Israel Plans for New Lebanese Aggression

The Jerusalem Post is quoting anonymous Israeli Military sources as saying that plans for a renewed Israeli occupation of Southern Lebanon have been formulated.

Israel has finalized preparations for a new war against its northern neighbor Lebanon with the objective of eliminating Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and re-occupying the southern-most portion of the country. Israeli military sources say the Golani Brigade of the army has recently completed a week-long military exercise in preparation for war with not only Lebanon but also regional foe Syria. Israel has threatened that it would not limit its actions to Southern Lebanon saying the whole of the country would be susceptible to targeted attacks since Hezbollah has political representation within the Lebanese government. Although the aim of the war is to topple arch-rival Hezbollah, Israeli military action could be taken against Lebanese infrastructure, private interests and even against the poorly equipped Lebanese Military, which has historically remained neutral in past conflicts. The same brigade participated in the 2006 Israeli-Lebanese war which began with a border raid by Hezbollah. The deadly ambush resulted in the deaths of several soldiers and the capture of two others to which Israel responded by pummeling the whole of Lebanon for 33 days. A United Nations cease-fire was eventually agreed upon in the form of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and the fighting was stopped. The war cost many billions of dollars of damage to Lebanese infrastructure and the lost off over a thousand civilian lives with Israel losing 165 lives, mainly military, and suffering considerable damage at home resulting from the rain of Hezbollah rocket fire. Hezbollah is believed to have re-armed with the help of Iran and Syria since the last war and may now have even stronger capabilities than before. Emboldened by its ability to keep Israel from achieving either of its stated goals of the war: the liberation of their two captive soldiers and the destruction of the group, it may prove very tough to dislodge. Israel already occupied southern Lebanon from 1982-2000 as a self-proclaimed security zone after its first full-scale invasion of Lebanon but was forced to withdraw by the Shi'a militant group, formed as a response to its presence. Some question the wisdom in such planning considering the results of the 2006 war and the prior occupation of the south coupled with the ongoing threats made against Iran. Iran and Syria have a defensive pact and are both supporters of Hezbollah's and various Palestinian groups and so Israeli motivation may be obvious although quite risky. In recent days, Israel has been signaling its intention for a full-on assault of the Occupied Gaza Strip, run by the militant Hamas group after the end of a shaky six month cease-fire. With Israeli elections coming up and instability abounding, there could prove to be some tough times ahead for the region.