Hezbollah says Israel 'not in a position' to impose Lebanon border 'options'

AFP , Sunday 31 Dec 2023

The deputy leader of Lebanon's Hezbollah said Sunday that Israel was "not in a position" to impose its preferences over the resistance group's presence in the border area while its war in Gaza rages.

This picture taken on December 31, 2023 from southern Lebanon shows smoke billowing across the border in northern Israel in the vicinity of a military facility in Metula after the Lebanese movement Hezbollah launched a barrage of rockets. AFP

The Israel-Lebanon border has been rocked by escalating exchanges of fire, mainly between the Israeli army and Hezbollah, since Israel's war on the Gaza Strip broke out on October 7, raising fears of a broader conflict.

The occupation army has evacuated thousands of civilians from the border area, and Israel has been pushing for Hezbollah to withdraw north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometres (20 miles) north of the frontier.

Hezbollah number two Naim Qassem said Israel was putting forward proposals and "trying to show that it has options" to help return displaced Israeli residents and push Hezbollah from the border area.

"Israel is not in a position to impose its options," Qassem said in a speech, warning that Israel "first must stop the Gaza war in order for the war in Lebanon to stop".

"The persistent bombing of civilians in Lebanon means the response will be stronger and proportionate to the Israeli aggression," Qassem added.

Since the cross-border hostilities began, more than 160 people have been killed on the Lebanese side, most of them Hezbollah combatants but including more than 20 civilians, three of them journalists, according to an AFP tally.

On the Israeli side, at least five civilians and nine soldiers have been killed, according to the army.

Hezbollah has claimed repeated attacks on Israeli troops and positions, including on Sunday, in support of Palestinians, while Israel has been striking south Lebanon.

The Israeli army said it carried out several airstrikes on Sunday targeting Hezbollah sites in the Ramyeh area of south Lebanon.

Hezbollah has not had a visible military presence on Lebanon's southern border since the end of a 2006 war with Israel, but has maintained large influence in the country's south, to prevent any Israeli incursion into Lebanese territory.

*This story was edited by Ahram Online