Netanyahu warns – Lebanon: ceasefire takes effect

Until shortly before the US-French-brokered ceasefire took effect, Israel had carried out particularly massive attacks on the capital Beirut and its southern suburbs. Heavy explosions were heard throughout the capital, as one reporter described that night. At 4 a.m. the explosions and thunder of the fighter planes stopped. Hezbollah had also previously continued firing rockets into northern Israel, where sirens sounded again.

The Israeli army also bombed a Lebanese border crossing with neighboring Syria. This was heard from Lebanese security circles. Two Syrian government soldiers were killed, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The Israeli military did not comment on the attacks. According to the Observatory’s assessment, the purpose of the attacks is to cut off supply routes for the Lebanese Hezbollah militia, which, according to experts, obtains its weapons from Iran via Syria, among other places. “The Israelis are trying to destroy all routes through which Hezbollah smuggles weapons out of Syria,” said Rami Abdul Rahman, head of the Observatory.

Withdrawal plan for Israeli ground forces
According to unconfirmed media reports about the deal, the Shiite militia will initially withdraw behind the Litani River, about 30 kilometers north of the de facto Israeli-Lebanese border. Israeli ground forces must then withdraw from Lebanon within 60 days. To prevent Hezbollah fighters from returning, soldiers from the Lebanese army, which is not actually involved in the war, will be stationed in the border area parallel to the Israeli withdrawal, a senior US government official said.

It was said that the US was not negotiating the ceasefire with Hezbollah, but with the Lebanese government. They must now take responsibility for what is happening in their country. The question is whether the country will be able to do this, given the weakness of the Lebanese state.

Israel retains “complete freedom of military action”
Lebanon’s acting Prime Minister Najib Mikati called for immediate implementation of the agreement. According to media reports, the ceasefire will be monitored by a group of states led by the US, together with France, Lebanon, Israel and the UN peacekeeping force UNIFIL, which has been stationed in Lebanon for years.

The oversight committee must also ensure that the militia does not rearm itself. Israel claims the right to intervene militarily in Lebanon at any time if Hezbollah breaks the agreement and the Lebanese army and the international group of states fail to take action. “With the full consent of the United States, we maintain complete freedom of military action,” Netanyahu said. “If Hezbollah violates the agreement and tries to arm itself, we will attack.”

Biden: “Gaza also deserves an end to the fighting”
Originally, Hezbollah, which is allied with the radical Islamist Palestinian militia Hamas, did not want to end its attacks on Israel until a ceasefire was reached in Gaza. Apparently she now renounced the fulfillment of this condition. An end to the war with Hezbollah would leave Hamas isolated in the Gaza Strip, Netanyahu said. “We will increase the pressure on Hamas,” he announced tonight. This could pave the way for an agreement on the release of the approximately 100 hostages believed to still be in the Gaza Strip – although it is unclear how many of them are still alive.

US President Biden is also calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. “Just as the Lebanese people deserve a future of security and prosperity, the people of Gaza also deserve a future of security and prosperity. They also deserve an end to the fighting,” he said.