New York Times—Iran has turned away U.N. inspectors wanting to examine its underground nuclear site in an apparent violation of the Nonproliferation Treaty, diplomats and U.N. officials said Monday. The officials told The Associated Press that Iran’s unprecedented refusal to allow access to the facility at Natanz could seriously hamper international efforts to ensure that Tehran is not trying to make nuclear weapons. The revelation came on the eve of Iran’s self-imposed Aug. 22 deadline to respond to a Western incentives package for it to roll back its disputed nuclear program.

Washington Post—Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that Tehran will continue to pursue nuclear technology, despite a U.N. Security Council deadline to suspend uranium enrichment by the end of the month or face the threat of economic and diplomatic sanctions. “The Islamic Republic of Iran has made its own decision and in the nuclear case, God willing, with patience and power, will continue its path,” Khamenei was quoted as saying by state television.

Haaretz—Senior IDF officers say that “round two” between Israel and Hizballah could begin within months or even weeks, probably over the renewal of arms deliveries from Iran and Syria. One senior officer noted that while UN Security Council Resolution 1701 calls for an embargo on arms shipments to Hizballah, no mechanism has been put in place to enforce this embargo, and said that Israel will have to intervene if the deliveries continue unchecked. Specifically, the military source said, Israel will be forced to carry out aerial assaults on trucks traveling from Syria to Lebanon. “If we know that a truck is carrying arms, we’ll strike,” he said. “There is simply no alternative.”

The Telegraph—Hizballah mourners in a funeral parade shoved aside anti-tank barriers at a UN base in Lebanon Sunday in a demonstration of their new political strength. When the chanting procession, several hundred strong, reached the gates of the UNIFIL compound, inside of which is the Naqoura town cemetery, mourners argued with the French guards, but failed to gain entry. A mob of young men then dragged the barriers away and the UN opened the gates. “They will eat us alive,” said one official as the throng surged in. Nowhere in the border area Sunday was there any sign of the Lebanese Army.

YnetNews—A document sent from UN Headquarters to the Italian Defense Ministry regarding the jurisdiction of the multinational force in Lebanon was published in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. It was written that the main objective of the soldiers will not be disarming Hizbullah, but rehabilitating Lebanon from the war’s damage and keeping order. The soldiers also will not be equipped with tanks, and will only be permitted to open fire “in a manner befitting of the need in response to an emergency situation.” Aid operations of the multinational force, according to the document, will focus on rehabilitating public buildings, roads, and bridges that were destroyed by IDF attacks during the war.

Haaretz—Prime Minister Olmert on Sunday told his Italian Prime Minister Prodi that he wishes to see Italy lead the contingent of foreign soldiers which would comprise the UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon. The Italian premier said that his government plans to send a significant number of soldiers to Lebanon, adding that he intends to pass the matter along for discussion in the Italian parliament as soon as possible. “If UN headquarters asks us to lead the force, we won’t refuse even if we are not asking [to lead the force],” Pierro Pasino, the leader of the largest party in Prodi’s governing coalition, told the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero. Pasino noted that Italy is geographically situated near the Middle East, and that “a large nation like Italy can’t evade its responsibility” and said “It may well be that Italy will be ready to take France’s place as the leader of the UN force in southern Lebanon.”

The Guardian—An internal Lebanese army statement, circulated among forces in the past week, has called for troops to stand “alongside your resistance and your people who astonished the world with its steadfastness and destroyed the prestige of the so-called invincible army after it was defeated.” The circular fuels the concerns of Israel, the U.S., and the UN Security Council that the Lebanese army is incapable of securing the south of the country, adding increased urgency to the calls for a multinational force to be swiftly deployed. One defense analyst said that, in the south, the army often acted as a subordinate to Hizballah’s military apparatus. “All intelligence gathered by the army is put at the disposal of Hizballah, but Hizballah does not offer the same transparency to the army,” he said. “In a sense, military intelligence in the south is operating on Hizballah’s behalf.” Another retired general, Amin Hoteit, now a professor at the Lebanese University, said: “The army sees Hizbullah as a group that is defending the country and so assists them as best it can.” Speaking last year, the Lebanese army chief of staff, General Michel Suleiman, said: “Support for the resistance is one of the fundamental national principles in Lebanon and one of the foundations on which the military doctrine is based. Protection of the resistance is the army’s basic task.” The relationship had been strong for many years, Lebanese General Kader said: “From 1996 onwards there has been a consensus in the army command that Hizbullah was a legitimate national defence force and that the government should extend its umbrella to protect the resistance.” He said most army officials viewed the deployment primarily as a “counter-penetration force” working to prevent the infiltration of Israeli intelligence and military patrols.

Haaretz—Turkish authorities have prevented five Iranian airplanes and a Syrian aircraft from flying into Lebanon, suspecting them of transporting arms to Hizballah, the Turkish Hurriyet newspaper reported on Monday. American intelligence reports indicated the plane carried three missile launchers and containers with Chinese C-802 land-to-sea missiles, identical to the missile that hit an Israel Navy ship in July.

YnetNews—Hizballah, Iran, and Syria are working feverishly to rearm Hizballah ahead of the next round. A senior officer of the Revolutionary Guard in Tehran said that huge quantities of weapons reached Damascus during the last three weeks, and are waiting to be transferred to Lebanon. According to the London-based Arabic daily Asharq al-Awsat, the Revolutionary Guard formed an emergency committee on logistics in Damascus, responsible for supplying Hizballah’s military needs.