Haaretz newspaper said that Israel and the Lebanese Hezbollah have been on the verge of a comprehensive war since last October 8, but the horrific truth is that if another front was opened with Lebanon and its regional extension, what would be the scale of the devastating attacks on civilian infrastructure that would occur, especially with the absence of American support for this war? ?
The newspaper explained – in a report by writer and researcher Dalia Scheindlin – that Hezbollah began firing on Israeli positions from southern Lebanon from the first day of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) attack on southern Israel, which led to the evacuation of about 80,000 Israelis and 75,000 Lebanese from the border areas. The forces from both sides moved to their positions.
Although the party prefers to avoid a large-scale war, as appeared in the speeches of its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, some Israeli figures are calling for a more aggressive approach. In fact, the Israeli government is on the verge of launching a major escalatory strike, and Defense Minister Yoav Galant has supported a serious preventive measure, but the United States The United States discouraged him from doing so.
Since then, there has been a continuous war of retaliation fueled by Hezbollah anti-tank fire, limited Israeli raids, suicide drones, Hezbollah missiles, and Israeli air strikes, which led to the destruction of buildings and resulted in the deaths of a number of Hezbollah fighters, some Lebanese civilians, and a number of Israelis, including soldiers and civilians. , according to the newspaper.
A hard line of rhetoric
The Israeli political leadership followed a strict and tough rhetorical line before the public, and called for a strong strike, and member of the war cabinet, Benny Gantz, threatened that if a diplomatic solution was not reached, Israel would resort to the military option.
Gallant recently said that Israel could take military action against Hezbollah regardless of reaching a ceasefire with Hamas.
The truth – as the newspaper says – is that the Israelis had this idea long before the current war, when an opinion article in the country’s most widely circulated daily newspaper, the right-wing “Israel Today”, called for an attack on Lebanon on October 6, 2022, that is, a full year before… Hamas attack.
If Hezbollah were to turn to infrastructure first – as the newspaper says – can you imagine how Tel Aviv would function without electricity, schools, hospitals and supermarkets?
The newspaper was surprised at how Israel convinced itself of the necessity of opening another front with Hezbollah, which possesses weapons many times more destructive than what Hamas possesses, and wondered: Has anyone thought about the costs?
If Hezbollah were to turn to infrastructure first – as the newspaper says – can you imagine how Tel Aviv would function without electricity, schools, hospitals and supermarkets?
Indeed, the Israeli government can imagine this, as a document was circulated on social media bearing the logo of the Ministry of Justice, and it includes emergency instructions in the event of an all-out war in the north and attacks on power plants, warning of power outages, and advising the storage of water and cell phone batteries. .
Who will be with Israel?
But the clear danger of war in the north is the outbreak of a regional war, and Aziz Al-Ghasyan, a Saudi foreign policy researcher, explained that Iran is more committed to Hezbollah than Hamas.
“Iran must emerge, and it must protect Hezbollah more,” Al-Ghasyan said, while US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to avoid a regional war, and its “top priority will be to stop it quickly,” as Frederick Hof, a resident diplomat at the College of Defense, wrote to me. cold.
Hof explained that the administration is concerned that “Hezbollah will target civilians, and Israeli officials have already promised to hold Lebanon responsible for the party’s actions.”
This situation would lead to “heavy civilian casualties and severe damage to property and infrastructure on both sides of the Blue Line,” in addition to exposing American citizens to danger, and thus the administration is already working to stop the escalation.
The newspaper wondered: Who specifically would be on Israel’s side in such a fire if it was the one who initiated it? Who will stand by her side in the future?
Al-Ghasyan believes that Saudi Arabia may conclude that Israel cannot be trusted to avoid regional escalation, and that it represents a security burden, not just a potential strategic asset.
The newspaper concluded that the devastating attacks on civilian infrastructure, the extension of the regional war, the absence of American support for it, and the tense or declining relations with the countries with which Israel hopes to normalize relations are the costs that Israeli political leaders and analysts alike ignore.
2024-02-29 10:12:02
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