In Lebanon, the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah bears little resemblance to its dictionary definition. It has not even reached a week of age and has already accumulated a dozen deaths in Lebanon and fifty violations by Israel (according to France, one of its guarantors), with daily bombings to the north and south of the Litani River and the drones flying over the capital, Beirut, with as much intensity as before. The temperature has risen even more this Monday, following the first attack by Hezbollah since the signing of the truce last Tuesday. It has launched two mortar projectiles as an “initial warning” after six days of “continuous violations of Lebanese airspace”, prohibited by the UN resolution that supports the ceasefire (1701). The projectiles caused no casualties and were calculatedly aimed at the Sheba Farms, a disputed border territory, in a carbon copy of the attack on October 8, 2023 (a day after the Hamas attack in Israel) that began an exchange of fire which Israel transformed, 11 months later, into open war. This time, however, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took minutes to promise a “strong” response and his fighter jets to launch a wave of bombings in southern Lebanon that have left nine dead, according to the Ministry’s initial assessment. of Health.
The development of the truce reflects the mood in Israel. He knows he is the winner after weakening Hezbollah like never before and has obtained a pact that basically gives him carte blanche from the United States to violate resolution 1701 on a daily basis and, at the same time, impose “with fire” – in the words of the chief of staff. , Herzi Halevi― to the Lebanese side for its strict compliance. “We are determined to continue enforcing the ceasefire and will respond to any violations by Hezbollah, minor and major,” Netanyahu said in a statement. The two mortar projectiles are a far cry from the up to 350 missiles and drones that Hezbollah fired in a single day, shortly before the signing of the ceasefire. Or of the dozens that were launched daily during the 11 months of low intensity war.
US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller has been at pains to downplay the poor health of the truce he forged with France. He has indicated that “it is maintained” in general and that they will launch, together with Paris, the monitoring mechanism to determine if these are violations of the terms and “guarantee that they are not repeated.”
Israel presents its bombings during the ceasefire (a dozen a day) as responses to Hezbollah’s attempts to regain its presence south of the Litani River, which the agreement prohibits. In the Government – and in a good part of the opposition – the tone is clear. From the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gideon Saar (“We will not accept a return to the situation that existed on October 6, 2023,” the eve of the Hamas attack) to the head of Finance, the ultra Bezalel Smotrich, who called for a “powerful coup ” to Hezbollah so that it understands the “serious mistake” it has made with its two mortar shells.
The Israeli military has also called on “relevant parties in Lebanon to fulfill their responsibilities and prevent Hezbollah’s hostile activities from Lebanese territory.” It is a message to the national Armed Forces, which these days are deploying thousands of men to the south of the Litani River to progressively ensure compliance with the UN resolution. The idea is that the thousands of Israeli soldiers still in the area will withdraw accordingly, until they put an end to the invasion that they began in October. They have 54 days to do this which, given how the beginnings of the truce are progressing, are still very far away. An Israeli drone injured a Lebanese soldier this Monday in a bombing near the border with Syria.
