierce and deadly grown battles that could continue for weeks. We'll have live reports from the front lines.
Also this hour, how did it happen? New details tonight about the killing of those four United Nations military observers. It's 7:00 p.m. in New York where U.N. officials are piecing together the chain of events and weighing Israel's strong denial that the strike was deliberate.
And Condoleezza Rice sticks to her guns. It's 1:00 a.m. in Rome where the secretary of state bucked international pressure to call for an immediate cease-fire here in the Middle East. We'll tell you what she's saying right now and what may happen next.
I'm Wolf Blitzer in Jerusalem. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
Tonight a new warning from the Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice after a rough and mostly fruitless day of Middle East diplomacy. She's telling Syria and Iran right now not to torpedo, her word, torpedo any attempts to stop the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Rice spoke to reporters on a flight out of Rome where international talks failed to reach an agreement on how to achieve a cease-fire.
On the battlefield today, nine Israeli soldiers were killed and more than 20 wounded in fierce fighting with Hezbollah guerillas in southern Lebanon. This makes it the bloodiest day yet for the Israeli military. Israel now reports at least 50 deaths in the two-week long conflict. Lebanon puts its death toll at 398.
A top Israeli general says clashes could last, and I'm quoting now, a few more weeks. On another front, Israeli tanks and aircrafts stepped up their assault on Palestinian militants in Gaza. Twenty- five Palestinians were reported killed across Gaza today.
Up first tonight, the Israeli army says Hezbollah launched a total of another 151 katyusha rockets across the border today. We're following the air and ground war in the region and the prospects for a cease-fire. Those prospects not looking very good right now.
CNN's John King is standing by in Rome. Nic Robertson is standing by in Beirut. Let's begin our coverage this hour with our senior national correspondent John Roberts in northern Israel -- John.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN SR. NAT'L CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, Bint Jbeil is the big story here and as you can see the Israeli military is preparing to respond to it. They brought in reinforcements, these big heavy marab (ph) tanks to across the border and join the fighting. We can't because of Israeli censorship rules tell you how many of them there are but there are quite a few in this staging area.
Troops as well preparing to go across the border to do battle, probably wondering after what happened with the Israeli army there this morning, the elite Galani Brigade (ph) what happened to them at the hands of Hezbollah, probably wondering what lies ahead for them.
As you mentioned, Wolf, eight soldiers killed. There were also 22 that were wounded, three of those seriously. That's very ironic that this happened because just yesterday General Gal Hirsch told me that the Israeli army had complete control of Bint Jbeil, but here is how an Israeli army spokesman described it to me today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAPT. MICHAEL PILCER, ISRAELI DEFENSE FORCES: Patrols in the town to make sure that everything is out over there and we're surprised we found some Hezbollah were still embedded (INAUDIBLE) over there. There was heavy fighting going on there. They came out after. It was -- there's hand-to-hand, street-to-street fighting between the houses and in the course of it, we suffered some wounded as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: And today, General Udi Adam who is the commander of the Northern Command here in Israel walked back a little bit from this idea that they had control of Bint Jbeil. He said look, we don't have control of the actual city. What we have is control of the territory. It was pretty clear from what happened today that they do not have control of city. They were conducting some mopping up operations, sweeping up parts of Bint Jbeil where Hezbollah launched a counterattack, using (INAUDIBLE) tank missiles, improvised explosive devices, the type that we see (INAUDIBLE) Iraq.
They also used automatic weapons and mortars and really exacted quite a toll on the Israeli forces. The fighting was described as close quarters, very fierce, house to house and sometimes hand to hand. But even as the Israeli army is tied up in Bint Jbeil, we see evidence that they are trying to expand the ground campaign. On a ridge beyond those tanks we saw substantial artillery barrage today. It lasted some two hours.
Smoke coming up, covering the ridgelines, covering the hillsides. You know that there was a Hezbollah target in there that they were trying to soften up so that those ground forces can move beyond Maroun al-Ras, beyond Bint Jbeil and try to do what they can to establish that mile wide security zone that Israel says it is bound to control until an interim international force can come in and secure that area, provide a buffer zone between Hezbollah and Israel.
I have to say though, Wolf, that also they are trying to make progress against Hezbollah, it doesn't seem to be doing much in terms of the number of katyusha rockets that we see fired into northern Israel. There was almost 120 of those today which is an indication that Hezbollah is still very well dug in, in southern Lebanon, very effective with those rockets -- Wolf.
BLITZER: John Roberts in northern Israel. We're going to have you back later this hour. Let's go to Lebanon though right now where the death toll tonight is closing in on 400 people. That according to Lebanese security sources.
CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is joining us now live from the Lebanese capital with more -- Nic.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INT'L CORRESPONDENT: Well Wolf, the very latest from here in the last half an hour, according to military officials here, a television transmitter tower belonging to the government here or at least transmitting a government television station, Tele Lebour (ph), was hit in a strike. That strike right next to an army barracks. But hitting the transmitter tower about 15 miles north of Beirut and just outside the town of Biblas (ph), right along the coast north of here. The strikes also coming just before sunset, one strike right in the middle of the port city of Tyre.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON (voice-over): In the hour before sunset, a huge strike in the center of Tyre.
(SHOUTING)
ROBERTSON: A 10-story building is hit and collapses. Only civilians here, claim the people gathering in the rubble. In recent days, Hezbollah has drawn much Israeli fire on the outskirts of Tyre by launching its own rockets from residential neighborhoods. It's not clear what Israel was targeting when it hit this building.
The blast ends a week of relative quiet in the town center where many were seeking refuge from bombing in surrounding villages. After two weeks of attacks across the country almost 400 are dead, around 1,400 wounded according to Lebanese officials. In an indication of hardening positions, Hezbollah ally, Parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri, who met with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice earlier in the week, appears to be bowing to domestic political pressure to be seen as resisting Israel.
On his TV station, the aftermath of an Israeli air strike against the offices of Berri's own Amal Party, a Shiite Muslim political party Amal (INAUDIBLE) weaker. A less significant cousin of Hezbollah says it has joined the fight against Israel. Two of its members killed in recent fighting elsewhere they say.
Hezbollah's leader again threatened to escalate the war, implying the guerilla group may target Tel Aviv, no sign of that yet.
(SOUNDS)
ROBERTSON: At Beirut's international airplane, the first planes to fly in since Israel bombed the runway two weeks ago, Jordanian military aircraft bringing a 25-bed field hospital, too dangerous they say to take it south where it's needed most right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To get the supplies (INAUDIBLE) who are under bombardment is next to impossible. But we are doing some, but very little. We would like to do more, would like to have some safe pass.
ROBERTSON: This first access to the airport affording a good view of the damaged runways.
(on camera): So far the terminal buildings at Beirut's prestigious international airport have been targeted, only the runways. But what concerns Lebanese officials now is that if Hezbollah does ratchet up the violence and target Tel Aviv, then the airport here could be on the Israeli target list again.
(voice-over): In the wake of an Israeli air strike on a U.N. observer post in southern Lebanon, even U.N. officials are cautious about moving much needed supplies.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't have clearance to go down there so that we are not certain that we will not be hit by rockets, et cetera (INAUDIBLE).
ROBERTSON: As witnessed in Tyre at sunset, the further south, the more dangerous the war.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON: Now Israeli officials say that they've killed 130 Hezbollah so far. The Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, says that is not correct. Twenty-eight Hezbollah fighters have been killed. He says they are proud of their martyrs. They don't hide the figure and they're very proud of anyone, officer or rank who dies in the fight, Wolf.
BLITZER: You know Nic, the Israeli military officials, political leaders here in Israel are making no secret of their efforts, so far unsuccessful to try to kill Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah. We saw him yesterday appear on Al Manar, Hezbollah television in Lebanon. A lot of analysts thought he looked exhausted. He looked drained, didn't have that cocky spirit he had in some of the earlier appearances, especially in that other interview in Al-Jazeera. Is there a sense there that these guys, these Hezbollah leaders may be on the ropes right now, certainly running for their lives?
ROBERTSON: Well certainly there's no doubt that looking at those pictures of him and looking at him speaking, he didn't have quite the same fire that he had maybe a week ago. And I don't think anyone would doubt here in Lebanon that he's under a huge amount of pressure and that his life is on the line. I mean he would -- and his supporters would see his death as martyrdom and something to be proud of.
But I think the sense that they're on the ropes, I think actually what a lot of people here really see is that Hezbollah is able to inflict casualties upon Israel that no other army -- Arab army has been able to do and I think for the people here, at least Hezbollah's hard-line supporters, that's something to be proud of. I think that's the perception that we get from people here. I think they do recognize their leadership is in a hard place right now, but certainly I don't think we get the sense that people here (INAUDIBLE) the ropes, Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Nic, thanks very much. Nic Robertson reporting for us from Beirut. Once again on the diplomat front, lots of talk but no deal, a call for a cease-fire with sources saying the U.S. is holding out against intense international pressure.
Our chief national correspondent John King is joining us once again live from Rome with all of the latest developments -- John.
