Netanyahu’s Two-Front War: Step by Step towards the Occupation of Lebanon

Introduction

In a statement during a visit to the northern settlement of Kiryat Shmona on 5 June 2024, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that they were prepared for “extremely powerful action against Lebanon”. In September 2024 Israeli forces carried out a large-scale cyber attack against Lebanon for the first time. The detonation of pagers and walkie-talkies killed 37 people and injured approximately 3,500. Within days of the attack, Israel launched intensive air strikes on Beirut and the Beqaa, above all on South Lebanon. In response to the Israeli attacks, Hezbollah targeted Israel with ballistic and medium-range missiles for the first time. As Israel’s air strikes on Lebanon continued, the Israeli Chief of the General Staff, Herzi Halevi, referring to the warplanes attacking Lebanon, said in a statement on 25 September: “You hear the jets overhead; we have been striking all day. This is both to prepare the ground for the possibility of your entry [into Lebanon] and to continue to strike Hezbollah.” Drawing attention to the fact that Hezbollah had for the first time directly targeted the Mossad headquarters in Israel’s capital, Tel Aviv, with a long-range missile, Halevi said: “Hezbollah expanded its range today. Later today it will receive a very strong response. We will continue, we are not stopping, and we will keep striking everywhere.” Meanwhile, 12 countries, including EU countries and the United States, called for a temporary ceasefire in Lebanon in view of the escalating conflict and tension between Israel and Hezbollah. In a joint statement, the parties were asked to accept a 21-day ceasefire that would allow for diplomatic solutions. However, Israel’s pro-war Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced in a statement on 27 September that he rejected the proposal for a 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz also stressed in a statement on social media that there would be no ceasefire with Hezbollah. Indeed, Netanyahu too announced that he opposed a ceasefire and that they would continue their attacks with all their might. As the statements by members of Israel’s far-right government make clear, Tel Aviv is closing its doors to ceasefire proposals on the Northern Front of the Gaza War and is dragging the region into a war whose outcome and duration are uncertain and which will cause the deaths of millions of civilians.