Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant will head to Washington on Sunday, where he will meet with his American counterpart, Lloyd Austin, Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, and senior officials in the White House, in light of the increasing differences between the administration of US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin. Netanyahu.
“I am leaving for the United States at the invitation of Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. The United States is our most important and central ally, and our relations are particularly important, perhaps more than ever, these days,” Gallant said before leaving the country.
He stressed that the upcoming meetings with senior American officials will be “decisive for the future of the war.”
He explained, “I will meet in the United States with the Ministers of Defense and Foreign Affairs and other senior officials in the American administration. In these meetings, I will discuss the situation on the Gaza front and on the Lebanese front, which are two matters of decisive importance at this time.”
He continued, “We are ready for any action that may be required, whether in Gaza, Lebanon, or other places. The transition to the third stage in the Gaza Strip is of great importance. I will discuss this transition with senior officials in the American administration.”
He added, “The focus of this visit will be on the process of equipping and supplying Israel with equipment and weapons, to maintain its qualitative superiority in the Middle East, in addition to achieving Israel’s goals in the war in Gaza and on the northern front with Hezbollah and returning the kidnapped.”
Demonstrations by the families of the kidnapped
On Saturday, large cities in Israel witnessed demonstrations, the most prominent of which was in Tel Aviv, where tens of thousands of people participated to demand the return of those kidnapped from Gaza and the holding of early general elections.
The demonstration in Tel Aviv included violence, as police officers were documented pushing an Israeli female journalist. The Journalists Syndicate called on the Inspector General of Police to initiate an immediate investigation and stop the work of those involved in the attack on the journalist. The police arrested a number of participants in the protests.
In addition, Haaretz newspaper reported that efforts are being made by Qatar with the Hamas leadership in an attempt to bridge the gaps between the Israeli plan to complete the exchange deal presented by US President Joe Biden and the demands presented by the movement.
Fears of expanding the circle of conflict
With the continued exchange of bombing and gunfire on a daily basis between Hezbollah and the Israeli army since last October, fears are increasing that the circle of conflict will expand far from the border, at a time when an Israeli invasion of southern Lebanon is expected to push the party north of the Litani River.
In this context, CNN stated in a report published on Friday that the United States had provided guarantees to Israel to stand by its side in the event of a comprehensive war with Hezbollah.
Senior American officials confirmed to a delegation of senior Israeli officials who visited Washington this week that in the event of a comprehensive war breaking out on the northern border between Israel and Hezbollah, the administration of US President Joe Biden is fully prepared to support its ally, according to what the network reported from a senior administration official. .
These confirmations come as cross-border attacks have increased in recent weeks between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah, amid growing concerns about the expansion of the conflict.
Senior Israeli officials, including Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi, participated in a series of meetings with Biden administration officials such as National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, and the Middle East coordinator in the House. White, Brett McGurk, in Washington this week. The source told the network that they discussed a wide range of topics, including the situation on the northern borders of Israel and Iran, ceasefire negotiations, and hostages.
During this meeting, Blinken affirmed “the United States’ firm commitment to Israel’s security,” according to what his spokesman, Matthew Miller, said.
Miller added that the US Secretary of State also stressed “the importance of avoiding a new escalation in Lebanon” through “a diplomatic solution that allows the Israeli and Lebanese families who were displaced due to the exchange of fire on the border, to return to their homes.”
The Biden administration has repeatedly stated that it does not want to see another war erupt on Israel’s northern front, and has urged calm and a diplomatic solution. A few days ago, the American envoy, Amos Hockstein, visited the region to try to help calm the conflict.
CNN reported that American officials have serious concerns that if an all-out war breaks out in the north, Hezbollah could attack Israeli air defenses, including the Iron Dome air defense system, and that this reality would make support The full Americanization of Israel is more important.
Lebanon.. “Another Gaza”
In a related context, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, on Friday expressed deep concern about the escalation between Israel and Hezbollah on the Blue Line, and warned of the dangers of the expansion of the conflict in the Middle East and any reckless moves or miscalculation.
He said: “I express my deep concern about the escalation (…) as if an all-out war has become imminent. The danger of a widening conflict in the Middle East is real and must be avoided. One reckless step – one miscalculation – could lead to a disaster that transcends borders.” “.
The Secretary-General of the United Nations added that the peoples of the region and the world cannot tolerate Lebanon becoming another Gaza.
Guterres said that many people lost their lives on both sides of the Blue Line, tens of thousands were displaced, and many homes and livelihoods were destroyed.
He stressed the need for both parties to recommit to the full implementation of Security Council Resolution No. 1701 and immediately return to the cessation of hostilities, stressing the need to protect civilians and not target children, journalists and medical workers.
He said: “The world must say loudly and clearly that immediate de-escalation is not only possible but essential. There is no military solution. Further military escalation will only lead to more suffering and destruction for communities in Lebanon and Israel and potentially catastrophic consequences for the region.”
Mutual threats
Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging fire on a daily basis since the war broke out in the Gaza Strip due to the attack launched by Hamas on October 7 on sites and areas in southern Israel.
The cross-border escalation resulted in the deaths of at least 479 people in Lebanon, including at least 313 Hezbollah fighters and 93 civilians, according to an Agence France-Presse count based on party statements and official Lebanese sources.
The Israeli side, for its part, announced the killing of 15 soldiers and 11 civilians.
This bombing has intensified in recent weeks, with mutual threats from both sides raising fears of the conflict expanding into a regional war.
Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, warned on Wednesday that no place in Israel “will not be safe” from the missiles of his fighters if the war expands. He said, “The enemy knows very well that we have prepared ourselves for the worst days,” adding, “He must wait for us on land, in the air, and at sea.”
He confirmed the readiness of his organization, in terms of weapons and equipment, and Nasrallah stressed that his party had fought with “part” of its weapons until this moment, stressing that “we obtained new weapons,” but he did not reveal their type.
He said, “At the level of human capacity, the resistance has more than it needs and what the front requires, even in the worst conditions of confrontation.”
He continued, “Years ago we talked about one hundred thousand fighters… today we have far exceeded (the number), adding, “There is great motivation at the level of Lebanon and unprecedented human strength for the resistance.”
Nasrallah’s positions came after the Israeli army announced, on Tuesday, its “approval” of operational plans for an attack in Lebanon.
On Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz threatened Hezbollah to eliminate it if a “total war” broke out.
The war broke out in Gaza after Hamas launched an unprecedented attack inside Israel on October 7, killing 1,194 people, most of them civilians, according to a tally prepared by Agence France-Presse based on official Israeli figures.
The attackers took 251 hostages, 116 of whom remain in Gaza, including 41 who the army says were killed.
Israel responded with a violent campaign of bombing, raids and ground attacks that led to the deaths of about 37,500 people in the Gaza Strip.
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