Hamadeh says war 'within hours': How true is that?

MP Marwan Hamadeh sparked panic on Wednesday by saying that an Israel-Hezbollah war would erupt within days or even “hours,” citing diplomats informed on the negotiations in the region.

A few hours later, Hamadeh appeared to downplay his own remarks, telling al-Jadeed television that his statement was “blown out of proportion” and that he based his analysis on “alarming developments on the ground that took place over the past 48 hours.”

Calling his remarks a “journalistic analysis,” Hamadeh noted that he warned of Israel’s intentions after “U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken left for Washington without setting a date for the resumption of negotiations” between Israel and Hamas.

And in remarks to MTV, Hamadeh clarified that his “predictions” were based on “battlefield developments, diplomatic deliberations and the uncertainty over the resumption of the Doha talks,” noting that “the issue of war is not certain.”

Hamadeh had told MTV earlier in the day that he had “information, from officials directly involved in the negotiations, that war will break out within a few days or hours.”

Media reports meanwhile said that a “European ambassador” had told Lebanese politicians and journalists on Tuesday that a “major war” would erupt in Lebanon and the region.

“But the same ambassador had repeated the same remarks months ago several times,” the reports said.

As for the reasons behind the scare “campaign,” the reports blamed “Israel’s attempt to prevent Hezbollah from escalation or carrying out a response to the assassination of its military commander Fouad Shukur.”