Introduction
Hizbullah's Secretary General H.E. Sayyed Hassan Nassrallah blasted some notables as aiding "Israel" and the US embassy in Beirut for spreading fear of possible Hizbullah retaliation against "Israeli" collaborators in Jezzine. He praised resistance fighters whose effective operations forced out occupation forces from Jezzine. Hizbullah's chief, also, urged "Israeli"-allied militiamen to give themselves up and insisted that they would have to face the Lebanese judicial system for collaborating with "Israel".

Meanwhile, the "Israeli" agent announced in a press conference held at Marjeyoun that the slow death of Jezzine could no longer be tolerated. "It is for this reason that they have decided to unilaterally withdraw from Jezzine region".

Elsewhere, "Israel's" proxy militiamen were responsible for the killing of an Irish Unifil soldier as the collaborator gunners shelled Baraasheit town, the Unifil's spokesman reported.

Hizbullah blasts baseless fears, dismisses guarantees for collaborators…(1)
"Hizbullah yesterday brushed off concerns that the pullout of "Israeli" occupation forces and their collaborators from Jezzine will create a security vacuum, but said, "We should be cautious of any "Israeli" trap."

"In response to some recent comments that had doubted Hizbullah and its intentions regarding Jezzine, the party's Secretary general his Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah held a press conference in Beirut in which he dismissed any insinuations "especially from those related to the US embassy in Beirut or linked with the "Israelis", that try to accuse the Islamic Resistance or portray its sacrificing men as a group that frightens some Lebanese".

"Are you asking us to reassure our people for whom we have sacrificed our brethren and sons, in order to grant them freedom and bring them back to the nation? Sayyed Nasrallah asked.

"There is no worry in Jezzine. Our people there do not need any assurances but it is the (collaborators' militia) agents who are worried."

"He called on the proxy militia members to desert before ""Israel's"" withdrawal because "those who serve the enemy until the last day and have not renounced their collaboration when the enemy drops them should not benefit from an amnesty."

"His Eminence affirmed that the claims that Hizbullah would use a withdrawal as an excuse to execute collaborators had been fueled by ""Israel"" and the US embassy.

"He added that fears that the town would be left in a dangerous security vacuum until the deployment of Army personnel were exaggerated.

"All this commotion is not for the protection of residents who refused to collaborate with the enemy, who are numerous," he said. "This artificial concern is intended to protect treacherous collaborators."

"His Eminence called on any militiamen who want to remain in Jezzine "to surrender to the Lebanese judiciary and announce their readiness for a just and fair trial."

He insisted that "no one can give assurances and guarantees to the ("Israeli") agents," saying the militia has "led massacres against our people and is holding hundreds of detainees in the al-Khiam border detention camp," where Amnesty International has reported cases of torture and maltreatment.

"The Secretary General stressed that the proxy militia members should repent for their treason "before it's too late."

"Tomorrow, your Zionist masters will leave you behind, he told the militiamen.

"Keen to avoid any friction following the "Israeli" pullout, Sayyed Nasrallah called on the Islamic Resistance men to refrain from any celebrations in the area, saying Jezzine's inhabitants "have suffered enough during the dark past years."

"I call on sympathizers with the Islamic Resistance to prevent any celebrations in Jezzine or any acts or speech that could upset the region's residents," he told the news conference.

He said ""Israel"" has intensified its air raids on southern Lebanon in the past days "probably to boost the militiamen's moral and provide a cover for their withdrawal."

He said the pullout from Jezzine was doomed to take place regardless of who would have won the "Israeli" elections, and added that the militia was unable to control a line that stretched across dozens of kilometers in the Jezzine region.

Sayyed Nasrallah underlined that the militia's decision to evacuate Jezzine was "a new and real victory" that materialized without "conditions, gains or guarantees to the enemy but due to the armed resistance, steadfastness of the Lebanese government and people as well as backing of Syria and Iran."

"The Secretary General said reports indicate that the pullout might take place and be completed "between 24 or 48 hours unless there are obstacles or problems."

He said the militia has already dismantled positions and installations in Jezzine while many militiamen have left for other areas inside the occupied zone in south Lebanon.

