At a pivotal point in the ongoing conflict which will soon complete nine months, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Sunday that the “intense phase of war with Hamas is about to end”. If true, the announcement is expected to be a major U-turn of war, because in the past few months, the IDF continued its military operations in Rafah, which is believed to be Hamas’s ultimate stronghold in Gaza, despite international pressure. Meanwhile, PM Netanyahu also suggested that given the rising hostilities orchestrated by the Iran-backed Hezbollah from Israel’s northern border, the Israel Defence Forces’ focus will now shift to the Lebanon border solely to tackle the Hezbollah threat.
For the unversed, Hezbollah has been carrying out deadly attacks from southern Lebanon targeting areas in northern Israel since October 8, the day after the Hamas attacks on Israel. In the recent, there has been a surge in violent confrontations between Israel and Hezbollah in the north, raising concerns about a wider conflict. Notably, after the Israeli military stated that plans for a Lebanon offensive had been approved, in a stern war–ning, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah responded that no part of Israel would be spared in the event of a full-scale war.
Nonetheless, an undeterred Netanyahu emphasized that Israel would redeploy forces northward after concluding its operations in Gaza, primarily for defensive purposes. He also reaffirmed Israel’s position of opposing the long-term ceasefire with Hamas and insisted on the release of those who had been abducted as well as the dismantling of Hamas in Gaza. According to Netanyahu, the post-war plan for Gaza stipulates that it would retain the military rule in Gaza while looking into the possibility of establishing a civilian government with backing from the surrounding vicinty.
The Netanyahu administration is under pressure from both the Western and the Arab world leaders, including the US to put an end to the war, as seen by a recent ruling by a UN court to stop its military actions in Gaza. This is because the conflict’s toll has been devastating, with reports of ongoing airstrikes in Gaza City causing civilian casualties, including the casualties on UNRWA facilities serving as shelters. Over 800,000 people have been uprooted and the humanitarian situation is “apocalyptic”, according to the UN.
In addition to these tensions, Israel is also dealing with halting of weapons and bombs required for its ongoing military operations in Rafah. PM Netanyahu has accused the US, one of its strongest and oldest allies, of halting imminent weaponry shipments. In response to this, US officials vehemently refuted Netanyahu’s accusations.
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