Israeli officials said that the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office submitted the document to the White House ahead of the visit of President Joe Biden’s envoy Amos Hochstein to Beirut on Monday to discuss a diplomatic solution to the conflict.
Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a close confidant of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, sent the document to Hockstein on Thursday, US and Israeli officials said.
Israeli officials said that the document came from discussions conducted by Dermer with the Israeli Ministry of Defense and the Israeli Defense Forces about the principles that require Israel to be part of any diplomatic solution to end the war with the Lebanese faction movement.
An Israeli official said that one of the Israeli demands is to allow the Israel Defense Forces to engage in “active implementation” to ensure that Hezbollah does not rearm and rebuild its military infrastructure in the southern Lebanese areas close to the border. The official added that Israel also demands the freedom of its air force to operate in Lebanese airspace.
Axios pointed out that these two demands contradict United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, which stipulates that the Lebanese Armed Forces and the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) impose a ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese faction movement.
The Israeli official said, “We are talking about 1701 with increasing implementation.” Our main message is that if the Lebanese Army and UNIFIL do more, the IDF will do less and vice versa.”
A US official said it was highly unlikely that Lebanon and the international community would agree to these terms, which would significantly undermine Lebanon’s sovereignty.
Meanwhile, Hockstein is expected to arrive in Beirut today, Monday, and meet with caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, and other Lebanese officials, and discuss Israeli demands.
Berri told Al Arabiya on Sunday that Hockstein’s visit is “the last opportunity before the US elections to reach a solution” to the war in Lebanon.
He stressed that there is a consensus in Lebanon regarding United Nations Resolution No. 1701 and made it clear that he refuses to amend it in any way, which is what Israel is actually demanding.
According to Axios, American and Israeli officials said that Hockstein is pushing for a large-scale deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces in southern Lebanon as part of a diplomatic solution that ends the war in Lebanon.
The officials said that Hockstein wants to deploy at least 8,000 Lebanese soldiers in southern Lebanon.
The US envoy also wants to upgrade UNIFIL’s mandate so that it can assist the Lebanese army in preventing the spread of individuals or armed groups not under the control of the Lebanese government near the border with Israel.
Source: Axios
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