January Thursday 06 -2000:

Besieged Bint Jbeil resists, ten residents detained…(1)
"The "Israeli" occupation forces and their collaborators have sealed off the occupied town of Bint Jbeil since Sunday.

"A number of the town residents, including students (some were identified as Suhad Bassem Sharara, Hassan Kamal Saad, Naem Ali Bazzi, and Hassan Kamal Bazzi), were detained.

Reports from the town said the nearly ten detainees are being subjected to the most hideous types of torture.

"Moreover, the reports added, a number of collaborators, including Wisam Safi Mroweh, Kamal Hassan Fayyad and Ali Khalil Hmayyed have beaten some of the town's residents (most of them women, children and elderly) and ransacked houses.

"The residents confronted the agents ferociously and hurled stones at them. The situation in the town is still tense", the reports concluded.

Residents of occupied Bleda expose collaborators' practices…(2)
Residents of the occupied town of Bleda appealed to the "concerned authorities and the Ministry of National Education to put an end to the practices of some of the "Israeli" occupation's agents who have been imposed on the educational sector in the town's school while they work for the "Israeli" intelligence besides forcing residents to pay coercive payments."

The resident's communiqué talked about agents:
- Ali Issa who has rendered his resignation to the public school and wanted the school to collect his end-of-service payment from the residents to be able to flee the occupied zone before the final "Israeli" withdrawal. Issa currently forges passports and gets visas to European countries through the Zionist entity for $6000 per family.

- Agent Baheej Farhat, brother of the collaborators' security chief Haseeb Farhat. Baheej, the permits' official, raised to $100 the payment that residents have to pay to get a permit to cross the collaborators' gates. He also barred a number of drivers from working because they did not pay him and his brother Haseeb a percentage of their profits. The family of a deceased person also has to pay a $1000 coercive payment to the militia.

- Agent Fatima Nayef Mohammed, in coordination with collaborator Abu Borhan and his son Ali, has prevented the town's residents from getting the asphalt they needed to pave some of the town's roads. The reason was that she took the asphalt to pave a private road to her house which has become a den for collaborators. The collaborators offered Fatima a Mercedes to reward her for the services she is rendering to them.

These "teachers" also harass the students who refuse to go on tourist trips in occupied Palestine.

  January Friday 07 -2000:

Occupation seals off 7 villages, expels resident…(1)
"Israeli" occupation forces have expelled Talieh Hassan Abu Rashed, 30, from his hometown of al-Fardees to the liberated areas.

A car belonging to the occupation's militia "security" unit in the town took Abu Rashed to the crossing gate of Zimraya Wednesday afternoon.

The militiamen told him never to return to the occupied zone.

Abu Rashed had been detained for two years in al-Khiam detention center. He was released recently.

In the meantime, the towns of Bint Jbeil, Houla, Ainata, Aita al-Shaab, Aitaroun, Dibbeen, Maroun al-Rass are still being subjected to the most hideous types of harassment and arbitrary measures.

A statement by the National Committee for Developing the Occupied Zone called on the Lebanese government and the international foundations to interfere and press the "Israeli" occupation to lift the siege imposed on the towns, release the detainees and provide residents with food and medicine.

Meis al-Jabal condemn collaborators…(2)
Reports from the occupied zone said the collaborators in the town of Meis al-Jabal have perpetrated arbitrary measures against the town residents who issued a statement condemning the occupation's militia.

- Agent Zuheir Shqeir, in coordination with his brother Dr. Suheil Shqeir, has stolen large amounts of medications that were sent by the Lebanese government to the town's dispensary.

Shqeir has also been barring the residents from leaving the town besides ransacking houses and forcing residents to pay coercive payments.

- Collaborator Ezzat al-Ghadban went recently to the Meis al-Jabal High School and insulted the school principal for not giving Ghadban's son a success certificate.

"In the face of the collaborators' arbitrary and criminal acts," the communiqué concluded, "we must speak up and expose these agents before all the Lebanese and the Lebanese government to make sure that they will have no room amongst the town's residents who will never forget their criminal acts."

Maroun al-Rass fears enemy annexation of territories…(3)
The administrative committee of the Maroun al-Rass Development Committee (MRDC) condemned the "Israeli" enemy's seizure of Lebanese territories including some belonging to the town of Maroun al-Rass.

