Israeli prime minister warns if Hezbollah joins war it will be “devastating” for Lebanon
Israeli prime minister warns if Hezbollah joins war it will be “devastating” for Lebanon
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that if Hezbollah decides to enter the war, it will be crippled “with a force (it) cannot even imagine.
In a video, Netanyahu tells commandos “we are in a battle for life, a battle for home. This is not an exaggeration; this is the war. It’s ‘to be, or to cease’ — they should cease.”
Some context: Hezbollah is an Iran-backed Islamist movement with one of the most powerful paramilitary forces in the Middle East.
The group, which has its main base on the Israel-Lebanon border, could become a wildcard player in the Hamas-Israel war, and spark a wider regional conflict.
The conflict that started with Hamas’ deadly attacks on Israel – which Israeli officials say killed 1,400 people – has already had broad ramifications in the Middle East, and triggered diplomatic rifts and protests around the world.
The fallout is palpable on the Lebanon-Israel border, where Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in low-rumbling tit-for-tat skirmishes since the war began, putting the entire region on a knife’s edge.
It remains unclear whether Hezbollah will intervene in the Hamas-Israel war on behalf of the Palestinians.
Should Hezbollah get involved in the war, it would open up a multifront conflict, propelling the Middle East into uncharted territory with unpredictable consequences.
Source: CNN
