By World Israel News Staff
The Israeli army warned that a full-scale war with Hezbollah appears imminent, as the Lebanese terror group has escalated its attacks against Israel over the past week.
“Hezbollah’s increasing aggression is bringing us to the brink of what could be a wider escalation, one that could have devastating consequences for Lebanon and the entire region,” IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said, speaking in English for a message that was intended for an international audience.
Hagari said that since the October 7th terror onslaught, Hezbollah has launched some “5,000 rockets, anti-tank missiles, and explosive UAVs from Lebanon at Israeli families, homes, and communities.”
Last week, following an Israeli airstrike that killed a prominent Hezbollah regional commander, the Shi’ite terror group fired its largest salvos at Israel since the beginning of the war.
In one day, Hezbollah fired more than 200 missiles, rockets, and drones into Israeli territory, triggering alarms across the region and sparking massive fires.
Hezbollah has claimed that it is acting in solidarity with Hamas, and that it will continue attacking Israel until troops are withdrawn from the Gaza Strip.
Hagari said that Hezbollah is“ jeopardizing the future of Lebanon so that it can be a shield for Hamas. A shield for the Hamas terrorists who murdered the elderly, raped women, burned children, and kidnapped Jews, Muslims, and Christians, during their massacre on October 7th.”
International actors, including the Biden administration and French government, are pushing a diplomatic solution which would see Hezbollah retreat north of the Litani River and allow the some 80,000 residents of northern Israel displaced by the Hezbollah attacks to return home.
But regardless of whether a viable diplomatic solution is found, “one way or another we will ensure the safe and secure return of Israelis to their homes in northern Israel,” Hagari said.
“That is not up for negotiation.”
Notably, Israel and Hezbollah entered into a ceasefire agreement following the Second Lebanon War in 2006.
It’s unclear why, after unilaterally breaking that ceasefire and engaging in unprovoked aggression targeting Israel following October 7th, why Hezbollah would now agree to end the fighting once again.
Some displaced residents of northern Israel have told Hebrew-language media outlets that they will not return to their homes until Hezbollah’s military capabilities are destroyed, as they do not trust the terror group to abide by its word should a ceasefire be reached.
Hagari appeared to acknowledge these concerns in his speech.
“When we say that we will not let October 7th happen again on any one of our borders, we mean it,” he said.