"They have finished dismantling a large number of their positions and living quarters, and some of them have already withdrawn into the occupied zone," he said.

Sayyed Nasrallah added that the militia was expected to withdraw up to the Kfar Houna crossing point, the first position manned by the "Israeli" occupation army in the border area.

"Resistance fighters will not enter Jezzine and harass its inhabitants and will not use Jezzine as a base for attacks against "Israeli" occupation troops and those collaborating with them in the occupied zone," Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said.

"But Hizbullah will "continue launching attacks on "Israelis" and their militiamen from areas around Jezzine," he added.

JEZZINE PULLOUT TO BEGIN TOMORROW, LAHD SAYS…(2)
" The "Israeli" allied militia will start withdrawing from the south Lebanon enclave of Jezzine tomorrow and the pullout will be completed by mid-June. This according to the head of the militia Antoine Lahd who also threatened harsh retaliation if Hizbullah uses the enclave to launch attacks against "Israeli" occupation troops".

" Lahd told reporters at his home in the militia stronghold of Marjeyoun in occupied south Lebanon that the withdrawal will begin tomorrow and be completed by mid-June. Lahd, who was sentenced to death for treason by the Beirut government said he took the withdrawal decision after the area became dangerous for his 2000 man force to continue holding. "Israeli" newspapers reported that the militia had already withdrawn from most of its outposts in Jezzine and was destroying the final fortifications in the region before the final pullback. Lahd reading from a statement warned the Hizbullah resistance movement against launching attacks from Jezzine. He threatened that if that happens, the "Israeli" occupation troops nearby will bombard the region and depopulate the Jezzine enclave. "Israel" Television reported Sunday that Lahd wanted to resign his post as militia commander since he foresaw an early "Israeli" withdrawal from the occupation zone. "Israeli" defense (War) officials said Lahd had several times broached the idea of retiring citing both his unease about the situation in Lebanon in general and his own future in particular. The officials had recommended that he wait until "Israeli" Prime Minister elect Ehud Barak forms a government. The militia was created and is being financed, trained and armed by "Israel". "Israeli" Defense (War) Minister Moshe Arens meanwhile stressed that at the present time no changes in the deployment of "Israeli" troops in south Lebanon are planned as a result of the militia pullback in Jezzine. Arens said he was unconcerned about reports that Lahd will reture. Arens said if he resigns it will not signal the end of the militia adding he will be replaced. The "Israeli" army insists that the militia's decision to quit the zone was quote autonomous and should not be seen as a signal that "Israel" is preparing to withdraw from south Lebanon altogether".

Collaborators continue disassembling outposts in Jezzine…(3)
"The collaborating militia Monday continued disassembling its equipment and outposts in addition to dynamiting reinforcements, especially in the area stretching from Roum to the entrance of Jezzine, which is expected to be evacuated in the first stage of the anticipated pullout.

"The next few hours are expected to witness the start of field pullout procedures by the occupation's proxy militia from Jezzine, following the announcement of agent Antoine Lahd, the chief collaborator, of a time schedule for the withdrawal.

"Tens of local, Arab and international media reporters crossed to Jezzine to cover the withdrawal.

At 10:00 Monday, powerful blasts were heard in the area. Reports said the militiamen were blowing up their outposts in the Roum-Jezzine area after evacuating them.

"At 10:30, several journalists managed to reach the Roum entrance. They were intercepted by the militiamen at the crossing, but were later allowed to enter after they obtained authorization papers from inside the occupied zone.

"However, at around 13:00, the journalists were asked to leave Jezzine promptly.

Sources in Jezzine said the withdrawal consists of several stages; the first one will start tomorrow (Tuesday) by evacuating the 12 towns and villages from Roum to Jezzine, including the front-line stretching from Bisri in the north to the town of Sidon in the south, while the following stages will be completed in two weeks' time.

"The same sources noted that agent Lahd will be holding a meeting on Wednesday with his collaborating officers and militiamen to discuss further steps regarding the withdrawal".

