Two Democratic members of the US Senate told Reuters on Wednesday that the Israeli army and the Lebanese Hezbollah group have an opportunity to calm tensions on Lebanon’s southern border before a possible Israeli attack on the Lebanese armed group.
The two lawmakers, Chris Coons and Richard Blumenthal, met with Lebanese officials during a visit to the region ravaged by conflict following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, which responded with a violent attack from the air, land and sea on the Gaza Strip.
“The next few weeks are a real turning point for Gaza, Israel, Lebanon, the Red Sea and Iraq,” Coons said, adding that concluding a ceasefire agreement in Gaza could have “positive consequences” for Lebanon.
“This may provide an opportunity for 45 days, and very likely during Ramadan as well, when the next steps can be taken to begin building confidence that will lead to the implementation of (UN Security Council Resolution) 1701,” Coons added.
The resolution issued in 2006 ended the last major conflict between Hezbollah and Israel and stipulates that there must be no armed factions in an area of southern Lebanon other than the Lebanese army.
France submitted a written proposal to Lebanon earlier this month. The US envoy, Amos Hochstein, said he was working on a plan that Coons expressed hope would “make steady progress” without revealing other details.
“I think it is an urgent necessity for both parties to seize this opportunity to calm down and withdraw,” Coons said.
The two senators said that they informed the Speaker of the Lebanese Parliament, Nabih Berri, who heads the Amal Movement allied with Hezbollah, that Israel did not issue an empty threat to launch an attack.
Blumenthal said: “It is not just talk, it will be implemented. We hope that this message will be conveyed to Hezbollah.”
Since the day following the unprecedented attack launched by Hamas on Israel on October 7, the Lebanese border has witnessed an escalation between Hezbollah and Israel.
Hezbollah announces the targeting of Israeli sites, spy devices, and military gatherings in support of Gaza and “in support of its resistance.” The Israeli army responds with air and artillery bombardment, which it says targets the party’s “infrastructure” and the movements of fighters near the border.
Southern Lebanon and northern Israel witnessed a major escalation last Wednesday, with the Hebrew state launching a series of air strikes on several towns that resulted in the killing of at least ten civilians, in addition to wounding five Hezbollah members, including a military official.
The raids came shortly after the killing of an Israeli soldier in Safed by a missile fired from southern Lebanon.
14 people, most of them Syrian workers, were injured on Monday as a result of two Israeli raids on the coastal town of Ghaziyeh. Israel said it targeted Hezbollah weapons depots.
In Lebanon, the Israeli bombing resulted in the killing of about 190 Hezbollah militants and 50 civilians. 12 soldiers and five civilians were killed in northern Israel, and tens of thousands were displaced from both sides of the border, according to Reuters statistics.
While a tally compiled by Agence France-Presse indicated that 271 people were killed in Lebanon, including 188 Hezbollah members and 42 civilians, including three journalists. In Israel, the army counted the deaths of ten soldiers and six civilians.
2024-02-21 23:37:15
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