US envoy Amos Hochstein says talks have failed and cannot stop Hezbollah’s war with Israel | The Jewish Press – JewishPress.com | Hana Levi Julien | 14 Sivan 5784 – Thursday June 20, 2024

US special envoy Amos Hochstein announced Wednesday that his efforts to prevent all-out war between Hezbollah, Lebanon’s Iranian proxy, and the state of Israel, had failed.

Hochstein, a top adviser to President Joe Biden, arrived in the region Monday for talks in Israel and Lebanon.

The US envoy first met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, President Isaac Herzog and other senior Israeli officials.

Hochstein then traveled to Beirut, where he met with interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Hezbollah-linked Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, before returning to Jerusalem to convey the results of his efforts.

Israel has repeatedly warned that its military forces will push the Hezbollah terrorist army back across the Litani River if diplomatic efforts fail.

Resolution 1701 and the Litani River
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 – the ceasefire agreement that ended the Second Lebanon War in 2006 between Israel and Hezbollah – called for “a complete cessation of hostilities based, in particular , on the immediate cessation by Hezbollah of all attacks and the immediate cessation by Israel. of all offensive military operations.

The resolution also called for the establishment of a demilitarized zone between the Blue Line and the Litani River (which meant that Hezbollah had to withdraw north of the Litani River); deployment of Lebanese army forces in southern Lebanon; the strengthening of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (the “blue helmets” of UNIFIL) to enforce the agreement; and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Israeli side of the Blue Line – an international line marking the border between Israel and Lebanon.

Hezbollah has never respected the directives of the agreement, nor has the Lebanese army, responsible for enforcing it with UNIFIL.

Upon the outbreak of war against Israel launched on October 7 by Hamas terrorists from Gaza, Hezbollah launched its own attacks the next day, forcing the evacuation of some 80,000 Israelis from their homes in the north.

These evacuees are still internal refugees, and no end to the conflict is in sight.

IDF brass approves operational plans for Lebanon
Meanwhile, daily explosive rocket, missile and drone attacks on communities and military bases in northern Israel have intensified in frequency and intensity, prompting Israeli leaders to warn that a decision on how to proceed is imminent.

Last Tuesday (June 18), the Commander of the Northern Command, MG Ori Gordin, and the Head of the Directorate of Operations (J3), MG Oded Basiuk, approved operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon during a joint assessment of the situation in the North. Order.

“We have been in a state of war for more than eight months,” IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Herzi Halevi said Wednesday during a tour of an air defense system on the northern border.

Israel warns of all-out war in response to Hezbollah propaganda film with drone footage of sensitive sites in Haifa

“Hezbollah released a video showcasing a capability that we knew about, and we are preparing and creating solutions to deal with these and other capabilities that, when the time comes, you will see implemented as needed,” Halevi said , referring to Haifa surveillance images and surrounds released earlier this week by the terrorist group.

“We of course have infinitely greater capabilities, of which I think the enemy knows only a few. We will face them at the right time.

“Our test is to see that today we defend, tomorrow we win, the day after tomorrow we bring the residents back to a much safer reality, and with them we also build and restore and make this beautiful region stronger than ever. it was not before the war.