Former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was transferred to the Emergency Room at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer Wednesday afternoon as his body continued to retain fluids after a deterioration in his condition several days ago.
--Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Wednesday morning that Israel was not surprised by the strength of the Hizbullah force Israel is facing. He added, however, that the IDF will not stop fighting until there is an end to the threat from the north.
--The IDF has released for publication that eight soldiers were killed in fierce fighting in the Hizbullah stronghold of Bint Jbeil Wednesday morning. Three soldiers are in serious condition, four suffered moderate wounds and 15 were lightly injured. The enemy fighters were equipped with anti-tank weapons, rocket propelled grenades, mortar shells, and LAW rockets. The equipment came from Syria and Lebanon. The dead and wounded were evacuated under fire, and several soldiers carried stretchers more than one mile.
--An IDF officer was killed and three soldiers wounded in fighting in the village of Maroun Al-Ras, between the Israeli-Lebanese border and the village of Bint Jbiel, where eight IDF soldiers fell earlier in the day.
--If world nations agree to place a multi-national force in Lebanon, their soldiers will have to stay a long time before the Lebanese army can take responsibility, a Foreign Ministry official said Thursday. Benny Dagan, head of the ministry's Middle East bureau, said the Lebanese army is too weak to take control in a short amount of time. "It's hard for me to define if it's going to be one year or two years or three years. We're not talking here about months," he added.
--Attorney General Menachem Mazuz has placed undisclosed limits on the responsibilities of Justice Minister Haim Ramon pending a probe on allegations of sexual harassment.