The Confrontation with Hizbullah

The Hizbullah operation that resulted in the kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers and the death of eight others has ignited a major confrontation between that organization and Israel. Unlike previous clashes in recent years, in which it could be expected that the clash would be short-lived because of the interest of both sides preventing escalation and returning to acceptable rules of the game, the provocation and its consequences are too great this time to allow Israel to return to the status quo ante. That would signal to Hizbullah and other factors operating against Israel that they can carry out ever-greater provocations without incurring a major response.