Hoss is overjoyed about returning Jezzine to its homeland…(4)
"Prime Minister Salim Hoss said Monday he was overjoyed at news that "Israel" and its proxy forces were finally moving out of Jezzine, but warned "Israel" that there would be no change in the government’s refusal to provide the Jewish state with security guarantees.

“I cannot hold back my happiness regarding the freeing of the Jezzine area and the return of the dear Lebanese area to its homeland,” he said.

"Hoss warned against the move being used as a bargaining chip by "Israel", which backs the militia, saying: “The liberation of the south and the western Beqaa must take place under the terms of UN Resolution 425, which provides for "Israel's" unconditional withdrawal.”

"Hoss spoke as he left the Grand Serail, where he had discussed the Jezzine issue with a number of visitors.

"One of them, Beirut MP Khatchig Babikian, said that the premier was well aware of the possible “traps that could be set by "Israel" and its proxy.

“But he also said that the residents’ fears were exaggerated,” he said, referring to worries about the reaction from Hizbullah and the government to those who were formerly members of the pro-"Israeli" militia.

"The government intends to use an army battalion already in Jezzine and police reinforcements to control security in the town following its liberation.

"Baalback-Hermel MP Ismail Sukkarieh said after talks with the premier that the government was also making contacts abroad to gather support for the security arrangements following the pullout.

"But it has refused to send in more troops “because it doesn’t want to turn the army into a barrier between the resistance and the enemy,” Sukkarieh quoted Hoss as saying.

"Hoss told reporters Monday that his support for the resistance was unfaltering and would remain so “as long as there is a centimeter of Lebanese territory under occupation.”

“Baalback-Hermel MP Hussein Hajj Hassan, also a Hizbullah official, repeated assurances given by the group’s secretary-general Sunday, promising safety for the town’s inhabitants.

“What Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said was clear: Jezzine’s residents are our compatriots and preserving their security is a duty. But guarantees for the residents do not mean guarantees for those who have collaborated with the occupiers,” he said. "Jezzine was also discussed by Baalback-Hermel MP Marwan Fares, an official with the Syrian Social Nationalist Party. Having just returned from Paris where he held talks with officials, Fares called on the government to try to convince the European Union to support the implementation of 425, which already has France’s strong backing".

"Other visitors to the Grand Serail who discussed the withdrawal were Akkar MPs Wajih Baarini, Abdel-Rahman Abdel-Rahman and Talal Merehbi, Tripoli MP Omar Miskawi, Beirut MPs Bahaeddine Itani and Hussein Yatim and a delegation from the Tripoli-based Islamic Tawheed Movement"

"Speaker Nabih Berri’s Amal Movement described the imminent withdrawal as “the fruitful result of resistance operations and civilian determination” in frontline villages.

"Officials, religious leaders and party members in Sidon issued a joint statement welcoming the liberation of Jezzine".

“Jezzine’s liberation from the control of the "Israeli" enemy and its collaborators strengthens our national unity,” they said after a meeting at the home of Sidon MP Mustafa Saad.

They added that it was thanks to determination from the people and their support for the resistance that the “Zionist plan had fallen.”

"Among the officials who met were Sidon MP Bahiya Hariri, Nabatieh MP Mohammed Raad, Bint Jbeil MP Ayoub Humayed and Jezzine MP Suleiman Kenaan.

"They further urged the government to provide for the security and social development of the area".

"ISRAELI" ALLIED MILITIA SHELLING KILLS IRISH SOLDIER IN SOUTH Lebanon…(5)
"Meanwhile the "Israeli" allied militia shelled a UN post in south Lebanon claiming the life of an Irish peacekeeper. Two Lebanese civilian women were also hurt in separate incidents".

"An Irish soldier serving in the U.N. peacekeeping force in south Lebanon was killed and two others wounded this morning when their outpost in the front-line village of Baraasheit was hit by "Israeli"-allied militia fire. The spokesman for the United Nations Interim Force Timor Goksel accused "Israeli"-allied militiamen stationed in the Barasheit outpost of attacking the UN position. Goksel said he filed a complaint with "Israel" over the casualties because UNIFIL "hold it responsible" for the militia. Goksel said since the inception of UNIFIL in 1978 a total of 226 peacekeepers have been killed, 40 of them from Ireland. UNIFIL has 4,500 soldiers from nine countries -- Fiji, Ireland, India, Poland, Nepal, Ghana, France, Finland and Italy. It was set up to restore the Lebanese government's authority over the south after "Israel" invaded the area. In a separate incident, another Lebanese woman was hurt in an attack on the Touline village north of the zone "Israel" occupies. The village of Yohmor Shkeif, which also lies north of the zone, came under intense "Israeli" shelling and sniper fire, destroying three homes.

