Israel close to decision on strikes on Lebanon border, army chief says
JERUSALEM/BEIRUT: Israel is prepared for an offensive along its northern border with Lebanon and is close to a decision, its chief of staff said on Tuesday, while the Hezbollah movement said it does not seek to escalate the conflict but is ready to fight any war imposed on it.
The conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, which is being fought parallel to the Gaza war, has intensified in recent days, raising concerns that an even wider confrontation between these heavily armed adversaries could erupt.
Israeli military Chief of General Staff Harzai Halevi said the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are prepared for offensive action in the north.
“We are ready to go on the offensive in the north after a very good process of training up to the level of a General Staff exercise,” he said in a recorded statement. “We are reaching a decision point.”
Hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah are at their worst since the war began in 2006, and thousands of people on both sides of the border have been forced to flee their homes.
Hezbollah, an ally of Palestinian militant group Hamas, says it is attacking Israel in support of Palestinians under Israeli bombardment in Gaza. It had previously said it would call a ceasefire when Israeli attacks on Gaza stopped.
Hezbollah’s deputy leader Sheikh Naim Qassem told broadcaster Al Jazeera that the group had not decided to widen the war but would fight if it was forced upon it. Al Jazeera quoted Qassem as saying that the Lebanese front would not stop until the Gaza war stopped.
Israel has fought several times in Lebanon.
US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Washington “does not support a full-blown war with Hezbollah” but that Israel has the right to defend itself from Hezbollah attacks.
“We have heard Israeli leaders say that the solution they prefer is a diplomatic solution. And obviously that is the solution we prefer and the one we are trying to pursue,” he said.
The United States considers the Iran-backed Hezbollah a terrorist group.
Israeli government spokesman David Mencer said fighting in the region was “not a sustainable reality”, adding that Israel was committed to ensuring the return home of thousands of Israelis expelled from the north.
“It is up to Hezbollah to decide whether this can be done through diplomatic means or by force,” he said. “We are defending this country and our response should not surprise anyone.”
Amos Hochstein, a senior adviser to US President Joe Biden who is at the centre of diplomatic efforts to ease tensions, said last week that a phased implementation of a land border agreement between Israel and Lebanon could de-escalate the conflict.
“We must destroy them”
Earlier on Tuesday, Israeli right-wing ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir called for further military action.
“There can be no peace in Lebanon as long as our land is attacked and our people are expelled,” Ben-Gvir said in a video statement shared on X after a visit to the northern city of Kiryat Shmona. “They are setting fires here, we must burn all Hezbollah strongholds, destroy them. War!”
Ben-Gvir and Smotrich are members of Israel’s Security Cabinet, but not the War Cabinet.
The violence that has been going on for months has escalated in recent days. Hezbollah announced on Tuesday that it had launched a squadron of drones that unilaterally attacked an Israeli military barracks for the second day in a row, calling it a response to the deadly Israeli attack in Naqoura, Lebanon.
Sirens sounded in northern Israel, where rockets fired from Lebanon set off forest fires on Monday.
The Israeli military said a “suspected aerial target” from Lebanon fell in the Mount Hermon area, though there were no reports of casualties.
Israeli warplanes attacked a Hezbollah member in Naqoura as well as two other locations in southern Lebanon. The Israeli military said Israeli artillery struck five locations in the south.
According to the death toll reported by Reuters and medical and security sources, about 300 Hezbollah members and about 80 civilians have been killed in Israeli attacks since October 7. The Israeli military says 18 Israeli soldiers and 10 civilians have been killed in attacks on Israel from Lebanon.
On Monday, Hezbollah said it had launched a squadron of drones against Israeli targets in response to Israel’s killing of a Hezbollah member. Although Hezbollah has used drones in conflict, this was the first time it had announced launching a squadron of drones.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – Reuters)