Following its meeting Wednesday, the committee said, "Following the repeated Zionist statements on appropriating Lebanese territories, including some of the territories belonging to Maroun al-Rass, MRDC sees it is a duty to confront such Zionist expansionist statements. It also condemns the recent statements made recently by some of the "Israeli" enemy's officials on demarcation of the northern borders of occupied Palestine, which requires, according to the enemy's statements, seizing Lebanese territories, including around 600 square kilometers from Maroun al-Rass".

"It is worth mentioning that the Zionist colony of Avivin had been established on territories belonging to Maroun al-Rass. Therefore, we stress and inform the Lebanese state and the concerned parties that we will never give up one inch of our precious land. We insist on liberating all of our occupied land, and we put ourselves at the service of the Resistance until full liberation is achieved," the communiqué concluded.

1- Al-Manar TV, 6-1-2000.

2- Same source.

3- Same source.

  January Wednesday 12 -2000:

"Israeli" group acknowledges occupation's "war crimes" in Lebanon…(1)
An ""Israeli" human rights group" accused Israel on Sunday of rights violations that "constitute war crimes'' in its occupation zone in south Lebanon.

The B'Tselem group 67-page report said Israel "flagrantly and continuously violates fundamental human rights of Lebanese civilians'' either directly through its own armed forces or indirectly through its so-called South Lebanon Army (SLA) militia allies.

Among alleged violations it cataloged were:

-- the extra-judicial detention and torture of Lebanese by the SLA at the militia's notorious al-Khiam jail

-- the abduction of Lebanese and their imprisonment without trial in "Israel" where they are held as "bargaining chips'' for information on the fate of missing "Israeli" soldiers

-- the expulsion of residents from the zone by the SLA and its practice of forcible conscription, including of minors

-- indiscriminate firing in violation of the rules of war and the use by the "Israeli" army of weapons such as phosphorous shells and flechette shells that fire thousands of darts in circumstances that have killed and wounded civilians

"These violations, whether committed directly by Israel or indirectly through the SLA, constitute war crimes under international humanitarian law,'' the B'Tselem report said.

It noted that the international war crimes tribunal in The Hague had held Yugoslavia legally responsible for atrocities against civilians committed by Serb militia during the war in Bosnia even in the absence of direct orders.

"Employing the court's criteria to the relations between Israel and the SLA leads to a similar conclusion,'' the report said.

The SLA is armed, financed and trained by "Israel".

B'Tselem said the "Israeli" long-running domestic debate over the military presence in Lebanon had focused primarily on the risk to soldiers' lives and the security of northern residents, ignoring almost completely the suffering of Lebanese civilians.

"Human rights of Lebanese civilians, even recognition that Israel maintains a violent and prolonged occupation, are not part of the collective "Israeli" consciousness,'' it said.

Human rights activists in Canada and Britain pressurize Barak and US press…(2)
"The Follow-up Committee for Lebanese Detainees in "Israeli" prisons (FCLD) received a copy of the letter which was addressed by Amnesty International - Canada's official Ronald Adams to the "Israeli" enemy's prime minister, Ehud Barak.

"Adams demanded the immediate unconditional release of the Lebanese detainees in al-Khiam prison and the (other) "Israeli" prisons inside occupied Palestine.

Adams also held the "Israeli" senior officials responsible for around 200 Lebanese people held as hostages.

"Moreover, FCLD received a copy of another letter addressed by a British human rights activist to the US journalists underlining that "Israel" is violating the international laws and the Geneva convention by holding and torturing Lebanese civilians for years besides declaring them as bargaining chips.

"The British activist told the American journalists, "It seems that you do not write about anything unless you are told to do so by James Rubin", the US state department's spokesman".

Occupation forces' practices to be discussed by parliamentary human rights committee…(3)
"Chairman of the Parliamentary Human Rights Committee (HRC) MP Marwan Fares condemned the arbitrary practices of the Zionist enemy and its Lahdi collaborators against civilians in Bint Jbeil, Ainata and other occupied towns.

"The enemy's practices are here to be seen by the international public opinion, the UN and all the international bodies that must condemn these "Israeli" criminal practices, Fares said, adding that he will call for an HRC meeting to discuss these "Israeli" arbitrary measures that must be raised at international human rights groups".

