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Image taken from footage of Ron Arad aired Wednesday on Israeli television. (Archives) del.icio.us Digg It!  new Last update - 05:14 07/09/2006 Nasrallah: Hezbollah assumes missing IAF airman Ron Arad is dead By Yoav Stern and Eli Ashkenazi, Haaretz Correspondents and Haaretz Service Hezbollah assumes that Ron Arad is dead, the organization's leader Hassan Nasrallah said Wednesday, in the second part of a film on missing Israel Air Force navigator Ron Arad. The film was aired on Lebanese television network LBC and Israel's Channel 10. Nasrallah said in the video that his guerrilla organization had repeatedly been given bones thought to belong to the missing airman, but that DNA testing had shown they did not belong to Arad. "There are two approaches as to Ron Arad['s fate]: He is either living or dead," he said. "One must assume that if Arad is dead, then he must have died between 1988 and 1989." Advertisement The film, in which Arad is seen in captivity for the first time, shows him sitting surrounded by bare concrete walls, smoking a cigarette and giving his interrogators his name and those of his parents. He discussed his technical background as an airman, part of his pilot training and the planes he operated during his service in the IAF. The film said the pictures had been taken in 1987 and were obtained "in very special and delicate circumstances." At that time, Arad was held by the Amal group, in which Mustafa Dirani was a leader. Lebanese sources said they believed the film was broadcast to justify the abduction of two Israel Defense Forces soldiers, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, in July of this year. Lebanese journalist Ibrahim al-Amin, who is close to Hezbollah, said in the film that after Hezbollah's failed attempts to free Samir Kuntar and other Lebanese prisoners, "he was driven to carry out another act." Bassam, Samir al-Kuntar's brother, said in the video: "Hezbollah and its weapons are our guarantee to bring our loved ones home. If anyone has another solution, tell us what it is." Nasrallah surveyed the stages prior to the first stage of the POWs deal, in which the bodies of IDF soldiers Adi Avitan, Benny Avraham and Omar Souad were transferred to Israel. The first stage was to have included all the Lebanese prisoners, but to his surprise, Israel refused to release Kuntar, he said. The German mediators told him Israel insisted on including some mention of Arad in the deal, so his organization decided to help. "Israel didn't want the deal without Arad, but we didn't have him anymore. Then the idea came up to include Arad as justification for the second stage," Nasrallah said. Al-Amin said Hezbollah had no knowledge of Arad's fate. "If he could reveal Ron Arad's fate, he would have," he said. Arad's relatives watched the film in which he was seen speaking for the first time since his airplane fell in Lebanon 20 years ago. Chen Arad, the navigator's brother, said "we think Israel is conveying the wrong values by not demanding the implementation of the second part of the deal signed with Hezbollah two years ago. None of Israel's leaders is bothering to mention Ron as an issue which needs to be solved. We think it is not worthy to do that to a soldier who was sent by the state," he said. "The first second we saw the film we knew it was him, undoubtedly. It was a complete surprise because nobody ever told us such a cassette exists. We believe the defense establishment was surprised as well. Clearly not everything had been done [to bring him back]," he said. Bookmark to del.icio.us Administrative orphans Six Hebron children, whose parents were arrested, were left with their grandmother. Change the past Father of Jewish psychology suggests avoiding picking away at the scars of the past.   1.   Ron Arad and Kidnapped Soldiers 21:14  |  DISGUSTED 06/09/06   2.   Our boys 21:59  |  Marga 06/09/06   3.   The kidnapped 23:06  |  Blima Abramson 06/09/06   4.   they are all human beings 23:11  |  SadLebanese 06/09/06   5.   Dead men for dead men 23:47  |  SA 06/09/06   6.   Robinson Crusoe 00:34  |  From the Moon 07/09/06   7.   #3 00:44  |  From the Moon 07/09/06   8.   Mr. Nasrallah 00:52  |  From the Moon 07/09/06   9.   This scum should know 01:05  |  rick 07/09/06   10.   How did Hezbollah get Ron Arad`s DNA? 01:15  |  Laura 07/09/06   11.   It seems tourment only comes to famileis of soliders 01:41  |  sami LIPKIN 07/09/06   12.   Poisoned tentacles of Neturei Karta in Minsk,S.Lipkin 02:11  |  Absolute Sweden 07/09/06   13.   The detainies 02:13  |  OMAR 07/09/06   14.   arad 02:21  |  jack 07/09/06   15.   Of course Arad is dead 02:39  |  Mark Lincoln 07/09/06   16.   can one tell me what he was doing in lebanese air? 02:53  |  simon 07/09/06   17.   Apparently... 03:10  |  Yakov 07/09/06   18.   "Last time" 03:13  |  Yakov 07/09/06   19.   Arad 03:32  |  Dwido 07/09/06   20.   Israel has ALWAYS Betrayed it`s loyal & brave fighters 03:39  |  Nannette 07/09/06   21.   #13, MarkL 04:47  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 07/09/06   22.   Omar 05:24  |  Laura 07/09/06   23.   Mark Lincoln 05:27  |  Laura 07/09/06   24.   #5-From The Moon 05:36  |  Blima Abramson 07/09/06   25.   Dear Marga, an Arab agrees and also sad 08:24  |  gus 07/09/06   26.   to from the moon 08:34  |  gus 07/09/06   27.   Your hate will not bring him back. #7 08:40  |  gus 07/09/06   28.   can one tell me what he was doing in lebanese air? 12:11  |  to:simon 07/09/06   29.   Laura 13:36  |  The Jewel 07/09/06   30.   simon, arad`s whereabouts when captured are NOT secret 09:15  |  Michelle 21/10/07

Today Online Britain's chief rabbi: Multiculturalism is threat to democracy Responses: 22 Coalition crisis deepens as Annapolis summit nears Responses: 19 Gideon Levy: The time has come for Israel to give up on Ron Arad Send response Prince Hassan: Jews , Muslims don't have monopoly on truth Send response Former Hamas spokesman blasts takeover of Gaza Strip Responses: 13 Rosner's Domain * Israel's fear: Will Rice put a bridging proposal on the table? * WTR: 75% of Americans don't believe in peace process * Egypt blames IDF soldiers for arms smuggling to Gaza * Guest: Should the Saudis attend Annapolis? More Headlines 09:58 Shin Bet: Fatah cell tried to attack PM convoy in Jericho 08:27 Coalition crisis deepens as Annapolis peace summit nears 08:36 Nasrallah: I did everything I could to solve Arad mystery 09:50 Ya'alon: British Gas natural gas deal in Gaza will finance terror 09:30 U.K. chief rabbi: Multiculturalism is a threat to liberal democracy 08:29 ANALYSIS / Annapolis summit will bring Hamas back into the fold 08:38 Report to address possible effects of dividing Jerusalem 05:18 University heads order strike after talks with Tamir fail 01:23 Former Hamas spokesman blasts takeover of Gaza Strip Previous Editions Select Day 19 oct 18 oct 17 oct 16 oct 15 oct 14 oct 12 oct 11 oct 10 oct 09 oct 08 oct 07 oct

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