The head of the Israel Defense Forces ‘IDF’ has said the military is acting to prepare for a possible ground operation in Lebanon.
Speaking to troops on the northern border, Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi said this week’s Israeli airstrikes across Lebanon were designed to “prepare the ground for the possibility of your entry, but also to continue striking Hezbollah.”
“We are not stopping. We will keep attacking and harming them everywhere,” Halevi said. “To do this, we are preparing for the course of the maneuver, and the sense is that your military boots, your maneuver boots, will enter enemy territory.”
The comments came after Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets into Israel, as well as a missile aimed at Tel Aviv.
Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have killed more than 600 people and displaced tens of thousands since Monday.
Moreover, France and the US are working to bring about an urgent temporary cease-fire in Lebanon, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Wednesday after Presidents Joe Biden and Emmanuel Macron held talks.
“A diplomatic solution is indeed possible. In recent days, we’ve worked with our American partners on a temporary ceasefire platform of 21 days to allow for negotiations,” Barrot told a 15-member UN Security Council session.
“We are counting on both parties to accept it without delay, to protect civilian populations and allow diplomatic negotiations to begin,” he said.
The push comes amid fears that Israel’s strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon may drag the group’s backer, Iran, into an all-out regional war which would likely in turn drag in the US and potentially other countries.
Israel’s envoy to the UN, Danny Danon, said that Israel was open to a diplomatic solution in Lebanon, but would use “all means” to achieve its goals against Hezbollah.
“We are grateful for all those who are making a sincere effort with diplomacy to avoid escalation, to avoid a full war,” Danon said, but added that if talks failed: “We will use all means at our disposal, under international law, to achieve our aims.”
Source: DW News and other media outlets