1-        Al-Manar TV, 11-1-2000.
2-        Same source.
3-        Same source.

  January Monday 17 -2000:

Civilian dies in shelling as Israelis target ‘resistance’…(1)
"One civilian was killed and another was seriously wounded on Sunday after an "Israeli" outpost mistook the pair for resistance fighters and began shelling the area.
"The attack took place near the abandoned Kfar Houna checkpoint linking the Israeli-occupied zone with the Jezzine area, police said. The Kfar Houna post was abandoned by "Israel’s" South Lebanon Army militia ally on Thursday.
"The two youths had parked their car in the area and were walking when the shelling began, police said.
"One of the youths was killed and his body was still at the site by nightfall due to the worsening security conditions in the area.
The other youth, who was seriously wounded, was taken to a hospital in the area.
The International Committee of the Red Cross was asked on Sunday night to retrieve the body, police said.
"Police said "Israeli" warplanes later struck the area between Kfar Houna, Sraireh and Rihan with two air-to-ground missiles".

1- The Daily Star, 17-1-2000.

  January Tuesday 18 -2000:

"Israeli" aggressions target schoolchildren in Arab Salim…(1)
"Scores of schoolchildren in the southern town of Arab Salim Monday miraculously escaped death when "Israeli" rounds rained down on the Arab Salim-Habboush-Nabatieh road as the pupils' buses were on their way to schools in Nabatieh.

"The children had to return to their homes in Iqleem al-Toffah due to the tension that prevailed as a result of the "Israeli" aggressions.

"Moreover, there were no classes today in the Arab Salim school as "Israeli" rounds hit the school's vicinity.

"The enemy aggressions covered also the Sojod-Rihan Woods, the Oqmata Farmstead, the outskirts of Habboush, Arab Salim, Baraasheit, Jabal al-Zaatar, and the Zahrani River gorge causing crops' damage.

"The occupation's heavy machine guns also raked the residential areas in Jarjoua all last night".

In its statement, the IR mentioned the following "Israeli" aggressions (2):

00:50, the "Israeli" war jets raided into the perimeters of Ain Bousoir town.

00:37, the "Israeli" warplanes staged a sortie into Mount Safi.

6:45, the peripheries of Baraasheit town came under three 120mm shells and barrages of 12.7mm, Mag and Lancher machine gun bullets. Also, the surroundings of Baraasheit and Haddatha compounds exposed to the same kind barrages of machine gun bullets.

7:20, Mount Sojod was shelled by six 155mm missiles.

8:15, several 155mm missiles landed near the school of Arab Salim town.

8:40, four 155mm missiles struck Qaissieh Valley.

10:40, Houla village exposed to heavy machine gun fire.

LEBANESE MAN KILLED IN MINE BLAST IN KFAR HOUNA…(3)
"A Lebanese man was killed and another was lightly wounded when a landmine exploded late yesterday in an abandoned position of "Israel's" allied militia in Kfar Houna, on the edge of the zone "Israel" occupies. Security sources said Rabah al-Zein was instantly killed when the blast occurred. As the landmine went off, "Israeli" warplanes attacked the area by firing two rockets. "Israeli" shelling hampered efforts to retrieve the body of al-Zein by the International Committee of the Red Cross, until late at night. Earlier this week, "Israeli"-backed forces withdrew from Kfar Houna and four other villages, their biggest pullout from the area since June when they retreated from the Jezzine enclave".

1-        Al-Manar TV, 17-1-2000.

2-        IR statement, 17-1-2000.

3-        Future TV, 17-1-2000.

  January Wednesday 19 -2000:

Lahoud: “Israel” will not secure in talks what it failed to win in war (1)

“President Emile Lahoud accused “Israel” on Tuesday of trying to gain concessions from the Arabs

in peace negotiations after failing to achieve them through war.

““Israel” must realize that the peace process aims to restore the rights to those whose rights have

been usurped. It isn’t aimed at conceding to “Israel” what it failed to win in combat,” Lahoud told a

European Union delegation headed by Portuguese Foreign Minister Jaime Gama, whose country

currently chairs the EU.

“Lahoud singled out the return of Palestinian refugees to their homes as one of the main priorities of

the peace-making effort, and stressed the importance of maintaining the high-level of

Syrian-Lebanese coordination”.

