Fear of all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah

Israel said on July 28 it would strike back hard at Hezbollah after accusing the group of killing 12 children and teenagers in a rocket attack on a soccer stadium in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The international community has called for maximum restraint to prevent the risk of an all-out conflict between the two sides.

Risk

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ended his visit to the United States early to return home to convene his security cabinet to discuss Israel's response. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz warned that the incident would force Israel to wage all-out war with Hezbollah.

Rescue workers rescue victims of an airstrike on a football stadium in the Golan Heights. Photo: CBS

Speaking on Channel 12 television, the Israeli foreign minister said: “There is no doubt that Hezbollah has crossed all red lines... We are facing an all-out war.” However, Mr. Katz did not provide details about Israel's next move, while announcing that Israel has the “full support” of the US and Europe in its fight against Hezbollah.

The Golan Heights is a territory Israel captured and annexed from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war, in a move not recognized by most countries. According to the Israeli military, the rocket was launched from an area located in southern Lebanon.

An Israeli military spokesman said earlier that forensic tests showed the missile was an Iranian-made Falaq-1. Hezbollah claimed to have fired a Falaq-1 missile on July 27, targeting an Israeli military headquarters but denied attacking the stadium. Israel also struck a series of Hezbollah targets deep inside Lebanon on the night of July 27. However, larger-scale attacks would require approval from the security cabinet.

Stress reduction efforts

Washington condemned the attack on the stadium but did not directly accuse Hezbollah. A White House statement said US support for Israel's security was steadfast, and that the US would continue to support efforts to end similar attacks along the border between Lebanon and Israel.

The UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert and the head of the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), Lieutenant General Aroldo Lázaro, called for maximum restraint at the Lebanon-Israel border on the morning of July 28. Both warned that further escalation of air strikes “could spark a larger conflict that would plunge the entire region into an unimaginable catastrophe.” US and Middle East diplomats also said every effort was needed to avoid a full-scale war.

The conflict has forced tens of thousands of people in both Lebanon and Israel to flee their homes. Israeli airstrikes have killed about 350 Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon and more than 100 civilians, including medical workers, children and journalists. Israel's military said that after the July 27 attack, the number of Israeli civilians killed in Hezbollah attacks had risen to 23 since October 2023, along with at least 17 soldiers.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani warned Israel against a “new adventure” in Lebanon. Hezbollah is the most powerful of a network of Iran-backed groups across the Middle East.

This force began opening a second front against Israel, immediately after the October 7, 2023 attack by the Hamas armed group across the Israeli border.

KHANH MINH compiled

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/lo-ngai-chien-tranh-toan-dien-israel-hezbollah-post751451.html