National Interest: Hezbollah is a terrifying nightmare for Israel
While the United States and the West are pushing to support the Ukrainians, fearing a Russian victory, they are dealing with a different dynamic towards the war between Hamas and Israel, according to writer Lawrence Haas in the National Interest.
US efforts to reduce the fighting in Gaza are understandable in light of global concerns about civilian suffering.
The Hamas-run Health Ministry in the Strip says the Palestinian death toll is approaching 30,000, and the United Nations says 80% of Palestinians have fled their homes and a quarter of them are starving.
Opponents now measure the West’s resolve by monitoring events in the Middle East, and opponents also monitor armed groups supported by Iran, including, of course, Hamas, which is hostile to Israel, and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
A ceasefire, temporary or otherwise, would leave Hamas able to rebuild and launch more October 7 attacks.
This is what its leaders pledged to do until the Jewish state is destroyed.
It will also encourage Hezbollah to intensify its attacks on Israel.
With this in mind, American and European leaders would be wise not to pressure Israel to accept a premature peace that would encourage more bloodshed and even larger battles in the future in this volatile region or beyond.
Right now, the whole world is focused on Gaza.
In recent days, the United States has been pressuring Israel to implement a temporary ceasefire, release Hamas hostages, and allow more humanitarian aid to reach the Strip.
Meanwhile, the International Court of Justice has held hearings on Israeli policy in the “occupied Palestinian territories,” which it defines as the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza — despite Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza in 2005 and its rule by the Palestinian Authority, and then Hamas since then.
As Israel continues its military operation in Gaza, targeting and destroying tunnels and other infrastructure facilities, the United Nations and other world leaders are pressuring Jerusalem not to move to Rafah, but Israel is determined to move to Rafah to continue “dismantling the remaining Hamas brigades”.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah has been attacking Israel on an almost daily basis since October 7; It launches thousands of rockets, shells and drones, causing the displacement of 80,000 Israelis from their homes in the north.
Israeli leaders say they will no longer tolerate Hezbollah being so close to the border, from which it could launch a more devastating attack on the Jewish state, using weapons far more powerful than Hamas.
They warn that if the international community doesn’t find a way to expel Hezbollah from the border, they will turn Israel’s guns on Hezbollah once Hamas is eliminated.
Hezbollah is said to have 20,000 active fighters, 20,000 reserves, and an arsenal that includes small arms, tanks, drones, and an estimated 130,000 missiles, making it “the most heavily armed party in the world.”
For the time being, Nasrallah was content to distract Jerusalem with feint attacks rather than engage it in a full-scale war.
Will this continue? Or will Nasrallah and his supporters decide to deploy Hezbollah fighters and try to overwhelm Israel by launching thousands of rockets while Jerusalem remains engulfed in Gaza?
Whether Washington and the West side with Israel or increase pressure on it to retreat in Gaza, this may strongly push towards shaping the next step for Hezbollah.