1- The Daily Star, 19-1-2000.

  January Thursday 20 -2000:

NO INDICATIONS OF "ISRAELI" WITHDRAWAL FROM SOUTH LEBANON: UN, HIZBOLLAH…(1)
"The United Nations peace-keeping force in southern Lebanon, UNIFIL, has no reason to believe "Israel" is about to withdraw its occupation forces from the south. UNIFIL spokesman Timor Goksel who met Hizbullah's official in the south, Sheikh Nabil Qawook, today (yesterday) said "Israel's" allied militia retreat from the Kfar Houna post last week is not related to a pledge by Prime Minister Ehud Barak to withdraw his forces from Lebanon by July. Sheikh Qawook warned that "Israel" is actually fortifying some of its posts in the region. There has been speculation the "Israeli"-backed militia retreat from Kfar Houna may be related to an "Israeli" plan to pullout occupation troops from Lebanon in the next six months".

Better late than never: village takes joy in end of occupation…(2)
When Sraireh Mukhtar Salim Kiwan locked the swing gate behind him and returned the key to the SLA* militiaman in the adjacent Kfar Houna outpost last Wednesday, he little imagined that it would be the last time he would ever have to perform the onerous chore.
The next morning, residents of the Jezzine village arrived at the gate to discover the outpost in ruins and the SLA gone. “It was as if we’d been in jail and now we’re free,” said Kiwan.
Sraireh, the only Druze village in the district, is tucked among the eastern folds of Jabal Abu Rashed, 13 kilometers southeast of Jezzine.
For over 19 years, the village remained largely forgotten as the 100-odd residents, most of them members of the Kiwan clan, quietly tended their olive groves, ignoring the battles between the resistance and the occupation forces among the surrounding craggy hills and wadis.
The roads running north into the western Beqaa and east toward Hasbaya have remained blocked by earthen embankments and land mines since 1985. The village’s only lifeline to the outside world was via a narrow, crumbling road that terminated at a swing gate beside the Kfar Houna position, overlooking the main route between Jezzine and Marjeyoun.
For the residents of Sraireh, the simple red- and white-painted gate became their greatest source of irritation and a symbol of the strictures imposed by the occupation. “It was our main problem,” said Kiwan. “Every time we wanted to leave the village we had to go up and fetch the key from the militiamen in the outpost, unlock the gate, drive the car through, lock the gate and return the key.”
The SLA’s decision to abandon the Kfar Houna outpost and redeploy to Aramta, 4 kilometers to the south, came as a complete surprise to the residents of Sraireh. The move also freed the nearby hamlet of Qotrani, a tiny cluster of single-story stone buildings.
“When we saw the militia had left, we smashed the lock and jammed the gate open,” said Kiwan.
It is perhaps illustrative of Sraireh’s seclusion that the most irksome element of occupation for the residents was the hassle of having to open and close a gate. Nearby villages in Iqleem al-Toffah and the western Beqaa suffer regular infrastructure damage and the occasional loss of life from the daily bouts of violence. But other than damage to two houses from a mortar shell in 1994, Sraireh has emerged from the occupation remarkably unscathed.
“Our village was stuck in the middle of the fighting. The shells always flew over our heads in both directions,” said Khalil Kiwan, the village’s school teacher.

"The SLA once manned a position in an old quarry at the entrance of the village, but the post was abandoned in 1987, after which the occupation forces were rarely seen
“We never saw them here. They were too scared to come as we are far from the safety of their positions,” said resident Wael Kiwan.
Sraireh’s location at the hub of routes between the western Beqaa, Hasbaya and Jezzine once helped it attract dozens of students from neighboring villages. Today, although the village school can seat 500 pupils, only one student attends class, 6-year-old Maher Kiwan.
Khalil Kiwan said construction on the present school finished in 1995 in anticipation of the occupation ending and the school filling with pupils.
Asked if he missed having friends at the school, Maher gave a doleful nod of the head and continued scribbling his lessons on the chalk board.

1- Future TV, 19-1-2000.
2- The Daily Star, 20-1-2000.
* It is an "Israeli" nomination we absolutely reject for it contradicts with Lebanon's independence and sovereignty. This army is not but an "Israeli" agent working for realizing "Israel's" goals in Lebanon.

