[quote:b0612]ON THE ISRAEL-LEBANON BORDER: Israeli soldiers returning from the front in Lebanon say Hezbollah guerillas are hiding amid civilians and in underground bunkers two or three storeys deep - evidence, they say, that Hezbollah has been planning this battle for years.
"It's hard to beat them," one soldier said. "They're not afraid of anything."
The soldiers, most of whom declined to give their names under orders from superiors, described exchanges of gunfire in between houses on village streets, with Hezbollah rebels sometimes popping out of bushes to fire Kalashnikov rifles, rocket-propelled grenades and anti-tank missiles.
The troops' comments underscore the enormous challenge faced by Israel as it seeks to neutralise Hezbollah.
Despite Israel's overwhelming firepower, some military analysts say the war is not going particularly well for Israel, which has been unable to significantly push back the guerillas or stop hundreds of their rockets from slamming into northern Israel.
For the past few days, Israel has been fighting for control of the tiny southern Lebanese village of Maroun al-Ras, on a hilltop less than 500m across the border.
The army said it had taken the village, but officers at the scene confirmed there was still fighting to do. "They're not fighting like we thought they would," one soldier said. "They're fighting harder. They're good on their own ground."
One soldier said the guerillas wore olive-green army uniforms "to confuse us" because Israelis wore the same.
Others said Hezbollah hid underground in reinforced bunkers until they thought it safe to come out and attack. The Israelis prefer to stay away from those bunkers, the soldiers said, instead calling in co-ordinates so forces massed behind the border can hit them with guided missiles.
"It will take the (northern) summer to beat them," said Michael Sidorenko, 21, resting in the shade of a road sign with other combat troops. On the hills behind him, loud gunfire and the constant thud of explosions could be heard. "They're not normal soldiers," he said. "They're guerillas. They're very smart."
He added he saw Hezbollah fighters firing from behind Lebanese civilians.
"That's why our soldiers are getting killed," he said.
Of the 19 soldiers killed since fighting began, five have died trying to gain control of Maroun al-Ras. To avoid more deaths, Israel has decided to limit its ground incursions to pinpoint operations near the border.
Not every soldier described Hezbollah as fierce. One said that when Israeli troops showed up in vehicles, the guerillas ran "like chickens".
Others wondered why Hezbollah had not yet attacked the almost 24 army vehicles and hundreds of troops camped out in easy striking range below the hill on which the village sits.
Most of the fighting in Maroun al-Ras has been conducted by a core group of a few hundred Israeli soldiers, including paratroopers.
The soldiers said Hezbollah had refrained from attacking them as they approached Maroun al-Ras in tanks and armoured personnel carriers, preferring instead to let Israelis reach the village and attack them there.
The fighting, they said, showed the guerillas had used the six years since Israel withdrew from Lebanon to build bunkers, stockpile weapons and study tactics.
"They have good knowledge about where we are, what we're doing, what kinds of weapons we have," soldier Sidorenko said.
"But it's better to fight them now than later, when they'd be even stronger."
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/st ... 77,00.html
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Guerillas tough to beat, say soldiers
Guerillas tough to beat, say soldiers -
07-24-2006, 11:22 AM
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