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: And Wolf, some interesting tough rhetoric from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as she left Rome. She is now on her way to Asia. Speaking to reporters on her plane, heading to one of the stops, she warned Iran and Syria not to -- quote -- "torpedo diplomat efforts to bring about a cease- fire to end the fighting between Hezbollah and Lebanon." She warned any interference by Syria and Iran would further isolate them from the international community. Interesting tough rhetoric, perhaps spoken by the secretary of state because she knows those efforts to produce a cease-fire are still continuing because they failed to reach such a deal earlier today here in Rome.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KING (voice-over): The mood was described as tense, frustrating, Secretary of State Rice said to be under constant siege viewed by many at the Rome emergency summit as the obstacle to a cease-fire plan. But she stood firm, insisting any cease-fire that did not demand Hezbollah disarm would be meaningless and would not be accepted by Israel anyway.
CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: Because unfortunately this is a region that has had too many broken cease-fires, too many spasms of violence followed then by other spasms of violence.
KING: And so a summit designed to provide hope the hostiles might soon end instead ended with Lebanon's prime minister devastated.
FOUAD SINIORA, LEBANESE PRIME MINISTER: The more we delay the cease-fire, the more we are going to witness more are being killed, more destruction, and more aggression against the civilians in Lebanon.
KING: As tensions mounted, sources tell CNN only an impassioned plea from Prime Minister Siniora kept the summit from collapsing. So the participants huddled for an extra 90 minutes, but in the end no communicae (ph) or agreement on a plan, just a statement voicing determination to work immediately to reach with the utmost urgency a cease-fire that puts an end to the current hostilities. Privately, some on hand complained the United States was not budging because it wanted to buy Israel more time for military operations, publicly, though, a concerted effort to keep diplomacy alive.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Conference is not a failure. This conference is a very important beginning.
KING: To back up such talk, diplomats pointed to major commitments from Saudi Arabia and others for humanitarian and reconstruction aid to Lebanon and to some progress on another contentious issue, creating an international peacekeeping force that would step in if and when there is a cease-fire. Italy and France volunteered troops and the European Union agreed to take the lead in organizing the force and presenting a plan to the U.N. Security Council.
BENITA FERRERO-WALDER, E.U. COMMISSIONER: We want to give a chance to the Lebanese government to expand its authority with the help of such a stabilization force.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KING: Now those Security Council deliberations about that force will continue in the days ahead and Wolf, as we noted at the top, Secretary Rice now on her way to Asia, but expected back in the Middle East by the weekend, hoping by then to be able to resolve some of the difficult and tractable issues that prevented a deal on the cease-fire agreement earlier today here in Rome -- Wolf.
BLITZER: And if she shows up here in Jerusalem, we will be back. We will be right here, John, for that. John King reporting from Rome. Thank you very much. Jack Cafferty is joining us once again from New York -- Jack.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Wolf, Iraq is a frontline in the war on terrorism. That's what that country's prime minister, Nouri al- Maliki, said today when he spoke to a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress. Sounding a whole like President Bush, he said Iraq is the battle that will determine the war.
Al-Maliki vowed that his country will repay the world by becoming the -- quote -- "graveyard for terrorism and terrorists." But it's worth noting that with all the tough talk about terrorism, he didn't mention Hezbollah at all. And some members of Congress didn't want him to speak to them for just that reason.
So with the war in Iraq, the war between Hezbollah and Isreal, the ongoing operation in Afghanistan, and threats from places like Iran and North Korea we ask the following, where do you think the frontline in the war on terror is? E-mail your thoughts to CaffertyFile@CNN.com or go to CNN.com/CaffertyFile -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Thanks, Jack. Jack Cafferty in New York. And coming up tonight, an apartment building blasted to rubble. Ten stories collapse. We're going to take you inside the bomb zone here in the Middle East.
Plus, fighting with shadows, war through the eyes of Israeli intelligence as it tries to track down an elusive enemy. And the killing of those U.N. military observers, was it an accident in the fog of war or as some are alleging a targeted killing? We're going to take you behind the Gunsmoke to see how the tragedy unfolded.
Live from Jerusalem, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: And this just coming in to CNN right now. Word of possible delays for some U.S. troops scheduled to come home from Iraq. Our senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre is following this late-breaking development. What's going on, Jamie?
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well Wolf, Pentagon officials are telling CNN that General George Casey, as he's trying to figure out how to get more troops for Baghdad in the short- term, is considering delaying the departure of at least one unit, a striker unit. That's the wheeled mobile vehicle that they use. The 172nd based out of Alaska could be extended beyond their one year, but because the Pentagon takes that so seriously, it would be have to be approved personally by Defense Secretary Rumsfeld. No final decision and no recommendation has come on that, just one of the options under consideration, delaying the departure of some troops for a short time -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Could be some disappointed loved ones back in the states as a result of that. Thanks very much Jamie. Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon.
More now on the enduring Middle East crisis and it's getting deadlier, seemingly by the day. Today, Israeli bombs blasted the Lebanese city of Tyre. Let's get the all the late-breaking details and the aftermath.
CNN's Karl Penhaul, he's in the city -- Karl.
