Civilians greet truce with skepticism
April 26, 1996
Web posted at: 11:20 p.m. EDT (0320 GMT)KIRYAT SHMONAH, Israel (CNN) -- The intense fighting between Israel and Hezbollah militants came to an official end at 4 a.m. Saturday. But in the two regions most affected by the conflict, northern Israel and southern Lebanon, the truce appeared to bring little elation.
Residents in northern Israel's Kiryat Shmonah seemed cautious, almost disbelieving that peace will prevail.
"It's over -- and not over," said one man, with a tired smile. "We're still in the middle. We know that the bombing will come back. But when we do not know."
"I'm hopeful -- put it that way," said another resident. "The fact that the rest of the world is going to be actively involved and hopefully this will put pressure on Syria to want peace."
Throughout the day, as the diplomatic endgame played out, Hezbollah militants repeatedly rained Katyusha rockets on the town, reinforcing skepticism.
Mayor Prosper Azran watched Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres and U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher, who helped broker the agreement, announcing the cease-fire agreement on television Friday. But Azran said he has little faith in the accord.
"What was, will be," he said with resignation. "The Hezbollah will continue to kill our soldiers in southern Lebanon. Our soldiers must attack Hezbollah. And Hezbollah will bombard Kiryat Shmonah again."
On the other side of the border, hundreds of thousands of Lebanese civilians anxiously waited to see how the cease-fire would work on the ground. They face the prospect of returning to villages devastated by Israeli bombardments. More than 4,000 refugees are still sheltering in U.N. bases, and they have to go back home.
But returning home, with or without the United Nation's help, will not be easy. Israeli air strikes caused widespread damage to a network of roads leading to many villages.
Israel fired more than 24,000 shells and ordered nearly 600 air raids on southern Lebanon while the Hezbollah fired more than 1,000 Katyusha rockets on northern Israel during the 16-day conflict. At least 137 people, mostly Lebanese civilians, were killed.
Israel said it launched "Operation Grapes of Wrath" to halt Hezbollah rocket attacks on its northern settlements. Hezbollah contended that the barrage would stop when Israel left the southern Lebanon enclave it occupied in 1982.
Just hours before the 4 a.m. cease-fire was due to take effect Saturday, Israel kept up low-intensity land and sea shelling of south Lebanon, and Hezbollah guerrillas retaliated with Katyusha rockets.
Superficially, little had changed. As sirens pierced the Sabbath calm in Kiryat Shmonah, warning people to stay underground, it was one more indication that, even with an agreement, trust will be a long time coming.
CNN Correspondents Bill Delaney and Brent Sadler contributed to this report
Related stories:
- Cease-fire agreement reached for Lebanon - Apr. 26, 1996
- Facts on the 16-day war between Israel and Hezbollah - April 26, 1996
- Text of Mideast cease-fire announcement - Part 1
- Text of Mideast cease-fire announcement - Part 2
- Text of Mideast cease-fire announcement - Part 3
- Analysis of Mideast cease-fire announcement - Part 1
- Analysis of Mideast cease-fire announcement - Part 2
- Christopher nearing agreement in Mideast - April 26, 1996
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