At 3am Italian time (4am local time) the ceasefire came into force in Lebanon after two months of war between the Israeli army and pro-Iranian Shiite jihadists Hezbollah. Last night Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the nation announcing his intention to put the proposed ceasefire plan for Lebanon to a vote, and the National Security Cabinet subsequently voted 10 to 1 to approve the measure. The only member of the security cabinet to oppose the agreement was the Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvirwho described the decision as “a grave historic mistake.” According to the Times of Israel, several leaders of local councils in northern Israel, some of whom had a meeting with Netanyahu on Tuesday evening, also expressed clear opposition to the agreement, underlining that Hezbollah maintains considerable strength and fearing that it could now exploit opportunity to stock up on weapons and progressively restore its offensive capabilities in southern Lebanon.
The words of the Israeli prime minister
“Tonight, I will present a ceasefire plan to the government and how long it lasts will depend on what happens in Lebanon,” Netanyahu said. Then the Israeli prime minister turned to the inhabitants of northern Israel, evacuated from their homes in the last 14 months, and said: “I am totally committed to your security, to the reconstruction of your communities and to your future.” Netanyahu also said that “Israel has achieved enormous successes on seven fronts in the ongoing war and has pushed Hezbollah back by decades.” Then the prime minister continued: «With the truce we focus on Iran, renew our forces and isolate Hamas. If Hezbollah violates the agreement and tries to arm itself, we will strike. If he tries to rebuild terrorist infrastructure near the border, we will strike. If he launches rockets, if he digs tunnels, if he brings a truck with missiles, we will strike.” But why make a truce now? Netanyahu explained that there are three reasons: «to focus on the Iranian threat; renewal of forces and complete replenishment (and, I tell you openly, there have been major delays in the supply of weapons and ammunition); third reason, to separate the fronts and isolate Hamas.”
Truce valid for sixty days
But what is in this hypothesis of agreement? First, the Beirut army is expected to enter southern Lebanon for a period of 60 days, while the Israeli army withdraws. Coordination with the Lebanese side will take place through the office of the head of the US Central Command, the general Michael E. Kurilla. The coordinating body will include France, whose involvement was desired by Washington and Beirut. According to the sources, Israel was convinced yesterday afternoon to accept the Paris coordination only after France indicated that it did not want to proceed with the application of the International Criminal Court ruling on Netanyahu’s arrest even if Michel’s words then arrived Barnier. The Israeli Defense Forces will still have their hands free in the event of attacks but also against Hezbollah’s attempts to increase its military power. Therefore, if Iranian weapons reach Hezbollah from Syria, the Israeli Air Force will return to bombing and the army will invade. again in southern Lebanon. In Beirut, numerous people took to the streets to celebrate the ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel, as reported by New York Times. Some citizens fired shots in the air in celebration. Despite the celebrations, columns of smoke can still be observed in some areas of the city, a clear reminder of the attacks carried out by Israeli forces in the last 24 hours. However, as the ceasefire approached, the intensity of the attacks had diminished.
Targeted actions against jihadists continue in Gaza
In Gaza, however, fighting continues and at dawn, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) eliminated Mumin Al-Jabaria leading member of Hamas’ Gaza City Brigade sniper unit. Al-Jabari operated from a room located within a structure that previously housed the Al-Taba school. The IDF spokesperson explained that the operation was conducted by the Israeli Air Force (IAF), under the joint supervision of the IDF and ISA intelligence. Al-Jabari had directed and conducted numerous terrorist attacks against Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip and maintained a large arsenal of weapons in the room where he operated. In August, the IDF had already struck the same structure, used as an active refuge, and had neutralized over 30 terrorists affiliated with Hamas and Islamic Jihad. As always before undertaking the attack, the IDF implemented various measures to minimize the risks to civilians, including the use of precision munitions, continuous aerial surveillance and the use of detailed intelligence information. «This episode represents a further example of the systematic exploitation of civil infrastructures and the population by the Islamic Jihadwhich uses these as human shields for its terrorist activities,” the IDF said. In the same note, the Israeli army reiterated that it will continue to operate against terrorists hiding inside schools and other civilian infrastructure, using them as cover for their actions. A senior Hamas official told the AFP news agency that the jihadist group is ready for a truce in Gaza after the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah: «The announcement of the ceasefire in Lebanon is a victory and a great success for the resistance. Hamas is ready for a ceasefire agreement and a serious prisoner exchange agreement,” he added. In the coming days the United States “will launch a new initiative together with Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, Israel and other countries to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of the hostages in the hands of Hamas”. He announced it Joe Biden at the White House. Today’s truce, the president said, “brings us closer to realizing a permanent agenda that I have pushed for the region throughout my presidency, a vision for the future of the Middle East.”
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