  January Friday 21 -2000:

LEBANON REFUSES TO RE-DRAW BORDER UNDER PEACE TREATY WITH "Israel"…(1)
"Lebanese Prime Minister Salim Hoss said Lebanon's internationally-recognized borders will not be re-drawn under any "Israeli"-Lebanese peace treaty. Hoss was reacting comments by "Israeli" Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz that a peace deal would mean a new border".

" "Israel's" top military commander Shaul Mofaz said a new Lebanese-"Israeli" border will be drawn as part of a bilateral peace treaty. He told "Israel's" Channel Two Television that to the "best of his knowledge" the new border will satisfy "Israeli" security demands. Mofaz claimed, the arrangements will allow "Israel" quote "flexible" response to any security breaches. Lebanese Prime Minister Salim Hoss ruled out any negotiations over Lebanon's borders, saying the international community and the United Nations recognize the country's legitimate borders with "Israel". Lebanon will not concede any territory, but will welcome "Israel's" return of seven villages it incorporated into its territories following its creation. Lebanese-"Israeli" peace talks have been frozen since 1994, but Beirut is expected to join Mideast peace-making once progress is achieved in Syrian-"Israeli" negotiations, that resumed last month in the US. While there are no major territorial disputes between Lebanon and "Israel", Beirut has always expressed concern over what it says are "Israeli" interests in water-rich southern Lebanon. "Israel" has built what it calls "technical fences" inside Lebanon, running several hundred meters each. The incursion zones are documented and have been described by the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization as "Permanent Violations" of the 1949 Armistice Agreement. The zones allow the "Israeli" army to take control of elevated areas just inside the Lebanese border. "Israel" also grabbed a number of water springs flowing from the Wazzani River east of the occupied village of Khiam. Some reports claim "Israel" is already pumping the water across the border to villages and towns in northern "Israel". An "Israeli" withdrawal from southern Lebanon will allow the Lebanese Army to take control of the strategic hills that overlook "Israel's" northern Galilee region. Military observers in southern Lebanon had said "Israel" will try to retain control over the area, as part of security arrangements with Beirut under a peace treaty".

1- Future TV, 20-1-2000.

  January Saturday 22 -2000:

Hoss refused settling Palestinian refugees in the country…(1)
"Lebanese Prime Minister Salim Hoss has warned that the issue of Palestinian refugees and the question of Jerusalem constitute a regional time bomb. Hoss was addressing delegates to the third national Islamic conference.

" More than 120 delegates from across the Arab and Islamic world converged on Beirut to attend the third national Islamic conference, which opened at the Carlton Hotel today (yesterday). Experts on Islam and nationalist issues discussed the challenges facing the Arab world, including "Israel's" continued occupation of Arab territories. Prime Minister Salim Hoss who opened the conference, said current Arab-"Israeli" negotiations aim to reach a settlement and not peace. He reiterated Beirut's refusal to resettle Palestinian refugees in the country, warning the issue of refugees and the identity of Jerusalem pose a regional time-bomb. He called for direct Lebanese involvement in negotiations over the fate of refugees, since it hosts about 350,000 Palestinians. Hoss who criticized the Palestinian Authority for launching peace talks with "Israel", without coordinating stances with Arab states, demanded "Israel's" implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 425, which calls for an immediate and unconditional "Israeli" withdrawal from southern Lebanon. Differentiating between resistance activities and terrorism also featured high on the agenda of discussions. Delegates, including the Hamas politburo Khaled Meshaal will also discuss ways to the bridge the gap between Islamic and nationalist thought. Meshaal who headed Hamas's information office in Amman, was exiled from Jordan last year".

1- Future TV, 21-1-2000.

  January Monday 24 -2000:

One Lebanese civilian wounded
The IR issued a statement in which it reported the following "Israeli" aggressions:

Between 5:15 and 16:20, Mount Sojod was bombarded by thirty two 120mm shells and twenty one 155mm missiles.

7:45, eight 155mm slammed into the perimeters of Yater village.

10:50, the peripheries of Majdal Zoun and Mansouri villages exposed to 12.7mm heavy machine gun fire.

11:00, two 155mm missiles hit Jib Soweid area east of Majdal Zoun.

