Link to article: https://apnews.com/article/israel-hezbollah-war-hamas-lebanon-news-12-03-2024-234b978b7b6cf2a9e6063a75b14c70ec
On Tuesday December 3rd, Israeli forces carried out several new drone and artillery strikes in Lebanon, one of which involved a deadly strike that the Health Ministry and state media said killed a shepherd. This has increased the difficulty in reaching a ceasefire to end the over a year long battle with Hezbollah. The Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu vowed to keep striking perceived Hezbollah violations of the truce with an iron fist. However, his defense minister warned that if the ceasefire collapses, Israel will not only target Hezbollah but the Lebanese state as well. Israel also carried out an airstrike in Syria, claiming it killed a senior member of Hezbollah responsible for coordinating with Syria’s army on rearming and resupplying the Lebanese militant group. Since the two-month ceasefire in Lebanon began last Wednesday, the U.S.- and French-brokered deal has been rattled by near daily Israeli attacks, however Israel has been vague about the Hezbollah violations that prompted them. On Monday, Hezbollah fired two projectiles toward an Israeli-held disputed border zone, its first launch since the ceasefire began, saying it was a warning in response to Israel’s strikes. Israel responded with their heaviest attack of the past week, killing 10 people. According to the National News Agency, on Tuesday, drone strikes hit four places in southern Lebanon, one of them killing the shepherd in the town of Shebaa, the state-run. The Health Ministry confirmed the death. When asked about the strike, the Israeli military said its aircraft struck a Hezbollah militant who posed a threat to troops. Shebaa is located within a region of border villages where the Israeli military has warned Lebanese civilians not to return, with Israeli troops still present. Under the terms of the ceasefire, Hezbollah is supposed to withdraw its fighters, weapons and infrastructure from a broad swath of the south by the end of the initial 60-day phase, pulling them north of the Litani River. Israeli troops are also to pull back to their side of the border. The ceasefire ended 14 months of war between Israel and Hezbollah, which ended by an intensified Israeli bombardment since late September and ground invasion that killed hundreds of Hezbollah members and civilians in Lebanon and sent more than 1.4 million fleeing their homes. Throughout that fighting, Israel largely refrained from striking critical infrastructure or the Lebanese armed forces, who kept to the sidelines. According to some locals, the Israelis are attempting to break the ceasefire whenever they can. However, Israel has said its aim is to push Hezbollah away from the border to allow the return home of tens of thousands of Israelis forced to evacuate from the north since Hezbollah began firing into Israel in solidarity with Hamas in Gaza.
I know that Israel is attempting to end this war with Hezbollah as soon as possible, but Lebanon has seen enough damage already. I read somewhere that it could take up to 350 years for Gaza to rebuild if it remains under a blockade. I also remember that a few weeks ago Israel was airstriking Beirut. I understand that Hezbollah has been known to use civilians and residential areas and hospitals for their base of operations and as body shields, however I do not think that Israel should risk the collateral damage of targeting residential areas. I understand that Israel wants an end to the war with Hezbollah and that Hezbollah is an Iran backed Lebanese militia group, but I do not think that it is ok for Israel to continue to violate the ceasefire. I was unaware until I read the article that there was an active ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel because of the amount of attacks that have occurred between the two nations recently. I also do not feel that the ceasefire will ever truly work if Israel keeps going after Hezbollah in Lebanon. I think that the best thing to do is to let the Lebanese military handle Hezbollah within Lebanon. According to the article, under the ceasefire, the Lebanese army and UNIFIL are to increase their presence in south Lebanon to ensure Hezbollah does not return. While I understand that Israel probably believes that they can remove Hezbollah faster, however then both sides will continue to fight and the ceasefire with Lebanon will not work.
This just makes me think of the security dilemma. I understand that Israel is being aggressive towards other states, however then in turn that will make these states less secure (Lebanon) and because of that then those states will retaliate in order to strengthen their own national security. I feel like Israel is being overly aggressive and is practicing offensive realism, however being located in the Middle East this strategy can be dangerous because of the instability of some of the Middle Eastern countries. I think that Israel should take a different approach rather than militaristic power because this will continue to create tension with Lebanon and the terrorist groups located within. I think that Israel has proven that they are the stronger nation and that they can keep the fighting going, but I do not think that it is worth the resources, the damage, and the time.