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Trump's U.S.-Iran Deal Hands Hizbullah a Lifeline
(Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs) Col. (ret.) Dr. Jacques Neriah - The memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran explicitly incorporates Lebanon into the framework's halt to hostilities, fundamentally constraining Israeli national security. It freezes a conflict that Israel was working hard to keep separate from broader international diplomacy, leaving a battle-hardened Hizbullah firmly planted on its northern border and straining the foundations of the U.S.-Israel alliance. For months, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have carried out a wide-ranging offensive in southern Lebanon to ensure the safe return of its displaced northern residents. Israel's military strategy depended on the freedom to continue operations until Hizbullah was decisively and permanently neutralized. The agreement dismantles this strategy. By placing strict limitations on Israeli military activity in Lebanon, Washington is in effect protecting Hizbullah's core military capabilities. Pushed into an unwanted and premature ceasefire, Israel's freedom of action has been curtailed by its closest ally, while its most immediate existential threat remains intact, actively rearming, and shielded by an international agreement. The writer, a special analyst for the Middle East at the Jerusalem Center, was formerly Deputy Head for Assessment of Israeli Military Intelligence.