To: Anthony@Pacific who wrote (74754 ) 1/23/2002 2:48:43 PM From: Taki Respond to of 122087 No good. (COMTEX) A: Hezbollah, Israeli forces clash on border A: Hezbollah, Israeli forces clash on border SIDON, Lebanon, Jan 23, 2002 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- Israeli warplanes Wednesday raided the outskirts of a border village in south Lebanon after Hezbollah fighters attacked Israeli positions in the disputed border area of the Shabaa farms. These strikes were the first such exchange of fire since Oct. 22, Hezbollah's al-Manar television station reported. The Israeli jets dropped two missiles on hills overlooking the village of Kfar Chouba close to the Lebanese-Israeli border, while gunners inside Israel bombarded the area, according to Hezbollah and Lebanese security sources. The air raid followed an attack by Hezbollah guerrillas against four positions of Israeli forces inside the Shabaa farms. Local sources reported fierce clashes between the guerrillas and the Israeli forces. There has been no report on casualties so far. Al-Manar said an Israeli MK spying plane was hit earlier when Hezbollah guerrillas fired at a number of Israeli warplanes that violated the air space over south Lebanon. Hezbollah counted 42 such Israeli air and sea violations of Lebanon within the past week. It said in a statement that the Israeli total violations reached 3,671 since June 2000. The Shabaa farms have been area of contention since Israel withdrew from south Lebanon on May 2000, ending 22 years of occupation. Hezbollah and the Lebanese government insist that the Israeli pullout remains incomplete because it failed to include the Shabaa farms, which belonged to Lebanon. The United Nations, which set the Blue Line to confirm the Israeli withdrawal, said the Shabaa farms were seized by Israel when it captured the Syrian Golan Heights in 1967. Thus its fate was to be determined in future peace talks between Israel and Syria and Lebanon. The United States has included Hezbollah on its list of terrorist groups whose assets should be frozen following the Sept. 11 terror attacks on New York and Washington.