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the patent of Israeli attacks around Tyre was a little different today. The day started off with routine bombing and artillery shelling towards the eastern suburbs and also the southern suburbs of Tyre, but then just before nightfall, things changed. An Israeli warplane flew overhead, unleashing two rockets or two missiles against an apartment building. This is what we saw.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PENHAUL (voice-over): Smoke billows seconds after an Israeli air strike.
(SHOUTING)
PENHAUL: It's a scramble to get the wounded out of the bomb zone. (SHOUTING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
PENHAUL: Anyone over there? Everything OK, this Red Cross volunteer shouts. Amid the confusion, this woman and her son are reunited with her husband.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
PENHAUL: Something fell on us. We went downstairs to the neighbors she tries to explain.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
PENHAUL: God destroy Israel, she adds with rage. This is the spot where the warplanes struck, rubble and fire where homes stood just moments before.
(on camera): This is all that's left of a 10-story building. Residents say two Israeli rockets slammed into the roof, causing an immediate collapse.
(voice-over): It was not immediately clear whether any victims were buried in the ruins nor was it clear what the Israeli jets may have been targeting. Neighbors say this was an apartment building and civilians lived here.
(SHOUTING)
PENHAUL: These survivors of this Israeli air strike are dragged bleeding to a waiting ambulance. Where is she? Where is she? This woman screams. She gets her answer seconds later as a younger woman like her coated in cement dust is pulled from an alleyway and placed on a stretcher.
(SHOUTING)
PENHAUL: Flames lick through the rubble. Firefighters clamor to douse them. Amid the chaos of dust and smoke, an act of faith, this man has rescued her holy book, the Koran.
(SIREN)
PENHAUL: We can hear the wails of the ambulances, the crackle of flames and the sobs of the survivors.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
PENHAUL: And then another sound, raw anger.
(SHOUTING)
PENHAUL: God will strike Israel -- death to Israel, they scream and with raised fists, their chants of no surrender...
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (INAUDIBLE)
PENHAUL: With our blood and our souls, we will sacrifice ourselves for Hezbollah.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PENHAUL: It's still not clear what the Israeli Air Force may have been targeting in that building, but of course we are efforting to try and find out what that Israelis suspect may have been going on there -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Karl Penhaul in Tyre, in southern Lebanon for us. Thank you. And still to come, preparing for battle. We're going to take you back live to the front lines in this war. How much longer might the Israeli military offensive last?
Plus, weapons of war, searing phosphorous, rockets packed with ball bearings, civilians taking the heat. We're going to show you who is using what.
Live from Jerusalem, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: I'm Wolf Blitzer in Jerusalem. Just ahead more of our complete coverage of the Middle East crisis, lots of developments unfolding right now. First though let's check some other important news. Zain Verjee joining us from THE SITUATION ROOM back in Washington with some of the headlines -- Zain.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: Wolf, a thinner but still defiant Saddam Hussein was back in court today. It was his first appearance since being hospitalized because of a hunger strike. It was also the last time he will face the judges before they begin deciding his fate. Prosecutors have asked for the death penalty if Saddam is convicted. The former Iraqi leader told the court he'd rather be executed by a firing squad than hanged like in his words a common criminal.
Cuban President Fidel Castro is about to turn 80. The long time dictator becomes an oxygen Arian (ph) on August the 13th. He says he plans to continue working as long as he's able. Two years ago he fell during a televised speech and broke his knee and his arm, but he says he's fully recovered. He has ruled the island for nearly 48 years.
Gas prices are likely to remain high for the rest of the summer. Federal officials made that glooming forecast today. They say the national price of a gallon of unleaded gas is now $3 a gasoline. And that's 71 cents more than a year ago, but still actually lower than the record set when Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Zain thank you very much. And to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM where new pictures and information are arriving all the time. Happening now, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's new warning that Iran and Syria better not torpedo attempts to try to secure a Middle East cease-fire. Rice spoke to reporters on a flight out of Rome where diplomats failed to reach an agreement on ending the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
Also, new details tonight about the killing of those four United Nations military observers, U.N. officials say their team in Lebanon repeatedly asked Israeli commanders to stop shelling near their bunker that was later hit. Israel strongly denies the strike was deliberate.
And Iraq's prime minister is urging U.S. lawmakers to stand firm in their commitment to his country. Some members of the U.S. Congress boycotted the address by Nouri al-Maliki. They're angry that he's criticizing Israel's military offensive against Hezbollah but hasn't condemned attacks by Hezbollah.
I'm Wolf Blitzer in Jerusalem. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
They are enduring days of death. Today more devastation as Israel and Hezbollah ratcheted up the fighting. Our John Roberts is joining us once again from the front lines with more -- John.
