As Israeli forces carried out new attacks in southern Lebanon this Wednesday (17). According to the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA), Israeli planes attacked the area of Nabatieh al-Fawqa and the surroundings of the neighboring city of Kfar Tebnit. Israel has not yet commented, but it has already declared that its targets are the radical Shiite militia Hezbollah, supported by Iran.
On Tuesday (16), US President Donald Trump said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu needed to “be more responsible towards Lebanon”.
The text of the agreement between the US and Iran to end the war has not yet been released, but Pakistan, the deal’s mediator, says Lebanon is included. In recent days, despite the agreement signed between the United States and Iran to end military escalation in the region.
According to him, Israel did not participate in the negotiations led by American President Donald Trump and will continue to make decisions based on its own security interests.
At a press conference on Monday (15), Netanyahu said that Iran pressed for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanese territory to be included in the agreement, but that the demand was not accepted. “Iran wanted us to withdraw from there, but that didn’t happen. Do you know why it didn’t happen? Because I remained very, very firm,” he said.
The prime minister reiterated that his government’s main concern continues to be prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons. “With or without a deal, we will continue to do whatever is necessary to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. As long as I am prime minister of Israel, this will not happen,” he declared.
Israel maintains a security zone in southern Lebanon since the offensive launched against Hezbollah following the Iranian-backed group’s attacks on northern Israeli territory during the first days of the war. Since the beginning of negotiations, Tehran has argued that the end of the Israeli military presence in the region is a condition for any understanding with Washington.
Despite the pressure, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz also stated that troops will remain in Lebanon. The position highlights one of the points of divergence between Netanyahu’s government and the strategy adopted by Trump to end the conflict with Iran.
During the negotiations, the American president even expressed irritation with Israeli bombings in Beirut, warning that new offensives could compromise the talks. Still, it decided to move forward with the agreement without linking its implementation to the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanese territory.
