Hezbollah Captures 2 Israeli Soldiers

By JOSEPH PANOSSIAN

BEIRUT, Lebanon – The Hezbollah militant group captured two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid Wednesday, triggering an Israeli assault with warplanes, tanks and gunboats against southern Lebanon as Israeli troops crossed the frontier to hunt for the captives.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert called the guerrilla attack "an act of war" and warned Hezbollah would pay a "heavy price" for its actions.

Two Lebanese civilians were killed in Israeli airstrikes on a bridge in the south, Lebanese security officials said. The pan-Arab satellite TV al-Arabiya station said that at least seven Israeli soldiers were killed in the fighting, and that several more were wounded.

The Israeli army confirmed casualties among the soldiers, but did not comment the reports of possible deaths.