15:30, the peripheries of Baraasheit town exposed to a volley of 12.7mm heavy machine gun bullets…(1)

For its part The Daily Star reported that one Lebanese civilian was hit by sniper fire from a position manned by the "Israeli" allied militia inside the occupied zone. 40-year-old Mohammad Daher was struck in the leg at Kfar Romman at the edge of the zone. He was treated at a hospital in Nabatieh.

1- IR statement, 23-1-2000.
2- The Daily Star, 24-1-2000.

  January Tuesday 25 -2000:

UNIFIL worker seized by "Israeli" forces…(1)
"UNIFIL attempted to secure the release of a Lebanese employee arrested by "Israeli" forces over the weekend, a spokesman with the peacekeepers said on Monday.
"UNIFIL spokesman Timor Goksel said the agency made “top level contacts” to free Hussein Atwi, 36, who was grabbed by "Israeli"-backed SLA militiamen at his home in Naqoura on Saturday night, he told reporters.
"He said Atwi worked as a cook in the officers’ mess at the Naqoura UNIFIL headquarters. Atwi, one of the 150 Lebanese employed by the international peacekeepers, was taken to Khiam prison, Goksel said.
"Eight days ago, "Israeli" forces briefly detained another Lebanese UNIFIL employee. The man was released after two hours following questioning about alleged links with resistance groups. About 130 Lebanese are currently held in Khiam. Some have been held for 10 years without charges".

1-  The Daily Star, 25-1-2000.

  January Wednesday 26 -2000:

"Israeli" aggressions wounded two civilians:
"The "Israeli" jets destroyed an empty three-floor building south of Jibaa in Iqleem al-Toffah.
"The jets dropped severahl bombs on the building located 100 meters from an army checkpoint in the area, flattening it. Few dared to approach the building as "Israeli" jets continued to fly at a low altitude over the area.
"Two women who live in the vicinity were lightly wounded. Maymana Safa, 67, and Khadija Haidar,

23, were treated at the South Hospital in Nabatieh"…(1)
"The "Israeli" shelling on Baraasheit early today (yesterday) damaged six houses, in clear violation of a 1996 internationally-monitored cease-fire agreement, which bans attacks on and from civilian areas. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak has pledged to withdraw occupation forces from southern Lebanon by July, but he has remained vague on whether he would order a pull out if a peace agreement with Beirut and Damascus is not reached. Lebanon has been demanding the implementation of the 1978 UN Security Resolution 425, calling for an immediate and unconditional Israeli withdrawal from the south. Late this afternoon, security sources in the south said Israeli forces have expelled two families from the occupied zone. "Israel" has been coming under mounting international criticism for its systematic expulsion of Lebanese civilians from the occupied zone"…(2)

For its part, the IR released a communiqué in which it reported the following "Israeli" aggressions:

00:45, three 155mm missiles fell on Salhani area and two 160mm missiles on the perimeters of Yater village.

Between 6:40 and 13:55, Baraasheit town and its peripheries came under several barrages of 12.7mm heavy machine and Lancher gun bullets causing damage to the houses of Ali Fouad Khalaf, Hussein El-Hadi, Ibrahim Chehab, Salman Jaghbir, Ali El-Hadi and Mohammd Shammout.

6:45, the area between Baraasheit and Beit Yahoun towns was bombarded by fifteen 120mm shells.

Between 12:15 and 18:10, Mount Sojod was shelled by six 155mm missiles.

12:50, ten 155mm missiles slammed into Qaissieh Valley.

15:55, the "Israeli" warplanes raided into the perimeters of Jibaa town destroying a three-storey building about 100 meters only from a Lebanese Army checkpoint. The "Israeli" sortie inflicted the civilians Maimana Safa, 50, and Khadijeh Haidar 30.

19:00, several 81mm flare shells were fired over Sojod compound.

19:30, ten 120mm shells landed Dallafeh area…(3)

1- The Daily Star, 26-1-2000.
2- Future TV, 25-1-2000.
3- IR statement, 25-1-2000.

  January Thursday 27 -2000:

FIFTEEN CHILDREN HOSPITALIZED FOR SHOCK AND NERVOUS BREAKDOWN FOLLOWING "ISRAELI" SHELLING
""Israel" today (yesterday) stepped up its attacks on southern Lebanon, targeting schools and residential areas. At least fifteen elementary school students are being treated for shock and nervous breakdown. There was a stampede in the Kfar Rouman public school when "Israeli" shells fell near the building and machine gunfire hit the school's playground".

