Israel Bombs Foreign Ministry In Gaza

Lebanon Invasion Continues As Israelis Search For Two More Soldiers

(CBS/AP) 

Syrian Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa denied his country had a role in either of the abductions and blamed Israel for the attacks. "For sure, the occupation (of the Palestinian territories) is the cause provoking both Lebanese and Palestinian people," he said.

Nasrallah sought to rally Lebanese behind Hezbollah, calling on the government — which is dominated by opponents of Syria, Hezbollah's top ally — to form a "national front" against any Israeli assault.

But the government kept the group at arm's length, hoping to save the military and the infrastructure from massive Israeli reprisal. "The government did not know, does not bear responsibility nor embrace what happened," Information Minister Ghazi Aridi told reporters after a Cabinet session Wednesday evening.

"Regardless of the good intentions, all of Lebanon and its people are subjected to this," Samir Geagea, an anti-Syrian Christian leader, told Lebanese television, criticizing the Hezbollah action.

In related developments:

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the attack undermined regional stability, adding that she spoke to Israeli and Lebanese officials as well as U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan to discuss the incident.

Israeli troops shot a Hezbollah guerrilla later Wednesday as he tried to cross the border, the Israeli army said.

Israel denounced Hezbollah's raid as an "act of war" and said it held the Beirut government responsible. Three Israeli soldiers were killed in the raid and four others were injured when an Israeli tank crossing into Lebanon afterward hit a Hezbollah land mine.

Army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz warned the Lebanese government that the military will target infrastructure and "turn back the clock in Lebanon by 20 years" unless the soldiers were freed. In the past, Israel has hit power stations feeding electricity the Lebanese capital, where one third of the country's 3.5 million residents live.

Throughout the day, Israeli warplanes and gunboats in the Mediterranean battered southern Lebanon, hitting roads, bridges and Hezbollah positions in areas as deep as halfway between the Lebanese-Israeli border and the capital Beirut. Anti-aircraft guns opened fire on jets flying over the coastal city of Sidon, capital of southern Lebanon.

In the evening, warplanes made their closest strike to Beirut, destroying a seldom-used coastal bridge near a hilltop Palestinian guerrilla base 10 miles to the south.

Jets also struck a minor bridge, north of the provincial capital of Sidon, witnesses said. The main bridge and highway remained intact, however, in what appeared to be a gradual Israeli escalation aimed at slowly applying pressure on Lebanon to release the soldiers.

In Beirut, businesses went about as usual and traffic was normal during the day. Motorcades honked in jubilation over the capture of the Israelis, and residents of south Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold, fired guns in the air, set off firecrackers and distributed sweets in celebration — as did Palestinians in the Ein el-Hilwa refugee camp and southern Lebanese villages.

But the jubilation gave way to concern in the evening. Some people rushed to supermarkets to stock up on food. Others were glued to the TV to follow the news as rumors spread of possible heavier Israeli attacks on infrastructure.

But there was no sign of Lebanese fleeing the south, and some remained defiant. "We will rebuild whatever Israel destroys," Kamel Leila, a 54-year-old resident of the southern village of Ghaziye, said.

Several bridges along the main north-south road along the coast were targeted, some hit several times to ensure they were destroyed to cut off movement between the south and the rest of the country. Two civilians were killed in one strike, Lebanese officials said.

Seven missiles barraged a single, key road junction at Zahrani and one driver was killed, and two people were wounded.

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©MMVI CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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