Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 17, 1992 TAG: 9202170150
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: SIDON, LEBANON LENGTH: Medium
ISRAELI RAID KILLS ARAB MILITANT
Israeli helicopters on Sunday attacked a convoy carrying the leader of the pro-Iranian group Hezbollah, killing him and his wife and son. Shiite Muslim leaders vowed revenge and called for an intensified holy war against Israel.The strike, which caught the official in his limousine, could damage the already-contentious Middle East peace process. It capped a day of Israeli air attacks on south Lebanon following Saturday's slaying of three Israeli soldiers.
Hezbollah, or Party of God, was considered the umbrella group for the Shiite Muslim holders of Western hostages in Lebanon. It opposes the Middle East peace talks, the next round of which are to begin next Monday in Washington.
The British Broadcasting Corp. reported that "moments after" the attack on Musawi, Syria and Lebanon announced they would attend the talks. It was unclear whether the decision to attend was made before or after the attack.
Hezbollah said its leader, Sheik Abbas Musawi, 39, his wife, Siham, and their 5-year-old son, Hussein, the youngest of the couple's six children, were "martyred" in what it called "a cowardly air attack."
Four bodyguards also were killed, and 18 people were wounded, police in Lebanon said.
Sheik Mohammed Fadlallah, spiritual mentor of the Shiite militants, called the attack a "barbaric crime" and said in a statement: "I call upon all resistance fighters to escalate their jihad [holy war] against Israel."
In Washington, President Bush declined comment on the effect the attack might have on peace talks. He said he did not have detailed information on the raid.
"We're concerned at the rising cycle of violence in the Middle East," said State Department spokesman Richard Boucher. "We regret the loss of life in Israel and in Lebanon and urge all concerned to exercise maximum restraint."
In Jerusalem, the Israeli military acknowledged it had carried out the convoy attack, but suggested Musawi was not a specific target.
But Defense Minister Moshe Arens told Israel television the attack was "a message to all the terrorist organizations: that if any of them opens an account with us, we will settle that account," Arens said.
The army blamed Hezbollah for 52 attacks on the Israeli-controlled zone in south Lebanon in 1991 and said the group had stepped up attacks in recent months to try to scuttle the peace talks.
Keywords:
FATALITY