The hidden goal of Israel’s war on Lebanon: Gaza’s full erasure
A Palestinian man carries body of a child killed in Israeli strikes on Bureij refugee camp, al-Awda Hospital, Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, 17 September 2024
Mohammed Mourtaja writes in Middle East Eye on 20 September 2024 :
This week, Lebanon was rocked by deadly explosions targeting the communication devices of Hezbollah members. The blasts killed at least 32 people, including two children and several healthcare workers, while wounding thousands more.
Israel has not denied responsibility for this mass cyberattack, while several officials close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have hinted that Israel was behind it.
It marks a new escalation in what was previously a slow-burning war of attrition between Hezbollah and Israel. While the magnitude of the attack is massive and unprecedented, it should not have come as a surprise.
For weeks, Israeli officials have signalled the need for military intervention to stop Hezbollah rockets and to secure the return of more than 60,000 displaced Israelis to their homes in the north. One day before the attacks, Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant told American officials that “time is running out” to stop the escalation with Hezbollah from turning into a full-blown war.
Indeed, this attack could mark the beginning of such a war. Israel’s continued provocations will force Hezbollah to respond, making a full-scale war the only possible outcome.
On Thursday, Israel continued to escalate its aggression in what was the heaviest bombardment of southern Lebanon since the start of the war. A massive air strike on a densely populated residential neighbourhood in Beirut on Friday killed at least 14 people, including children, and senior Hezbollah commander Ibrahim Aqil.
The threat of war, however, will have implications far beyond Lebanon, as it will turn the world’s attention away from Gaza and allow Israel to complete its mass killing and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.
Darker goals
The timing of the recent provocations in Lebanon was carefully calculated, as the current US administration is limited in its ability to influence Israel to stop a full-scale war – a dream for many Israeli officials.