Crisis in the Middle East: Situation Volatile Ahead of Emergency Summit; Hezbollah Guerrillas Claims to Have Captured Israeli Soldier
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: In the Middle East, the situation remains volatile ahead of an emergency summit scheduled for tomorrow. Israel says it's looking into claims by Hezbollah guerrillas that the group has captured an Israeli colonel. CNN Beirut bureau chief Brent Sadler joining us on the line now with the latest on that story -- Brent.</s>BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Miles. Yes, another dramatic development here in the Middle East and an evolving mystery: a claim that another Israeli soldier is now in the hands of Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon. That claim coming from the organization's secretary-general, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. Nasrallah made the announcement during a meeting of Islamic leaders here in Beirut several hours ago, the comments broadcast live on Hezbollah's own TV station, Al-Manar. Hezbollah's chief said they're holding an Israeli soldier of the rank of colonel who'd been taken in what Nasrallah said was a complicated security operation. Here's what Hezbollah's chief had to say about it.</s>SAYYED HASSAN NASRALLAH, HEZBOLLAH SECRETARY-GENERAL (through translator): With the help of God and in a higher level of achievement and in a complicated security operation, the Islamic resistance managed to capture an Israeli officer with the rank of colonel.</s>SADLER: Now, since that statement by Nasrallah, there's been no more information coming out of Hezbollah. His reference there to complicate a security operation rather than any military action as being seen by some observers here. That's perhaps a strong indication that the man, having been taken by Hezbollah, was part of an intelligence sting by the guerrilla organization instead of having been captured in a gun battle like the capture of three Israeli soldiers snatched eight days ago in the Hezbollah cross-border operation. Israel's Army chief says that there's no report of missing soldiers but there is a possibility that a missing businessman in Europe could somehow be connected with this Hezbollah statement. So as things stand now, very much a mystery, and we await more information from either the Israelis or the Hezbollah guerrillas -- Miles.</s>O'BRIEN: All right, Brent. Well, hopefully, we can get all that sorted out for you. And, of course, as soon as we figure it all out, we'll let you know -- Carol.</s>CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: And for more now on the latest developments in the Middle East, we turn to CNN's Jerrold Kessel, who is in Jerusalem at the bureau -- Jerrold.</s>JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, the Israelis really were perturbed when they heard those reports from Hezbollah even though Prime Minister Barak told the cabinet this morning and the Israeli Army has said there is no known missing Israeli soldier or missing person on that northern border with Lebanon. Israelis taking that report from Hezbollah very seriously indeed because Hezbollah has, in the past, gained a reputation of veracity in its reports, in its claims and its accounts of actions against Israel when Israel was in occupation at South Lebanon. And Prime Minister Barak was interviewed, an interview that will go on CNN's "LATE EDITION" later today. And this is what he had to say about the question of whether Hezbollah might be holding another Israeli.</s>EHUD BARAK. ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: I don't know of any event along the border with Lebanon that could lead to such a result but we -- you know, we cannot exclude the possibility that somewhere else one of tens of thousands of Israelis who are spreading around the world had been hijacked and he happened to be a colonel in our reservist armed forces.</s>KESSEL: And as Brent Sadler was reporting, that is the theory in which the Israelis are now operating, the possibility that a businessman who was in contact possibly with Arab business interests in Europe may, in fact, have been abducted and handed over or sold to Hezbollah. That is a theory, no more than that, we're told by security sources here. But beyond that, no clarification of this claim and of this account by Hezbollah. The news that Hezbollah was putting out that it was holding a fourth Israeli came just as Mr. Barak was convening his cabinet to discuss what would be Israel's position going into that emergency summit in Sharm el-Sheikh tomorrow. And clearly, the two sides -- the Israelis and Palestinians -- going in both perhaps with the lowest of low expectations. But beyond that, with very, very different expectations of what that summit should do. The Palestinians looking above all to get international protection in the form of an international commission of inquiry and then mechanisms to prevent, they say, further Israeli aggression of the type which the Palestinians say have been launched against them over the last two weeks. The Israelis countering that by saying that there must be a cease fire, there must be mechanisms to control Yasser Arafat's forces, the disarming of the militias, the rearrest of and other militants who have been allowed out by the Palestinian authorities since the confrontation began. And both sides making clear-cut demands for the success or at least for the non-failure of the summit if they have dropped prior demands before going into the summit. Clearly, they do have very fixed demands for that summit. And over and above that, the rhetoric continuing to escalate on both sides, each literally say that the other is no longer a peace partner, and even more than that, is perhaps a partner only for confrontation. A very, very bleak prospect for that summit that is due to begin in Sharm el-Sheikh tomorrow -- Carol.</s>LIN: All right, thank you very much, Jerrold Kessel. And the president of the United States is planning on leaving at 3:30 this afternoon for that summit. You can also hear more from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak at noon Eastern on CNN's "LATE EDITION" with Wolf Blitzer.