" "Israeli" shells fell near a southern Lebanese school in Kfar Rouman, causing panic among the 400 pupils. At least fifteen students were hospitalized for shock and a number of them are reportedly suffering from nervous breakdowns. Three shells exploded on the northern edge of the town of Nabatieh, north of the zone "Israel" occupies, causing pupils and staff to rush out of their classrooms in Kfar Rouman. Girls fainted, a small boy had his arm broken in the stampede and classes were suspended for the rest of the day. Lebanese Army units, civil defense units, and ICRC volunteers scrambled to rush students to safety. Police said the shelling came from "Israeli" fortified positions facing Nabatieh. Witnesses said the students had been terrorized. There was also panic in the front-line villages of Arab Salim and Habboush, where "Israeli" shells fell close to elementary schools. Last month, 20 pupils were hurt in the southern Lebanese village of Arab Salim when "Israel" shelled their school. The Hizbullah resistance movement said it launched a series of attacks against occupation fortifications in Tohorra, Mashaaroun, and Soweida, facing Nabatieh. Southern Lebanon has seen an upsurge of fighting. "Israel" yesterday attacked areas outside the zone, damaging houses and injuring two civilians. Hizbullah launched resistance operations killing an "Israeli" occupation soldier and injuring three "Israeli" allied militiamen"…(1)

For its part, The IR issued a statement in which it reported the following "Israeli" aggressions (2):

7:05, four 120mm shells fell on the perimeters of Majdal Selem and three 155mm smoke missiles on the surroundings of Mashaaroun outpost, whereas a volley of 12.7mm heavy machine gun bullets struck the surroundings of Houla and Mashaaroun positions.

Between 7:05 and 7:10, Qaissieh Valley was bombarded by sixteen 155mm missiles.

7:15, the peripheries of Majdal Selem exposed to a barrage of 12.7mm heavy machine gun bullets.

9:25, two 120mms shells hit Haddatha woodland.

Between 10:50 and 15:00, Kfar Romman town came under 12.7mm heavy machine gun fire.

10:50, a volley of 12.7mm heavy machine gun rounds struck the outskirts of Habboush town.

11:10, two 60mm rounds were fired at Mount Sojod.

11:35, the surroundings of Mothallath position exposed to 12.7mm heavy machine gun fire.

11:45, Kfar Romman came under ten 120mm shells wounding one boy student, suffering two girl students with nervous breakdown and causing damage to the houses of Jaafar Makki and Hassan Ali Sultan.

12:30, a barrage of 40mm machine gun bullets hit the peripheries of Kfar Romman.

16:20, one 105mm tank round landed near the Unifil post at Mansouri village.

16:25, Jib Soweid area, east of Majdal Zoun village, was shelled by five 155mm missiles.

18:05, the perimeters of Nabatieh El-Fawqa exposed to a volley of 12.7mm heavy machine gun bullets.

18:15, a barrage of 12.7mm heavy machine gun rounds struck the surroundings of Sojod outpost, whereas two flare shells were unleashed overhead.

21:10, the peripheries of Majdal Zoun and Mansouri exposed to 12.7mm heavy machine gun fire.

1- Future TV, 26-1-2000.
2- IR statement, 26-1-2000.

  January Friday 28 -2000:

"ISRAEL" CARVES UP NEW OCCUPATION ZONE: REPORT…(1)
"The daily An Nahar newspaper said "Israel" is setting up a new occupation zone in southern Lebanon. It reported that surveyors have set up a new border fence 60 to 125 meters deep inside Lebanese arable land along a two-kilometer stretch in Ramia district parallel to the highway of the international border. It said warnings against mines were posted on the barbed-wire fence along with a warning system. The move reportedly followed the recent annexation of Lebanese land in the district of Katamoun as part of the new zone "Israel" plans to keep after it withdraws from south Lebanon. "Israeli" Prime Minister Ehud Barak has pledged to withdraw occupation troops from the south in July, but he has remained vague on whether he will order a withdrawal in the absence of a peace agreement with Syria and Lebanon".

1- Future TV, 27-1-2000.

