Inside Hezbollah, Big Miscalculations

BEIRUT -- The meeting on July 12 was tense, tinged with desperation. A few hours earlier, in a brazen raid, Hezbollah guerrillas had infiltrated across the heavily fortified border and captured two Israeli soldiers. Lebanon's prime minister summoned Hussein Khalil, an aide to Hezbollah's leader, to his office at the Serail, the palatial four-story government headquarters of red tile and colonnades in Beirut's downtown.

"What have you done?" Prime Minister Fouad Siniora asked him.

Hasan Nasrallah, Hezbollah's leader, told Lebanese lawmakers in speeches before the war that the militia was a deterrent to Israel, which would not risk a Hezbollah missile attack. (Associated Press) In Depth Primer: Israel Background on Israel's ongoing conflict with militant groups. Primer: Hamas Background on the Palestinian group, the Islamic Resistance Movement. Photo Gallery � � MIDEAST CONFLICT NEWS Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Coverage of the continuing conflict between Israel and neighboring militants. Full Coverage   Who's Blogging? Read what bloggers are saying about this article. THE WAR IN CONTEXT:: Iraq, the War on Terrorism, and the Middle East Conflict - in Critical Perspective The Passionate Center (leaning to the Left) Sir Humphrey's | Department of Unspin