Israel to begin its offensive on Lebanon in second half of July, report

Photo: Black smoke billows following an Israeli airstrike in the southern Lebanese village of Khiam near the Israeli border on June 21, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters.Rabih Daher—AFP/Getty Images

Israel will begin its offensive on Lebanon in the second half of July unless Hezbollah holds its fire, the German Bild reported on Monday quoting diplomatic sources, Israel’i m’s Ynet reported on Tuesday

But According to Bild , Hezbollah does not intend to stop its attacks on Israel until the war in Gaza ends.

Hezbollah began its attacks against Israel immediately following the Hamas October 7 attack and has launched rockets, missiles and drones at the Galilee prompting the evacuation of tens of thousands of Israelis from their homes. The IDF has attacked Hezbollah targets in South Lebanon and further inland but has not been able to prevent further attacks from the Iran-backed militant group.

Israel lost sovereignty in the north , Blinken

Israel has “lost sovereignty” in the northern part of its country due to the persistent cross-border attacks Hezbollah has launched against Israel since October 8, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday.

“People don’t feel safe to go to their homes,” he said during a public interview at the Brookings Institute in Washington. “Absent doing something about the insecurity, people won’t have the confidence to return,” he said.

He spoke as close to 60,000 Israelis from northern border communities are unable to return home and the areas remain largely deserted.

International concern remained high that the almost nine months of cross-border violence would escalate into a third Lebanon War.

Neither Israel nor Hezbollah wants a war

Blinken said that there is “momentum” leading to a larger war between Hezbollah and Israel , but no one really wants to see a larger war break out.“None of the main actors actually want a war. Israel doesn’t want a war, although they may well be prepared to engage in one, if necessary,” he said.

“I don’t believe Hezbollah actually wants a war. Lebanon certainly doesn’t want a war, because it would be the leading victim in such a war,” Blinken said.

“I don’t believe that Iran wants a war in part because it wants to make sure that Hezbollah is not destroyed, and that it can hold on to Hezbollah as a card if it needs it if it ever gets into a direct conflict with Israel,” Blinken added.

The best option is a diplomatic arrangement by which Hezbollah would pull back from the border area near Israel, he said.

The “United States has been deeply engaged in trying to advance this diplomacy,” he stressed.

North plans secession from the State of Israel 

On May 9, the heads of settler communities in northern Israel said that they plan to announce a secession from the State of Israel in the coming days, in protest against the Israeli government’s inaction in returning the tens of thousands of settlers who have been displaced from the Galilee by Hezbollah.

The decision came at a recent meeting of the Conflict Zone Forum and it was expected to be formally announced on 15 May, Independence Day for Israelis and Nakba Day for Palestinians. 

“It was decided to announce on Independence Day the establishment of the State of Galilee and unilateral disengagement from the State of Israel. This extreme step will be accompanied by additional actions,” according to a 9 May report by news outlet Walla but no announcement was made on May 15 according to Ya Libnan sources.

Airlines halt some night flights due to war concerns

Meanwhile, Lufthansa Airlines  on Monday halted night flights to and from Beirut until July 31 due to the situation in the Middle East, a spokesperson for the company said.

Swiss International Air Lines, a Lufthansa Group subsidiary, also said it would move its Beirut night flights to the daytime until the end of July “due to the political developments at the border between Lebanon and Israel.