The mother of all bombs?

There used to be a time when fireworks were reserved for celebrations such as independence and important religious days.

Then, gunshots were distinguishable from the sounds of firecrackers. But, now, there seem to be explosions going off almost everywhere - daily in some notorious conflict zones.

In all these settings, nobody seems to be having a real blast of it all: lives are ended and property destroyed, and the number of injured or displaced persons grows steadily.

Still, the US has scheduled to sign a decade-long $30 billion arms deal with Israel this week:

[....

The package was unveiled by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on July 30 as part of a new military pact with US allies in the Middle East in a bid to "counter the negative influences" of militant groups Al-Qaeda and Hezbollah as well as arch enemies Iran and Syria.

They include a 20 billion dollar weapons package for Saudi Arabia, a 13 billion dollar package for Egypt, and reportedly arms deals worth at least 20 billion dollars for other Gulf states.

The military aid to Israel reflected an increase in value of more than 25 percent, Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said, describing the package as a considerable improvement and very important element for national security.

"Other than the increase in aid, we received an explicit and detailed commitment to guarantee Israel's qualitative advantage over other Arab states," he had said following recent talks with US President George W. Bush.

With current US defense aid to Israel standing at 2.4 billion dollars a year, the new package will hike the value of assistance to the Jewish state by 600 million dollars a year on average, officials said.

The two countries are increasingly alarmed by Iran's nuclear ambitions, which have already incurred international economic sanctions. Iran insists its nuclear program is designed for peaceful, civilian energy purposes.

Burns will meet with Olmert, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, and other Israeli officials during the visit in which "discussions on regional security, including the challenge posed by Iran" would be held, the State Department said.

Burns will also meet with Palestinian Authority leaders regarding "the development of a political horizon" and US humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people.

The United States is striving to forge a deal for the establishment of a Palestinian state ahead of an international meeting called for by Bush in the fall.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said last week he had positive talks with Olmert in the West Bank city of Jericho, the first time in seven years that such a high-level meeting has taken place on Palestinian territory.

Burns will not travel from Israel to the other Middle East ally states to discuss the arms deals, officials said.

A senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that "at some point" Burns will visit Egypt and Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf allies....]

That deal was a direct result of such events as the following Hezbollah threat:

[...."Oh Zionists, if you think of launching a war on Lebanon, and I don't advise to do it, ... I promise you a big surprise that could change the fate of war and the fate of the region," Nasrallah said during a rally in Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold heavily bombed by Israeli warplanes during last year's war.

The rally, attended by thousands of Hezbollah supporters waving the group's yellow banners and the Lebanese flag, was organized by the Shiite Muslim group to mark the end of last year's 34-day war, which Hezbollah calls "a divine victory."

Nasrallah did not elaborate on his threats, but specifically referred to a Hezbollah missile attack that destroyed an Israeli warship in the Mediterranean while it was shelling Beirut's southern suburbs.

Nasrallah, whose whereabouts are unknown, did not attend the rally. Instead, his speech was relayed to the crowd on giant television screens in a stadium and on top of buildings in the southern suburbs.

The war erupted on July 12, 2006, when Hezbollah guerrillas crossed the border into Israel and attacked an Israeli patrol, killing three soldiers and capturing two.

Israel then invaded southern Lebanon, unleashing a massive bombing campaign that destroyed most of the country's infrastructure and shook its fragile political system.]

I get the feeling that that's no empty threat!