ROBERTS: Good evening to you, Wolf. Big problems for the Israeli army in Bint Jbeil, which is that town that call a Hezbollah stronghold in the southern part of Lebanon. They have been fighting for that for pretty much 72 hours now. They thought that they had it well under control, but Hezbollah today gave them quite a surprise.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS (voice-over): Smoke billows over a Lebanese ridgeline, an Israeli air force attack on a Hezbollah position near Bint Jbeil, a small town that's a major Hezbollah base in southern Lebanon.
(SOUNDS)
ROBERTS: The battle has been costly for the army. The Hezbollah counter attack killed eight soldiers, 22 others were injured. Just 24 hours ago, the army claimed to be in control of Bint Jbeil.
(SOUNDS)
ROBERTS: Now as reinforcements roll into Lebanon, they only claim control of the general area. The fighting with the Hezbollah militia described as fierce, house-to-house, sometimes hand to hand.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You still have terrorist units who are geared on simply a death march walking towards Israel (INAUDIBLE) taking out as many soldiers and civilians as they can possibly take out and they know that they won't go back alive. And in fact, that's one of the efforts to try to neutralize those assassin units.
ROBERTS: The Army reports it killed many fighters and brought back what it says were the bodies of six guerillas to be kept in Israel, perhaps as part of a future negotiation. Hezbollah though says the bodies were civilians, killed by Israeli weapons. The campaign to rout (ph) Hezbollah has had little effect on the militia's ability to fire Katyusha rockets into Israel. More than 100 hit today, 27 of those landing inside towns and villages. The rockets caused damage but no one was killed. So far, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has not made good on his threat to strike farther south into Tel Aviv.
Even as the Israeli army is tied up in Bint Jbeil, the ground operation is expanding. Heavy artillery pounded targets farther west in an attempt to soften up Hezbollah targets for a military advance. And north east tanks and armored personnel carriers stand ready for a possible invasion there.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: In the wake of what happened in Bint Jbeil today, the chief of the northern command of the Israeli army, General Udi Adam said that they had made a lot of success. He said, against Hezbollah, they had gained a lot of information as far as intelligence and they had destroyed a lot of Hezbollah's infrastructure. But Wolf, he also had some words that may be of concern to countries who had been leaning on the United States to try to get an end to the fighting, to try to get a cease-fire, the one that Condoleezza Rice says she still resists. General Adam saying this could go on for several more weeks. And his commanders in the field saying they have been given as much time as it takes to degrade Hezbollah' capabilities, Wolf.
BLITZER: I think it's pretty surprising to a lot of us who thought, more than two week now, when the Israelis went in against Hezbollah, that it's proving to be as difficult as it is. Are they suggesting there was some sort of intelligence failure, in terms of the capability of Hezbollah, the cohesiveness, their military strength, if you will?
ROBERTS: There is certainly nothing of that ilk that the Israeli army or the Israeli Defense Forces would agree to. But analyst have said, Wolf, that they believe that there are big gaps in Israeli intelligence when it comes to Hezbollah. That the organization is so tightly knit, people are so loyal to it, that it's difficult to extract a lot of information about what their capabilities are and where their weapons might be.
BLITZER: When I spoke with one top Israeli general earlier today he said this is land, they've lived there for a long time. They have spent the last six years building up their presence there and as a result they, to a certain degree, have the upper hand, despite Israel's military prowess. John, thanks very much for that.
We are also learning new details of that Israeli air strike that killed four United Nations military observers in Southern Lebanon. Still the questions remain. How did it happen even after repeated warnings? CNN's Brian Todd is joining us now live from Washington with more on this part of the story, Brian.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the fallout is considerable. U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan calling it an apparently deliberate targeting of the U.N. post. The Israelis emphatically denying that. So we broke it down tactically. Now time lines and official accounts suggest at the very least, some kind of disconnect.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TODD (voice-over): U.N. officials say despite repeated calls to Israeli officers and assurances the attacks would stop, the U.N. outpost near Khyam was under constant stress on Tuesday.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There were a series of firings close on the position that was eventually hit.
TODD: An Israeli general offers one explanation of why the Israelis might have continued to strike that area even as they were being alerted, according to U.N. officials, by the outpost observers.
GEN. MICHAEL HERZOG, ISRAELI DEFENSE FORCES: Hezbollah has traditionally positioned themselves very close to U.N. positions. That is in order to enjoy impunity.
TODD: The Israeli military says Hezbollah has been launching missile attacks against Israel from the Khyam area. But a U.N. official says no Hezbollah firing was coming from the immediate vicinity of the post. Lebanese security sources tell CNN the post was hit with precision guided bombs. CNN military analyst General Don Shepperd, a veteran combat pilot, says those munitions can be satellite assisted or laser guided. With satellites, he says, it's possible the wrong coordinates could have been entered, with lasers --
MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Brian there's three ways of dropping a laser bomb on a target. The first way is with a ground observer. For instances, a special forces troop firing a laser at the target. An aircraft sees the laser. He drops the laser-guided bomb. It then homes in on reflected laser energy to hit the target.
