Hezbollah denies firing rockets

A Hezbollah minister in Lebanon's Cabinet today disclaimed any responsibility for the firing of four rockets from inside southern Lebanon into northern Israel early today. As reported here earlier, the Katyusha rockets caused only minor injuries but raised fears that Hezbollah might have chosen to escalate the conflict in Israel.

Those fears have abated, with even Israeli officials apparently convinced Hezbollah was not involved. They believe the rockets were more likely to have been fired in a one-off show of solidarity with Hamas from Palestinian radicals within Lebanon.

It has happened before: Palestinian militants in Lebanon fired two rockets into Israel in June 2007.

The general consensus among international observers is that although Hezbollah used the 10-day Shia festival of Ashura - which finished on Wednesday - to whip up anti-Israeli feeling in southern Lebanon, it would not want to risk its popularity at home ahead of critical parliamentary elections in May when it hopes to consolidate its position in Beirut.

FIRST POSTED JANUARY 8, 2009