For its part, the IR released a statement in which it mentioned the following "Israeli" aggressions (6):
00:10, the surroundings of Haddatha compound exposed to six 60mm rounds.
00:40, the surroundings of Ali Taher outpost subjected to a number of 81mm rounds and barrage of 12.7mm heavy machine gun bullets.
4:40, four 81mm rounds struck the area between Qantara and Qabrikha villages.
4:50, eight 120mm shells were fired at Mazraat Hamra.
5:00, the perimeters of Baraasheit town came under four 81mm rounds and a volley of 12.7mm heavy machine gun bullets.
5:00 a barrage of 12.7mm heavy machine gun bullets hit the surroundings of Qantara compound.
5:05, four 155mm missiles fell on Mount Zaatar.
5:15, several 81mm rounds landed west of Baraasheit wounding two Unifil soldiers who they were moved by a helicopter for treatment.
Between 5:15 and 5:25, the peripheries of Qabrikha came under seven 155mm missiles and six 120mm shells.
5:20, five 155mm missiles slammed into Mount Zaatar and north of Touline village, whereas three 120mm shells hit Mount Sojod.
5:30, Aita El-Jabal forest was targeted by four 120mm shells.
5:35, two 155mm missiles were unleashed at the perimeters of Touline injuring a woman who was transported to the hospital for treatment and causing damage to Hussein Ali Moussa's house and car. Meanwhile, Qalawani area exposed to two 155mm missiles.
14:25, about twenty 120mm shells slammed into the peripheries of Azour and Babeh in Jezzine area.
20:05, four smoke shells fell on Azour Hill and four others on Sakhrieh Hill.
21:05, the perimeters of Majdal Zoun came under three 81mm rounds and two 120mm shells.
21:20, thirty five 155mm missiles slammed into the outskirts of Kfar Houna and the area of Ain El-Khoukh. Meanwhile, the area between Jezzine and Kfar Houna exposed to heavy machine gun bullets.
22:25, four 155mm missiles were unleashed at the peripheries of Jibaa.
22:35, Mazraat Hamra was shelled by six 155mm missiles.
23:25, four 155mm missiles landed Kfour ravine.

'No one wants to be the last one to be killed'…(7)
"Amos Harel joins 'relatively safe' convoy to Sereifeh, east of Marjeyoun. He reports on the gray war where even cooks and drivers are at risk and where soldiers are wondering what roles they have left to play now that withdrawal seems a certainty
"Yea, though I walk through the shadow of the valley of death, I fear no evil, for Thou art with me." - Inscribed on an "Israeli" soldier's flak jacket on a convoy on its way into Lebanon.

"He convoy to Sereifeh is considered relatively safe. Sereifeh, a bit to the east of Marjeyoun, is the only outpost located deep inside the security zone that is held by an artillery battery. It is only a short way from Metullah, and the road passes quite a distance from the security zone's border. The outpost itself is rarely the target of mortar fire or Katyusha rockets because of its distance from Hizbullah positions and also, apparently, because of its proximity to Shi'ite civilian population centers (El Hiyam and Marjeyoun). This does not mean to imply that the soldiers do not have to work hard at Sereifeh. On the contrary, the artillery gunners bear the burden of a large part of the regular activity in this part of Lebanon, but at least the journey to the outpost is less tense.The convoy that enters Sereifeh on Thursday morning belongs to the command post of the territorial brigade. The deputy brigade commander, Lieutenant Colonel H, takes the officers of his command post on a tour of the outpost in order to find out what has been happening there for the last two weeks and if anything needs fixing. After, the engineering corps soldiers will be returned from Sereifeh to "Israeli" territory after having completed their operational duty there".

