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Israel Will Act to Restore Security in the North

(New York Post) Amb. Michael Oren - With the start of Hamas's invasion of Israel on Oct. 7, Iranian-backed Hizbullah in Lebanon launched an utterly unprovoked assault on the Galilee. Rockets have rained on Israeli towns and villages, tens of thousands have been displaced, dozens killed, and vast swaths of territory set ablaze. Eight months later, entire cities stand abandoned and countless acres of farmland uncultivated or burnt. If left unchecked, Hizbullah soon could render half the country uninhabitable. Israeli counterstrikes have killed hundreds of Hizbullah terrorists and destroyed many of their emplacements, but such actions will have little effect on an organization that unflinchingly lost thousands fighting in the Syrian civil war. A full-scale war in the north will differ profoundly from Gaza. Among Hizbullah's 150,000 rockets and missiles are those that can hit any target - airfields, military bases, oil refineries, the Dimona nuclear reactor, even Israel's southernmost port of Eilat. Hizbullah has all of Lebanon in which to maneuver, and logistical lines stretching across Syria. Moreover, any war with Hizbullah is likely to involve rocket fire on Israel from Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Yemen, as well as missile onslaughts similar to that launched against Israel on April 13 from Iran. Israel can't be expected to respond passively, firing at the incoming rockets until its Iron Dome interceptors run out. The anguish of northern Galilee is simply unsustainable and must be ended, even at an exorbitant price. In the previous conflict with Hizbullah in 2006, Israel distinguished between Hizbullah and Lebanon. Today, though, Israel regards Hizbullah and Lebanon as one and war will be on both. The writer is a former Israeli ambassador to the U.S. and Deputy Minister for Diplomacy.
2024-06-25 00:00:00
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