Word: nato
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...NATO countries that Israel wants to see populate such a force have no greater appetite than Israel does for a deployment of ground forces in Lebanon. The Europeans are already committed to an increasingly hot counterinsurgency campaign in Afghanistan, and they're clearly reluctant to send their troops into a confrontation on Israel's behalf with one of the world's most accomplished guerrilla armies - which also happens to have a well-established capacity for transnational terror operations...
...return of the captured soldiers, and has vowed to reject any return to the pre-July 12 status quo on the Lebanese border. Instead, the Administration's proposal establishes a credible security plan for Israel's northern border, which Arab sources say would take the form of a robust NATO force mandated to act firmly to maintain stability in southern Lebanon and would pave the way for the Lebanese army to take control of the border. That option also had the advantage, for Israel, of avoiding another long-term deployment of Israeli troops in Lebanon, an option of which...
...that of a political party. According to one Arab source, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's surprise visit to Beirut Monday was intended to send a signal of strong support to the Lebanese government of Prime Minister Fuad Siniora, who would have to request the deployment of the NATO force - and persuade Hizballah, which is also part of the government, to accept...
...Assembling the NATO mission may yet prove problematic, given the tragic history of previous foreign peacekeeping interventions in Lebanon. A multinational force led by the U.S. and including France, Britain and Italy landed in Beirut following Israel's invasion of Lebanon in 1982, but effectively became a party to the conflict as Lebanon descended into civil war. President Reagan ordered the withdrawal of the U.S. contingent after suspected Hizballah suicide bombers killed 241 Marines and more than 50 French paratroopers in simultaneous attacks on their Beirut bases...
...that gives Hizballah a pretext to continue bearing arms against Israel on the grounds it is trying to liberate occupied Lebanese land. Arab officials are suggesting that if the U.S. package deal were to return the Shebaa Farms to Lebanon, perhaps to be used for the base of the NATO force, that would allow the Lebanese government to demand the deployment of the army to replace Hizballah guerrillas, and blame Hizballah - and Iran - for blocking a solution to the crisis. Hizballah would also be able to save face by proclaiming Shebaa liberated by its efforts...