"In the afternoon, the deputy brigade commander will again enter Lebanon, this time to the Dla'at outpost, north of the Beaufort range. H, formerly a regiment commander in the paratroopers brigade, travels in these convoys a few times a week. He shares the duty with the brigade commander, Colonel Shmuel.

"We see where each of us can go, and we divide up the tasks accordingly," he explains. He gets home only once in two weeks, "every other weekend," and he says that one gets used to the dangers of serving in Lebanon ("I try not to think about it"). Just the same, when H briefs his soldiers before entering Lebanon, he points out sarcastically that for the trip to Dla'at, an outpost subject to intense attacks from the Hizbullah, "There will probably be fewer volunteers."

Since the threat of the roadside bombs was re-established as the Hizbullah's first priority about a year ago, the IDF* has reduced its convoys in the security zone to a minimum. The rule is that only those who have to enter Lebanon do so. In order to cut down the number of soldiers in the convoys, a large number of the auxiliary logistical infrastructures have been permanently transferred to the outposts. The convoys themselves contain a minimum of vehicles, move at irregular hours and have no permanent schedule. This is also the explanation the IDF offers to answer the question of why so few "Israeli" journalists are permitted to enter the security zone. At the same time, a great deal of money has been invested in protective devices for vehicles entering Lebanon. All the convoy's jeeps have been bulletproofed and can partially absorb the indirect impact of a bomb. The officers in the convoy to Sereifeh recall how, five years ago, they still used to travel around Lebanon in lone unprotected jeeps. In the briefing, H details how the soldiers are to behave if a roadside bomb should go off and reminds them of the increasingly stronger warnings in recent weeks of the intention of the Hizbullah to use an attack on a convoy - either a shooting or bombing attack - as a gambit for the purpose of kidnapping a soldier. These threats have turned the convoys into the IDF's principal Achilles' heel in Lebanon. It also places the commander's chauffeur - usually considered a cushy job - who accompanies his boss into Lebanon at nearly the risk posed to an infantry soldier.

It is a gray war, Lebanon. Not only are the paratroopers and Golani Brigade soldiers at risk, but so are the second-line soldiers (artillery gunners) and soldiers serving in auxiliary units (ordnance corps and signal and electronic corps soldiers). Even cooks and drivers are at risk. This fact first penetrated public consciousness after the double helicopter crash when among its 73 casualties, alongside combat soldiers from the Golani and Nahal brigades, were quartermasters and cooks.
In the jeep on the way to Sereifeh, there are three ordnance corps officers and one chaplain. The ordnance officers will examine the outpost's tank, the cannons' maintenance and the progress made on the massive construction. But what is a chaplain doing there? "He has to make sure the kitchen is kosher, to check on the synagogue - there is a synagogue in almost every outpost - and talk to the soldiers." The chaplain is also in charge of evacuating bodies. He recently issued a new set of dog tags for a soldier on his way into service in Lebanon. The next day, he was the one who had to identify his body".

"The officers in the jeep also discuss the "Lebanon supplement," a sum of about NIS 1,000 gross given to all career soldiers serving there. The criteria: at least 10 days a month in Lebanon or 10 "entries" into Lebanon (in convoys).

"Yes, they read the reports in the papers about the Jezzine enclave ("Of course it interests me, I'm here"), admit palpitations on the way to Dla'at, but adamantly refuse to reveal their position on whether "Israel" should remain in Lebanon ("I have an opinion, and I prefer to keep it to myself"). On the way, one sees the roadwork the army is doing on the sides of the roads to prevent bombs from being planted - another lesson learned from the incident in which Brigadier General Erez Gerstein was killed. In the IDF, the Hizbullah's progress in placing roadside bombs is identified as "classic behavior of a guerrilla organization that wants to achieve domination over the area."

"The artillery battery has been sitting in Sereifeh for more than two months and the deputy brigade commander warns them, "As far as I am concerned, you are an operational weak spot. This is the point when your self-confidence rises and you think you know everything and that is exactly the point when you are most likely to make mistakes."

