Israel Is Likely to Continue Attacks in Lebanon, U.S. Intelligence Concludes
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel is likely to continue military action against Hezbollah, despite
the cease-fire deal between the United States and Iran that specifically calls for a halt to fighting in Lebanon, according to a recent U.S. intelligence report, American officials said.
Mr. Netanyahu is under intense domestic pressure to continue operations against Hezbollah’s ongoing attacks on northern Israel. Israel views Hezbollah, the potent militia and political group in Lebanon funded by Iran, as a critical threat, and officials there do not believe the attacks can go unanswered.
U.S. intelligence agencies believe Israel is likely to continue such operations, even if they hinder negotiations between Iran and the United States that are supposed to address elements of Iran’s nuclear program and secure a permanent peace deal, according to the officials.
The cease-fire deal
is deeply unpopular in Israel, where commentators criticize its failure to address Iran’s missile program, its requirement that U.S. forces leave the region and, especially, its constraints on Israeli military operations in Lebanon.
Israel is not a party to the accord, which was signed this week. But the Israeli ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, said on Friday that his country had committed to an
immediate cease-fire and “halted all offensive operations” in Lebanon. He insisted Israeli forces would remain in southern Lebanon and said Israel would never
compromise on its security.
The new cease-fire between the United States and Iran calls for an end to fighting in Lebanon, but U.S. intelligence officials do not expect Israel to halt its strikes on Hezbollah.
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