No big war between Hezbollah and Israel, says Western diplomat
There will be no major war between Hezbollah and Israel despite the latest escalation, a Western diplomat has said privately to his interlocutors.
“No matter what Israel says and states, this is only for consumption and part of the (current) war itself, seeing as it cannot fight two major wars in Gaza and Lebanon, not to mention its questionable intent in this regard. Moreover, tens of thousands of Israel’s north residents are pressing to return and they represent an economic burden for their government,” the diplomat added, in remarks published Wednesday in al-Liwaa newspaper.
“More importantly, Hezbollah has dealt painful blows to Israel amid frequent shortcomings from Israel’s Iron Dome (anti-missile) defense system … and Israel knows that Hezbollah’s armament and manpower capabilities have grown so much in comparison to how they were in 2006,” the diplomat said, noting that Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant “do not want a northern front, without that meaning that they do not want deep strikes whenever there is a chance to do so, in order to send deterring messages to Hezbollah,” the diplomat reportedly said.
The diplomat also reassured that the fighting will stop on Lebanon’s front once the war in Gaza ends due to “U.S. pressure” in this regard.
The escalating cross-border exchanges since October 8, the day after the Israel-Hamas war erupted, have stoked fears of all-out war on Israel's northern border with Lebanon.
The exchanges have killed at least 284 people on the Lebanese side, most of them Hezbollah fighters but also including 44 civilians. At least 24 fighters from Palestinian groups including 10 from Hamas are also among the dead.
On the Israeli side, 10 soldiers and six civilians have been killed according to the Israeli army.
The fighting has also displaced tens of thousands of residents on both sides of the border and Israel has repeatedly warned that it might use bigger force against Hezbollah to secure its residents' return.
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