The second way is what we call self lazing. The pilot in the aircraft fires his own laser, drops his own bomb, it then homes in on the target.
The third way we call buddy lazing. One pilot designates the target with a laser. The second aircraft drops the bomb, it hones in on the target. All three of these can go wrong if the person designating is looking at the wrong target. That can happen with smoke in the area or other types of confusion, mis-communication.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TODD: One other possibility, according to U.S. and Israeli military experts, those distress calls from the U.N. observers on the ground, to Israeli commanders, might not have reached Israeli pilots in time. And the Israelis have acknowledged they have made mistakes in this campaign. The Tel Aviv based Ha'aretz reports the downing of an Israeli helicopter earlier this week may have been from friendly fire. That according to Israeli air force officers, Wolf.
BLITZER: Brian, thanks very much. We're also picking up some new details on the identity of the Canadian killed in last night's Israeli air strike against that United Nations's position in South Lebanon. Canada's prime minister, Stephen Harper, has issued a statement. Let's bring in our Internet reporter Jacki Schechner for more on this, Jacki.
JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Wolf, we already knew from the United Nations that one of the victims was Canadian. Now we have a name on the Canadian prime minister's website, a statement that Canadian forces member Major Praeta Hess-von Kruedener is now missing and presumed dead. We also know that this is the same Canadian soldier who sent an e-mail to CTV, the Canadian Broadcast Company saying what life was like, describing it on the post that he was working there at Khyam there. You can see there on the map.
He says that it was under heavy artillery fire, often too dangerous for he and his fellow U.N. members to go out and conduct regular patrols. He also talked about how he didn't think any of this was deliberate targeting, how instead he thought it was a tactical necessity. His e-mail is still on line at CTV. You can go and read it for yourself. We have posted a link at CNN.com/SituationReport, Wolf.
BLITZER: Jacki, thank you. Still ahead tonight, here in THE SITUATION ROOM, weapons of war. Each side in this conflict accusing the other of using weapons designed for maximum harm to civilians. We're going to have the latest for you on that. Plus, Fear and resilience in Israel's big city. We're talking about Tel Aviv, where rocket attacks are a real threat just over the horizon. I went there earlier. My report, all that, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back. Joining us now here in Jerusalem, CNN's chief international correspondent, Christiane Amanpour. Three weeks now -- this is the third week of this war. And from the Israeli perspective -- and you and I are speaking to a lot of Israeli officials -- it seems, from Israel's point of view, to be getting worse.
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they say they're meeting their objectives but the underlying text is that it's actually very difficult and harder than they expected.
Today was the worst day in terms of Israeli casualties. According to the IDF, they took nine dead at the battle for Bint Jbeil, the strategic hilltop town just inside the border with Lebanon. Also, it's the second highest number of rockets that have come in today. There was -- you know, it was 131 Katyusha rockets. So, you know, people in Israel look at the rocket count and wonder how it's going, and increasingly ...
BLITZER: Let me just interrupt because a few moments ago, we just got an update from the Israeli government spokesman, 151.
AMANPOUR: Well, then it's the highest.
BLITZER: Yes.
AMANPOUR: That makes it the highest number. If that's the case, according to the numbers that I've been look at, that's the highest, today. And it comes at a time when everybody was hoping that there might be some step forward at the diplomats meeting, the foreign ministers, in Rome. But it was a call for a cease-fire, only not yet.
So, some, you know, criticism about that, and people thinking that it just gives more time for the bombing campaign, and at the same time, more worries about the incredible toll it's taking on Lebanon -- the destruction, the civilian death. And the Katyushas are still coming here.
BLITZER: How hard is it to get countries, especially in Europe, to volunteer their forces to come in to south Lebanon for not only a peacekeeping force, but a peacemaking force and to get involved in some of that dirty business of trying to disarm Hezbollah?
AMANPOUR: Well, two things make it difficult, one the Iraq battle, which is -- Iraq battle which makes it difficult because they're so stretched, a lot of these countries, but also because of incidents, for instance, like what happened with the U.N. outpost yesterday. That, I'm being told by the U.N., had a bit of a chilling effect on countries that would like to come.
They need to make sure that have a very clear working relationship with all sides here. We have seen robust peace enforcement teams in the past. Look at Bosnia. Look at Kosovo. It's possible, it works, but it takes time. And so far, according to my sources, even at the conference today in Rome, no agreement or discussion on its mandate configuration, resources, et cetera. So it's going to take at least weeks.
