Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced Sunday evening that the members of the Security-Political Cabinet had authorized the PM and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to decide on the manner of response against the terrorist organization Hezbollah, and when to respond. Sources familiar with the matter told Kan11 News that National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir abstained from the vote.
NSC Spokesperson Adrienne Watson said on Sunday that the attack in which 12 children who were playing soccer were killed was conducted by Hezbollah: “It was their rocket, and launched from an area they control. It should be universally condemned.”
Watson added, “The United States is also working on a diplomatic solution along the Blue Line (Israel’s border with Lebanon) that will end all attacks once and for all, and allow citizens on both sides of the border to return to their homes safely.”
Good luck!
*The Smallest Coffins are the Heaviest*
Witness the cruelty of Hezbollah terrorists. These Iran proxies murdered 12 children who were playing football in Majdal Shams, Israel.
This video is from their mass Funeral.
No Hamas and Hezbollah supporter condemn this. pic.twitter.com/Qr7HsPMTql
— Sunanda Roy ? (@SaffronSunanda) July 28, 2024
The Wall Street Journal, citing Arab and European officials familiar with the matter, reported that US officials have reached out to Israel, Lebanon, and Iran to de-escalate the situation, and all sides said they don’t want the conflict to intensify, but any miscalculation could throw the region into an all-out war.
Israeli officials have been saying that there may be a few days of fighting, but it will still be only a “limited move.”
The Deputy speaker of the Lebanese parliament Elias Abu Saab, a Christian, told Al Jazeera on Sunday, “If there are civilian victims or Beirut and its suburbs are attacked, we will not consider it a limited response.”
Israel has at its disposal a wide bank of targets in Lebanon to choose from, including strategic military warehouses where precision missiles are stored, as well as assassinating more senior members of Hezbollah.
The Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International (LBCI) reported on Monday, citing diplomatic sources, that an Israeli strike on Lebanon is a done deal.
Those sources said: “Work is underway to make it limited in size and location, and to avoid large cities with dense populations and civilians, including Beirut, meaning that it will not drag Hezbollah into a major response that will be imposed on it.”
Ynet cited another senior Israeli official who estimated that although the response would be severe, it would not lead to an all-out war. However, the official noted that the Israeli attack is expected to be met with a stronger-than-usual response from Hezbollah. Israeli security officials have promised a significantly harsh response, which would exact a heavy price on Hezbollah. Still, on the other hand, an Israeli source made it clear that there is no intention of igniting a regional war.
Raviv Drucker, an extreme-leftist news anchor and investigative journalist, wrote in Haaretz Monday morning that “in the discussions that took place about the potential opening of an extensive ground maneuver in the north, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was perhaps the most extreme of the speakers. He rattled off the scariest horror scenarios of all, explained to those present that there would be long power outages and that the refineries would be attacked, and gave numbers that it is better not to repeat. Even after the killing of the children in Majdal Shams, it is difficult to see Netanyahu leading the country into such a campaign.”
Drucker also reported that Netanyahu is in discussions with his advisors over the firing of DM Gallant and replacing him with former Likud minister Gideon Sa’ar who today leads the opposition party New Hope. Despite the historic bad blood between them, Sa’ar is much closer to Netanyahu on a variety of issues, including the Haredi draft, and also “owns” Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara (his appointment). Sa’ar would boost Netanyahu’s coalition to 67 (assuming Gallant would join the opposition), significantly weakening Ben Gvir’s ability to sabotage the government with threats of quitting.
But I digress as does every news outlet regarding the anticipated Israeli retaliation. Meanwhile, Middle East, Lebanon’s national airline, is delaying its return flights from Europe to Beirut. No one knows why.
