Syria, Iran orchestrated Hezbollah raid against Israel

The Israeli army should not punish the Lebanese government and the country's civilian infrastructure for the actions of Hezbollah, which refuses to obey the authority of the Lebanese leadership and attacked the Jewish state this week without authorization, Lebanon's Druze leader Walid Jumblatt said in an exclusive interview.

Jumblatt urged dialogue to solve the growing military crisis surrounding Hezbollah's kidnapping Wednesday of two Israeli soldiers and the firing of missiles yesterday into Israeli population centers.

He also hinted Syria and Iran may have directed Hezbollah to attack Israel.

"[Hezbollah leader Hassan] Nasrallah does not obey the government of Lebanon. We (in the government) don't agree with his acts. But we cannot in Lebanon force him to accept any resolution unless he accepts it himself," said Jumblatt, speaking to the WorldNetDaily and ABC Radio's John Batchelor on Batchelor's national radio program

. (Click here to listen to the Jumblatt interview.)

Jumblatt is the head of Lebanon's Progressive Socialist Party and is largely considered the most prominent anti-Syrian Lebanese politician.

He said he saw the fingerprints of Iran and Syria on Hezbollah's actions the past few days.

"They (Iran and Syria) are financially and militarily supporting Hezbollah. It is a known fact that this alliance from Tehran to Beirut is quite a solid strategic alliance."

Michael Schiavo Takes on Privacy Campaign

The man who last year won a bruising battle to disconnect his brain-damaged wife from a feeding tube is campaigning against government intrusion around the country.

The political action committee formed by Michael Schiavo _ whose wife, Terri, died after a seven-year court and political fight that reached Capitol Hill _ has raised about $25,000 and is targeting races in Colorado, Florida and Texas.

Schiavo came to Colorado on Wednesday to support Democratic candidates for the U.S. House, including Angie Paccione, who is challenging Rep. Marilyn Musgrave. Musgrave spoke last year on the floor of the House against allowing Terri Schiavo's feeding tube to be removed.

"I want to ask Marilyn Musgrave who gave her the right to speak about Terri," Schiavo said. "Who gave her the authority to bring Congress into my family decisions?"

Musgrave, who represents a sprawling district in eastern Colorado, issued a statement saying, "I have only compassion for Michael and Terri's family, and all those who have lost a loved one."

Pat Anderson, a Florida attorney who represented Terri Schiavo's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, said she found Michael Schiavo's political campaigning offensive.

"Somebody needs to tell this guy his 15 minutes of fame are up," she said.

State GOP chairman Bob Martinez criticized Schiavo's involvement in Colorado, saying he thinks most residents "were appalled to learn that Michael Schiavo is helping political candidates profit off his wife's death."

Plame Sues Cheney Over Leak

The CIA officer whose identity was leaked to reporters sued Vice President Dick Cheney, his former top aide and presidential adviser Karl Rove on Thursday, accusing them and other White House officials of conspiring to destroy her career.

In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court, Valerie Plame and her husband, Joseph Wilson, a former U.S. ambassador, accused Cheney, Rove and I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby of participating in a "whispering campaign" to reveal Plame's CIA identity and punish Wilson for criticizing the Bush administration's motives in Iraq.

Mark Corallo, a spokesman for Rove, said, "Without even having had a chance to review the complaint, it is clear that the allegations are absolutely and utterly without merit."

The lawsuit accuses Cheney, Libby, Rove and 10 unnamed administration officials or political operatives of putting the Wilsons and their children's lives at risk by exposing Plame.

"This lawsuit concerns the intentional and malicious exposure by senior officials of the federal government of ... (Plame), whose job it was to gather intelligence to make the nation safer and who risked her life for her country," the Wilsons' lawyers said in the lawsuit.

Specifically, the lawsuit accuses the White House officials of violating the Wilsons' constitutional rights to equal protection and freedom of speech. It also accuses the officials of violating the couple's privacy rights.

The lawsuit alleges that Cheney, Libby and Rove used Plame to punish Wilson for his public statements about the administration's portrayal of the intelligence on Iraq.

"As their chief method of punishment, the White House officials destroyed (Plame's) cover by revealing her classified employment with the CIA to reporters," the lawsuit said.

Instead of confronting Wilson on the issue, the lawsuit said, the White House officials "embarked on an anonymous 'whispering campaign' designed to discredit ... (the Wilsons) and to deter other critics from speaking out."