BLITZER: Christiane, thanks very much. At least France and Italy suggesting they might want to participate. We're following all of the latest developments in the Middle East crisis tonight, including accusations from both sides that the other is using weapons designed to inflict maximum harm on civilians.
CNN's Mary Snow talked to the experts about it. She's joining us now live from New York -- Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, Israel says Hezbollah is inflicting casualties with rockets and missiles filled with ball bearings. And Israel is being accused of using bombs laced with phosphorous. We talked to military experts about the legalities of these weapons of war.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (voice-over): At a hospital in Southern Lebanon, a doctor treating a severely wounded 9-year-old boy tells CNN's Karl Penhaul that he blames an Israeli bomb he believes was packed with phosphorous.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the effect of phosphorous. This is phosphorous, of course.
SNOW: Weapons experts say phosphorous burns are distinct in that they are localized and deep. JOHN PIKE, GLOBALSECURITY.ORG: It's a result of a little fragment of this white phosphorous burning its way into your muscles, so these are very distinctive burns.
SNOW: There are no national laws banning phosphorous in warfare. Israel says all its weapons and ammunition comply with international law.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We do not deliberately target civilians, we do not use weapons that are outside international norms, we don't target innocent civilians with phosphorous.
SNOW: The United States has used phosphorous in Iraq. Experts say it's mostly used to create a smokescreen to obscure views, and in some cases, as an incendiary agent similar to Napalm.
DAVID RIVKIN, FORMER JUSTICE DEPT. OFFICIAL: Both uses are entirely compliant with international law. There's no treaty to which either the United States or Israel is a party that would ban such uses.
SNOW: When it comes to weapons targeting civilians, Israeli officials say look to Hezbollah's use Katyusha rockets that it's firing on civilians.
DAN GILLERMAN, ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: It's our enemies, the terrorists, who are launching rockets and missiles filled with ball bearings in order to cause as much damage and as much pain to civilians as they possibly can.
SNOW: Experts say picture hundreds of ball bearings or steel marbles traveling at the speed of a bullet.
PIKE: Imagine what you would happen if you discharged a machine gun into a crowd. It's going to have the same effect.
SNOW: Katyusha rockets themselves are legal in warfare, but when used with ball bearings?
RIVKIN: That clearly would render this to be primarily a terror weapon of no particular military utility. That would make this even more legally questionable.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: Now Israel has repeatedly said that Hezbollah operates out of civilian areas which experts say is in total violation of laws of war -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Mary, thank you.
Up ahead, Tel Aviv, is it a possible target for Hezbollah rockets? We're going to take you there to see what the people on the ground in Israel's major commercial center are saying, and how they're coping with this threat. Plus, fighting an invisible enemy. We're going to show you the difficulty Israel faces as it takes on Hezbollah. Live from Jerusalem, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting tonight from Jerusalem.
Fighting Hezbollah is like fighting a shadow army that's tough, disciplined and invisible. So how does Israel do it?
CNN's Paula Hancocks has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These bizarre looking goggles are one of Israel's most important weapons of war. They are used by the mapping department here in the heart of Israel's intelligence unit.
You can't see it on your screen, but through these lenses, they can see every house and every street in Lebanon in 3D. They know where Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah lives, or at least used to live, and which bunker he used.
Israel's Channel 10 filmed inside this special secret unit. This one room handles every single piece of intelligence gathered from Israeli drones, satellites, and human intelligence. For the past two weeks, this unit has identified countless targets for the Israeli Air Force, operating in Lebanon. It's impossible for us to know how often they're right and how often they're wrong.
Every hill and valley in Southern Lebanon is mapped and computer simulated, allowing the IDF to plan maneuvers with 3D precision.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We can see each building.
HANCOCKS: Leonid (ph) is a lieutenant in the marking unit. We cannot identify him further for security reasons.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The best way to learn the environment working area is to see it in 3-D, and to analyze it, to plan the operation from that 3-D environment.
HANCOCKS: But the intelligence unit acknowledges it can never be 100 percent accurate. This special unit can see a lot, but in war, no one can ever see everything. Paula Hancocks, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: One weapon in particular has residents of Tel Aviv on edge. Hezbollah is indicating it has longer-range missiles capable of reaching farther into Israel than its standard rockets, possibly, possibly all the way to Tel Aviv. So what do people there think of being a potential target? We went there to find out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER (voice-over): The drive from Jerusalem down to Tel Aviv is majestic, and only about an hour.
(on camera): It's going to be pretty flat from now, as we head toward the Mediterranean and Israel's largest city, a city that's nervous right now, as threats emerge from the leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, that they have rockets, they have missiles, potentially, that can go further south than Haifa.
And a lot of people in Tel Aviv are beginning to wonder whether they could reach the commercial capital of Israel. And we are on the way there to find out what is going on in Tel Aviv.
(voice-over): On the surface, the city looks the same. Traffic is intense, just like any major city in the world.
