2023-12-14 10:53:39
“Newspaper reported”Financial TimesIn a report published on Thursday, the United States is leading efforts to establish a buffer zone between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
The United States, the United Kingdom, and France are examining ways to persuade Hezbollah to withdraw from the Lebanese-Israeli border in a diplomatic effort to prevent the outbreak of a comprehensive conflict with Israel.
Under this initiative, Western officials are holding talks with Lebanon and Israel in an attempt to get the two countries to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which requires the Iran-backed armed group to withdraw its fighters from the border area.
Among the items under discussion is giving the Lebanese army a greater role in an attempt to establish a buffer zone on the border.
A Western diplomat said that reaching this solution “is very difficult. The fighting between Israel and Hezbollah must be stopped first, and Hezbollah must be made to comply (with withdrawal).”
The Lebanese border witnesses a daily exchange of fire between the two sides, and more than 100 Hezbollah fighters have been killed in Israeli strikes since October 7, in addition to civilians and journalists, while soldiers and civilians have been killed and wounded in Israel as well.
These clashes raise fears of the outbreak of a broader regional conflict, and prompted Israel to evacuate tens of thousands of people from the border areas bordering Lebanon.
As a result, following the attack by Hamas, Israel warned that it might no longer accept the presence of Hezbollah forces on its northern border. It threatened military action if the 2006 UN resolution was not implemented.
To prevent escalation, American, British and French officials held talks with Israel and Lebanon regarding ways to implement Resolution 1701, including strengthening the presence and resources of the Lebanese army in southern Lebanon, people familiar with the talks told the newspaper.
The newspaper says, “The hope lies in reaching an eventual agreement and that Hezbollah – the dominant political and military force in Lebanon – agrees to withdraw its forces from the border.”
Ideas being discussed include strengthening UNIFIL, the United Nations force stationed in southern Lebanon, and attempting to demarcate the “Blue Line,” which represents the actual border between Israel and Lebanon in the absence of officially agreed upon borders.
People briefed on the discussions cautioned that they are at an early stage and that there are significant hurdles to overcome. Some officials said the talks were coordinated, and others said the United States, the United Kingdom and France were holding separate discussions with the two parties.
“Pushing Hezbollah to the north of the Litani.” Washington comments on the statements of an Israeli minister
US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller confirmed on Wednesday that the Israeli government and its people face a “very real security problem,” noting the importance of refraining from expanding the conflict. His statements came in response to comments by an Israeli minister in which he stressed that residents of the northern regions will not return to their villages “before “Pushing Hezbollah to the north of the Litani River.”
Diplomatic solution
On December 6, US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller confirmed that the Israeli government and its people face a “very real security problem,” noting the importance of refraining from expanding the conflict. His statements came in response to the comments of an Israeli minister in which he stressed that the residents of the northern regions will not return to their homes. Their villages “before Hezbollah was pushed north of the Litani River.”
Israeli media reported that the Israeli Defense Minister, Yoav Galant, during his meeting with the heads of local councils located in northern Israel and adjacent to the border with Lebanon, said that the residents of these areas that were evacuated following Hezbollah began its attacks on Israel to support Hamas in Gaza following October 7th will not return to their villages. Before pushing Hezbollah north of the Litani River.
Israeli media reported that Gallant explained, “The best option for Israel is to reach a diplomatic arrangement, but if it does not succeed, Israel will use all means at its disposal to push Hezbollah through military measures.”
Miller said in response to a question from Al Hurra regarding Gallant’s statements: “One of the things we made clear from the beginning is that we do not want to see this conflict expand, and this includes expansion into northern Israel. We do not want to see increased military activity between Israel and Hezbollah in northern Israel.” .
He stressed, “We want to see a diplomatic solution, as we said, and we will oppose any expansion of the conflict and urge Israel not to expand the conflict significantly.”
Regarding the United States’ concept of a diplomatic solution, Miller said: “We will continue to follow diplomacy, which… has been fairly consistent. You have seen Secretary (Anthony) Blinken focusing on this matter in his travels around the region and trying to prevent the conflict from expanding, as I said in northern Israel.” And in the West Bank by involving other countries. I do not want to go into all the details, but this will remain the focus of attention.”
Regarding the possibility of making changes to the provisions of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which stopped the war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006, Miller said: “I do not have any new announcements regarding new Security Council resolutions or amendments.”
The border region in southern Lebanon has witnessed a worsening military escalation between Israel and Hezbollah since the Hamas movement launched, on October 7, an unprecedented attack on military sites and residential areas adjacent to the Gaza Strip, during which 1,200 people were killed, most of them civilians, while Israel responded with intense bombing and ground operations. In the besieged sector, it left tens of thousands dead and wounded, most of them civilians.
Hezbollah mainly carries out daily operations once morest Israeli military targets near the border, placing this within the framework of supporting the Gaza Strip and “in support of its resistance.” Israel responds by bombing border areas, targeting what it describes as the movements of Hezbollah militants and its infrastructure near the border.
Since the start of the escalation, several local and international bodies, most notably Washington, have called for the necessity of implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which strengthened the deployment of UNIFIL in southern Lebanon following the end of the July 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel.
According to this decision, the Lebanese army was deployed for the first time in decades on the border with Israel. The decision prohibited any armed deployment in the border area outside the army and UNIFIL forces.
Hezbollah does not have any visible military presence in the Lebanese border region, but it has built hideouts and tunnels through which its members move, some of which cross the border. At the end of 2018, Israel announced the destruction of tunnels it accused the party of digging across the border.
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