Sat Afternoon Open Thread

Here are some recent developments in the Middle East:

• Israel states that Hezbollah is rearming in this report from ynet.


• Israeli commandos raid a Hezbollah stronghold deep inside Lebanon Saturday, reports AP, Washington Post.


• Aljazeera reports Lebanon threatens to halt deployment of military peacekeepers beacuse of fighting.


• Haaretz reports Israel says France not keeping promise on troop commitment.


• AP reports that about 50 French military engineers arrive in Lebanon as spearhead to prepare for 200 troops for France's revised downward commitment to the 15,000 member peacekeeping force.


• Hezbollah Pays War Victims $12,000 each reports Arab News. You can guess from whom the cash flows.


• Reuters reports Israeli raid in Lebanon tests truce.


• The Washington Post reports that the war has caused concern of the state of Israel's military.


• President Bush says Middle East at 'pivotal moment' in history reports AFP.

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"Terrorists and their sponsors recognize that the Middle East is at a pivotal moment in its history," the president said in his address from the Camp David presidential retreat -- the site of a 1978 peace accord between Egypt and Israel and a 2000 meeting between Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak.

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