Violence has spiked in Lebanon’s southern border as US officials say they will support a possible Israeli invasion
News Desk - The Cradle
“We’re urgently seeking a diplomatic agreement that restores lasting calm to Israel’s northern border and enables civilians to return safely to their homes on both sides of the Israel–Lebanon border,” Austin said to reporters.
The US official pinned the blame on the Lebanese resistance group Hezbollah’s “provocations” but added that a full-scale war would be destructive for both parties.
“Hezbollah’s provocations threaten to drag the Israeli and Lebanese people into a war that they do not want, and such a war would be a catastrophe for Lebanon and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians,” Austin told Gallant. “Another war between Israel and Hezbollah could easily become a regional war with terrible consequences for the Middle East, and so diplomacy is by far the best way to prevent more escalation.”
Gallant also insisted on the threat of nuclear war with Iran, telling Austin that “time is running out.”
“The greatest threat to the future of the world and the future of our region is Iran,” Gallant told Austin. “Now is the time to realize the commitment of the American administrations over the years to promise to prevent Iran from possessing nuclear weapons.”
The Israeli defense minister told Austin that Israel is “at a crossroads that will impact” the entirety of West Asia, further adding that the US and Israel have to work together to retrieve the 120 captives from Gaza “without exception.”
Austin, replying to Gallant’s comments, said that the US “will always support Israel’s right to defend itself, and the United States will always ensure that Israel has what it needs to defend itself.”
The US official highlighted Washington’s commitment to their warring ally by noting a third squadron of F-35 fighter jets set to make its way to Israel. “We stand together to ensure that Iran … can never achieve a nuclear weapon,” Austin added.
These comments follow a meeting on Monday between Gallant and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in which the latter urged Israel to reconsider launching an all-out war on Lebanon.
However, Israeli military officials and experts continue to raise doubts about the army’s capabilities in a scenario against Hezbollah. General Yitzhak Brik has previously said that “waging war on Hezbollah is a step tantamount to mass suicide,” adding that the Israeli “army is small in size, and it is unable to win even in one front, and certainly not in six fronts at the same time.”
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