"A mistake by an artillery gunner can be particularly crucial. A slight miscalculation in a charge can carry a shell off its course, causing it to hit a civilian house instead of a Hizbullah outpost. "That is why," says Colonel Michel, the commander of the Galilee formation's auxiliary artillery unit, "I check everything personally with each gunner who arrives in the sector. Each soldier should be aware that he has an enormous responsibility, and that a mistake on his part could ignite the whole sector."

"There is a strange phenomenon among the gunners. Practically none of them asked to serve in the unit, but most are quite satisfied where they are. On a previous visit to the outposts on the Purple Line (the northern border) about a month ago with chief artillery officer Brigadier General Eli Yaffe, Yaffe asked a young company of gunners how many of them had volunteered to serve in the artillery corps. There were 100 young men in the room. After a minute or two, one of them raised a hesitant hand. But when Yaffe asked which of them was happy in the artillery corps, the vote was unanimous: The commanders were fair and the work interesting".

"It's cool here," one explained to the chief artillery officer, in a most elementary fashion. "We get to shoot." The nature of the work itself, which requires the use of computers, mathematical skill and the ability to operate sophisticated weaponry makes high professional demands on artillery officers. This is also the reason the artillery corps is proud of the especially high quality of its officers in comparison to other army corps".

"Lieutenant Adi Yurman of Bat Yam is a deputy commander of the artillery battery in Sereifeh. Yurman claims that the public debate over withdrawing from Lebanon does not really affect the way his soldiers perform. "My mother worries more when I am here, but all in all, the volume of phone calls from parents drops when their sons are in Lebanon, in comparison to during training." The deputy commander of the brigade, Major Alon, says, "Being married with children is hard. I don't tell my family everything."

"What do his friends outside the army say about serving in Lebanon? "They say I must be out of my mind." Media coverage is important, he says, "because today the public is much more involved, knows more. But the truth is that no one in "Israel" really knows exactly what is going on here. Even what you write, it will always go through your filter. It won't be like taking a guy from Ramat Gan and telling him, 'Come on up with us and see what's really going on in Lebanon.' "

Here is another sign of the times: The deputy brigade commander's signaler is currently conducting a correspondence with military authorities through the High Court of Justice. He is a former officer cadet who was dismissed from the officers' training course on its last day because unauthorized ammunition was found among his belongings".
"The family, including his grandmother, had already arrived for the ceremony. Only then were they informed that their son would not be graduating with his friends. Two weeks earlier, the High Court canceled the appointment and promotion of Brigadier General Nir Galili for conduct unbefitting an officer and the cadet, encouraged by the precedent, decided to involve the High Court of Justice in his case too".

"Meanwhile, he is here, waiting for the decision that will return him to the paratroopers brigade as an officer. The Lebanon territorial brigade apparently has a tradition of taking in "refugees" from infantry brigades. Each year, following the annual mutiny in one of the veteran companies, the ranks are filled with signalers, operations sergeants and combat drivers".

"Is the signaler with the court case aware that the commander of the officers' training school, Colonel Amos Ben Avraham, has already spent many hours with the military advocates, preparing to answer the appeal, which was inconceivable only a few years ago?

"My lawyer is taking care of it. After all, I'm up here in Lebanon." The army has already offered him a compromise, to join the last part of a new course, but his lawyer thinks he could convince the army to give a bit more.

"On the way home, we hear about Lebanon - the hard version, without filters to soften the details. We talk to two soldiers who are catching a ride from the north to the center of the country after having spent a long time in Lebanon.

"How does someone who spends months in an outpost deep in the security zone feel after being the almost-nightly target of barrages of mortar shells? "A very unpleasant experience, but only when you go home on leave do you realize just how crazy it is."

"What do his parents say? The mother of one doesn't sleep at night; the other mother is trying to convince the doctors to downgrade the medical profile of her younger son, about to join the army.

What about their motivation level? "We don't want to be there, but a lot of people believe we should be."

"And how do the soldiers serving up north interpret Prime Minister-elect Ehud Barak's declaration that he will get the soldiers out of Lebanon within a year?

"Everyone knows the story here is about to end. No one wants to be the last one killed, just before withdrawal".