We stop by Israel's military headquarters for a background briefing with a senior military officer -- no cameras allowed inside of the building, but, outside, you could feel a country at war.
(on camera): I think it's fair to say that where I'm standing right now would be ground zero, as far as Israel's enemies are concerned. They would like nothing better to launch a rocket or a missile that would hit this spot right here, the headquarters of the Israel Defense Forces, the IDF.
I remember, going back to 1991, when Scud missiles from Iraq were landing in Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, not very far away, and this whole area. Clearly, they were targeting the headquarters of the Israeli military. That would have been a huge, huge bonanza for Saddam Hussein.
Similarly, if Hezbollah in the north has that capability to hit this spot, that would be a significant, significant bonanza for Hezbollah. As a result, security at this location, understandably, is quite intense.
(voice-over): Not far away, it's mostly business as usual at the beaches of Tel Aviv, even though the government's threat level is higher. And the shops and coffee houses are certainly open for business. But, for many residents of this city, life has suddenly become more complicated as a result of the latest threats from Hezbollah.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're very, very afraid, very scared of that -- of our kids. What -- what can we say?
BLITZER (on camera): So, what are you going to do? Are you going to stay here in Tel Aviv?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're going to -- we're going to stay here. We don't have a choice.
BLITZER: But you take that threat seriously?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I do.
BLITZER: I'm speaking to people in Tel Aviv, asking them if they're worried about that threat.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Of course we are worried. Of course.
BLITZER: Does life go on for you? How...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
BLITZER: What do you...
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... to go on.
BLITZER: Well, what are you going to do about it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nothing.
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What can we do?
BLITZER: You're going to stay here?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, of course.
BLITZER: And just go...
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where can I go? I don't have anywhere to go to.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: And during our stay in Tel Aviv, we didn't find any Israelis who say they are leaving, packing up, getting out of there. They're saying that -- they say -- at least they said to me, they're staying put, they're waiting to see what is going to happen. Let's find out what's coming up right at the top of the hour, Paula Zahn standing by for that. Hi, Paula.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Wolf, thanks so much. And coming up, we will get live updates on the fighting in the Middle East. We will also go in depth. How is Hezbollah raising millions of dollars right here in the U.S.? And what are people buying without knowing that they may be helping terrorists in the process? We will also look at today's controversial verdict in the Andrea Yates murder trial. She drowned her five children, so why did the jury declare her not guilty by reason of insanity? Our top story coverage begins coming up in just about five and a half minutes. Wolf?
BLITZER: Thanks, Paula. And still ahead, Jack Cafferty wants to know, where do you think the front line in the war on terror is? We're live from Jerusalem. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Jack Cafferty is in New York with "The Cafferty File." Jack?
CAFFERTY: Thanks, Wolf. Iraq's prime minister told a joint meeting of Congress today that his country, Iraq, is a front line in the war on terror. He said Iraq's the battle that will determine the outcome of the war. The question we ask is, where do you think the front line in the war on terror is?
Judith writes from Oregon: "It starts in the living room of every human being on this earth. As long as people sit on their butts and do nothing, like the Lebanese have done while terrorists knowingly live among them, we're going to continue to have innocent lives taken. I don't feel sorry one bit for people that sit back and complain about the way things are when they're too lazy or scared to lift a finger to change them."
Texas writes from Wilton, Connecticut: "I know where the front line of terror is not. It's not in Iraq. I think if we truly want to fight terror, we need to start where it can be most effective and that's Congress and the White House by examples of peace and equality for all. Terror cannot be defeated by more guns and more of our brave men and women dying in the Middle East. We need to address the reasons for terrorism and not continue to create new terrorists with every new generation."
Wistar of Flowery Branch, Georgia: "The front line on terrorism is 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue where a cowboy who has no concept of world affairs and gets his information from FOX has torched over 200 years of international goodwill in a half a decade."
Sheila in Seattle: "Isn't that the problem, Jack? There is no front line against terrorism. Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Iran, the list goes on. Our forces are spread so thin and the terrorists are so numerous that it's impossible to contain them on one front. Without reliable allies, it's a lost cause."
And Danny writes from West Virginia: "The front line in the war on terror will be at the American elections in November. We're going to vote the enemy out, all of them."
If you didn't see your e-mail here, you can check out CNN.com/CaffertyFile where my very capable producer, Sara Leder (ph), posts some more of these little gems for your viewing pleasure every night. Wolf?
BLITZER: A very popular Web site it's becoming, Jack. Thanks very much, see you tomorrow in THE SITUATION ROOM. We're on weekday afternoons four-to-six p.m. Eastern. Back for an hour at seven p.m. Eastern. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Jerusalem. "PAULA ZAHN NOW" starts right now. Paula's in New York. Paula?
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