  January Saturday 29 -2000:

Investigation ordered into ‘new border’…(1)
"Premier Salim Hoss ordered an investigation on Friday into allegations that the "Israelis" are surveying a new border with Lebanon that could entail the Jewish state’s annexation of up to six villages located in the western sector of the occupation zone.
“We won’t accept any redrawing of our internationally recognized borders,” he said.
Hoss asked Defense Minister Ghazi Zeaiter and Army Commander General Michel Suleiman “to take the necessary steps to find out about actions carried out by "Israel"” in the occupation zone.
The prime minister is especially interested in “reports of the establishment of a new land register and the drawing of new borders,” officials said.
Hoss launched the inquiry after the National News Agency reported that "Israeli" engineers had been seen surveying the villages of Rmeish, Yaroun, Alma Shaab, Maroun al-Ras, Yarin and Ramieh. The NNA said metal-surveying stakes had been seen planted in the ground. The "Israelis" kept civilians away from the surveyed areas, the agency said.
"The report came days after "Israel's" chief of staff, General Shaul Mofaz, spoke of a new border existing between the two countries following a troop withdrawal from the south. His comments were instantly condemned by Hoss, who insisted that the border was inviolable ­ except where it allowed the return of the so-called Seven Villages incorporated into Palestine in 1923.
"The "Israeli" Army subsequently denied that Mofaz had meant the international border would be redrawn. Instead, he had referred to the border once again becoming the frontier between the two countries after the northern limit of the occupation zone had served as the de-facto boundary.
"The Seven Villages cropped up in an interview with Hizbullah deputy secretary-general Nahim Qassem on Friday.
"He said that the villages were Lebanese and their return remains a key demand. “We consider them an integral part of Lebanon,” he told Radio Monte Carlo. “This will be a long struggle which requires all efforts and which we shall follow with all the strength we have.”
Qassem said that "Israel's" frustration with Hizbullah’s resistance attacks was driving it to retaliate against civilians. He warned that Hizbullah’s patience with attacks on civilians was wearing thin. “We’re committed to the April Understanding. The "Israeli" enemy is the one which repeatedly breaks this understanding,” he said.

"Israeli" collaborators sentenced to death for espionage…(2)
"A former Amal official was sentenced to death by a military court on Friday after being convicted of carrying out espionage for "Israel" that led to the killings of resistance leaders.
In addition to former army First Adjutant Hussein Olayyan, 37, his wife Rola, 28, and mother Khadija Mroue were sentenced to two years and one year in prison with hard labor respectively. They are all in custody.
"His father Ali, brother Hassan, and cousin Youssef Musa Siblini were each sentenced
in absentia to 20 years with hard labor.
All sentences can be appealed.
“Information delivered to "Israel" allowed agents working for the enemy state to carry out a roadside bomb attack that killed Hizbullah official Khodr Salameh in Hlalieh near Sidon in July,” said the court’s presiding judge, Brigadier Maher Safieddine.
“Alayyan also delivered to "Israel" information about other Hizbullah officials, including those who run the group’s Nour Radio and Manar Television,” said Safieddine.
While Alayyan’s father, brother and cousin helped collect the information, his wife and mother went to "Israel" to communicate between Alayyan and the "Israeli" agents, the judge said.
Alayyan, his wife and mother were arrested a short time after Salameh’s killing. Salameh masterminded Hizbullah attacks on "Israeli" troops and their agent in the occupation zone.
Before the rulings were handed down, the judge had listened to closing arguments by Assistant Military Prosecutor Myassar Shokor and defense lawyers Riad Matar, Fadl Hajj and Hayat Abdel-Khaleq.
While Shokor asked the court to impose the harshest sentences on the defendants, Matar said his client Alayyan did not directly cause Salameh’s death, asking for a commuted sentence for his client.
Hajj, who represented Mroue, said his client only carried food to her sons from her village inside the occupation zone.

Lebanon demands return of antiques stolen by occupation…(3)
"Minister of Culture and Higher Education Mohammed Youssef Baydoun said his ministry has prepared a file to demand the return of the antiques stolen by the "Israeli" occupation.

"The file is now in the possession of the Prime Minister (Dr salim al-Hoss), Baydoun said at a ceremony in which the Antiques' Department new Director-General Frederick al-Husseini assumed his post.

1- The Daily Star, 29-1-2000.
2- Same source.
3- Al-Manar TV, 28-1-2000.