Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said this Tuesday (5) that continued tension with the Hezbollah supported by Will on the border with the Lebanon is bringing the situation closer to a military escalation.
Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging fire since the Palestinian group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, fueling concern about the danger of an all-out war between the heavily armed adversaries.
“We are committed to the diplomatic process, however, Hezbollah's aggression is bringing us closer to a critical point in decision-making regarding our military activities in Lebanon,” Gallant said, after meeting with US envoy Amos Hochstein, who is seeking a mediated end to this conflict.
Hezbollah has indicated it will cease fire if Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip stops, describing its campaign as “aimed at supporting Palestinians under fire in Gaza.”
But, on a visit to Beirut on Monday (4), Hochstein warned that a truce in Gaza would not necessarily bring an automatic end to hostilities on Lebanon's southern border.
He said a temporary ceasefire was not enough and a limited war could not be contained.
Mediators are trying to reach a 40-day ceasefire in the Gaza war in time for Ramadan, which begins early next week.
Much of the violence between Israel and Hezbollah has occurred close to the border, with notable exceptions including a February 26 Israeli airstrike in the Bekaa Valley and a January 2 Israeli drone strike in Beirut that killed an important leader of Hamas.
In Monday's violence, an Israeli strike killed three emergency workers from a Hezbollah-affiliated group, the Lebanese government said, and a civilian was killed in northern Israel by an attack from Lebanon.
Israeli attacks since October have killed more than 200 Hezbollah fighters and about 50 civilians in Lebanon, while Lebanese attacks on Israel have killed a dozen Israeli soldiers and six civilians. Tens of thousands of Israelis and Lebanese have fled villages on both sides of the border.
Source: CNN Brasil
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