Israeli troops punched into south Lebanon on Wednesday as warplanes flattened houses and buildings including one thought to hold Hezbollah's top leaders, intensifying an offensive despite mounting international pressure and a Lebanese appeal to spare the country further death and devastation.
The attempt to wipe out the Hezbollah leadership was the most dramatic action on a day that saw Israelis clash with the guerrillas and the Lebanese prime minister say about 300 people in his country had died in the eight-day offensive. Israel's broadcast warnings into south Lebanon telling civilians to leave the region, a possible prelude to a larger Israeli ground operation.
Meanwhile, "Hezbollah, undeterred, fired rockets into the Israeli Arab town of Nazareth" and "[t]housands of foreigners fled Lebanon in one of the largest evacuation operations since World War II".
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On the latter, thousands of Canadians are among those trying to get out, as The Globe and Mail reports. The first ship with about 250 Canadian evacuees on board is on its way to Cyprus, but six other ships commissioned by Ottawa have "not [yet]been guaranteed safe passage by the Israelis".
Israeli Prime Minister Olmert has "assured [Prime Minister Harper] that Israeli forces will do what they can to accommodate Canada's efforts to remove its citizens from Lebanon".
Let's hope so.
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