UN officials in Lebanon call for ceasefire – now
The UN special coordinator for Lebanon and the head of the peacekeeping force along the border with Israel say a negotiated solution is the only way to restore stability in the region – and the time to act is now.
A statement by Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert and Lieutenant General Aroldo Lazaro from UNIFIL comes as Israeli troops probe the border of southern Lebanon in its fight with Hezbollah.
“Too many lives have been lost, uprooted, and devastated while civilians on both sides of the Blue Line are left wanting for security and stability,” the statement said, referring to the UN’s temporary demarcation.
“Today, one year later, the near-daily exchanges of fire have escalated into a relentless military campaign whose humanitarian impact is nothing short of catastrophic.”
UN peacekeepers near the southern Lebanese border village of Meiss el-Jabal
Israel wants disarmament of Hezbollah – not a truce
There does not seem to be any room for diplomacy in the Hezbollah-Israel conflict for the time being.
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati expressed a lot of frustration saying since the US-French ceasefire proposal was put on the table, none of the countries that supported it had tried to revive the deal.
This proposal called for a 21-day truce to allow for broader negotiations. Lebanon and Hezbollah accepted the proposal to a certain extent, while Israel rejected it outright. So, the feeling here is Israel wants much more than what is being offered.
Lebanese officials allied with Hezbollah say what is offered to Israel is a ceasefire and the implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which calls for strengthened Lebanese army presence along the border with Hezbollah pulling back.
However, Israel seems to want much more – they want to disarm Hezbollah. Officials close to Hezbollah say this is out of the question. There is the fear here that Hezbollah lost deterrence and the only way it can have leverage to enter into negotiations is to shift the balance of power.
And they are hoping to do that in possible ground fighting.
Disarming through military pressure never works. Only a truce and negotiations can lead to resistance groups to lay their arms down.
Military pressure leads to this, bigger arseholes take over.
Hezbollah deputy praises Nasrallah for putting ‘fear in the hearts of the Zionists’
Naim Qassem – Hezbollah’s deputy leader, speaking on Lebanese television – says Israel and Western nations are trying to “put fear” into the armed group after the assassination of leader Hassan Nasrallah, but it’s not working.
He praised Nasrallah for putting “fear in the hearts of the Zionists and fighting the criminals of the occupation”. Qassem said the people of Lebanon and the wider region support the “axis of resistance” against Israel.
He also praised the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel a year ago, saying it was “the first step for change” towards freedom for the Palestinians. Qassem denounced Israel for “killing women, killing children, killing elderly” in Gaza in response.
Hezbollah’s deputy leader Naim Qassem says the group’s ability to resist Israel’s military is intact after a series of attacks and assassinations by Israel.
“Our military capabilities are fine. What our enemies say about our fighting capabilities is an illusion. They are lying,” said Qassem in a live televised speech.
“Our fighters on the front line are solid. What happened over the last 10 days is the pain of the Israelis is increasing. We are telling them, more and more Israelis will be displaced from the settlements. The Israeli plan is to kill Lebanese civilians and empty villages to cause chaos.
“But I tell them, your efforts are a failure.”
