Fears of Israeli invasion of Lebanon after assassination of Hezbollah’s Nasrallah
Speaking for the first time since the assassination of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there are now two war goals for the north.
The first is to return those evacuated Israelis back to those towns and settlements. The second is to restore the balance of power on the northern border.
Israeli officials were saying all day on Saturday that they are determined to destroy Hezbollah and destroy all of its military capabilities. The Israeli army chief of staff, along with Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, have approved new plans for offensive strategies in the north.
This comes amid fears of a looming ground invasion into southern Lebanon – something that is causing a lot of fear on both sides of the border.
Meanwhile, thousands of Israelis still took to the streets in several parts of the country, including Tel Aviv and West Jerusalem, where high-level meetings were taking place.
At Israel’s Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, protesters demonstrating outside of it are saying that Benjamin Netanyahu needs to agree to a ceasefire deal. Israelis are saying that the time for a ceasefire deal is now because there are still 100 captives remaining in Gaza.
Nonetheless, Israel says their fight against Hezbollah and the escalation of the conflict is only going to continue.
Historic opportunity to finish Hezbollah, says former Israel PM
Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said there was now a “huge opportunity” for Israel to “remove this whole threat” of Hezbollah, and for the Middle East to reject it and other militant Iranian proxies.
“Hezbollah right now is temporarily badly harmed and injured, but if we let go of them now, they’ll just recover and hit us back in two or three or five years, that’s something none of us want to do,” Bennett said, adding that this could be achieved with or without a ground incursion by Israel into Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based.
The former prime minister called on the people of Lebanon to “rise up” and “take back” their country.
“Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran, hijacked your nation 30 years ago, and it’s made everyone’s life miserable. Now is your time to kick them out – don’t let them come back,” he said.
He also framed the current moment, in which Israel says it has weakened Hezbollah, as well as Hamas in Gaza, as an opportunity for Iranian proxies across the region to be “thrown away.”
“The United States and Israel and the leading Western countries have to set an objective of toppling the Iranian regime in the near future,” he said, adding this could be achieved by sanctions, cyber activities, “overt and covert operations” and “empowering the Iranian people” to fight the regime.
“For the first time in decades, this is actually possible. It’s achievable but we have to be determined about it,” he said, referring to eliminating Iranian proxies. “It’s time for the whole region to kick out the Iranian regime. It’s not going to happen tomorrow, but it can happen over the next few years,” he said.
Some context: The Israel Defense Forces have said the military is preparing for the possibility of a ground incursion into Lebanon, but it was only one option being considered as Israeli forces have ramped up strikes on Hezbollah targets in the country. Israel’s stated goal is to return more than 60,000 residents to their homes in northern Israel near the border with Lebanon.
Existing User Log In
New User Registration
Register for a free account to gain full access to the VGChartz Network and join our thriving community.
