Israel’s defence minister said that they don’t want a war. Still, they have the potential to send back Lebanon to Stone Age if necessary, as the UN’s humanitarian chief warned such conflict would be “potentially apocalyptic”. Lebanon, a sliver of land located along the Mediterranean sea, created headlines when it first held parliamentary elections in 2020. This came as a colossal explosion rocked the capital city of Beirut on August 4 2020, killing nearly 200 and injuring over 4000 people. It was also the first since the 2018 anti-government protests that came as the government revealed plans to tax gasoline, tobacco, and VoIP calls on applications such as WhatsApp.
Lebanon houses Hezbollah, a militant organization backed by Iran. Recently, Iran’s chief Hassan Nasrallah has also threatened a war with “no restrains and no rules and no ceilings” if Israel offenses move towards Lebanon. Since the start of the war, there have been multiple fire exchanges on Israel’s northern border.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, Israel defense minister Yoav Gallant warned during his visit to Washington that their military is capable of taking Lebanon back to Stone Age in any war with Hezbollah militants. But Gallant insisted that his government prefers a diplomatic solution over the Israel-Lebanon border. He also discussed with senior US officials proposing for the governance of Postwar Gaza, which includes local Palestinian, regional partners and the US.
Gallant said “We don’t war to get into a war because it’s not good for Israel. We have the ability to take Lebanon back to the Stone Age, but we don’t want to do it.”
The border region between the two countries has seen increasing exchange of fires leading to a volatile situation bringing concerns from international community. Fears of full blown war has grown after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was preparing for a much tensed operation on the border with Lebanon. The UN humanitarian chief has warned that a full scale conflict between Israel and Lebanon would be potentially apocalyptic underscoring the high stakes that are involved.