BEIRUT - Despite relentless concentrated bombardments on Lebanon, all attempts by Israeli invaders have failed to make ground advances.

This shows the only so-called achievement of the US-led Israeli aggression on Lebanon is the destruction of infrastructure in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Tyre, Nabatieh, and the Bekaa Valley. 

This is a pressure card to blackmail Lebanon in the political negotiations moderated by the US envoy, Amos Hochstein, who visited Beirut this week, before heading to the occupied Palestinian territories on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Hebrew media has circulated statements by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, War Minister Yisrael Katz, and Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi regarding the escalation of military operations to force Lebanon to accept the US proposal to stop the war on Lebanon.

Israel’s Channel 12 has in parallel revealed that the army decided not to enter into a war of attrition that would last for months, saying: “While negotiations are taking place – with a US mediation – the Israeli army is launching waves of attacks every two hours on Lebanon.”

Prior to Hochstein’s arrival, consultations were continuing between Nabih Berri, Speaker of the Lebanese Parliament, Najib Mikati, the caretaker Prime Minister, and the leadership of Hezbollah regarding the proposal delivered by Lisa Johnson, the US Ambassador to Beirut. The draft proposal compromises Lebanon’s sovereignty. 

Berri has described the atmosphere of the negotiations as “positive” and “serious”, though there are still some points on which they have not yet agreed upon.  He has stated: “We have been informed that Israel wants to stop the war.”

While the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation has also predicted significant progress regarding the ceasefire talks in Lebanon next week, Mikati refrained from conveying any positive messages before Hochstein’s visit for fear of repeating what happened after his last visit.

Lebanon’s chief concerns 

The Lebanese side is wary of the proposed tripartite committee framework that includes Lebanon and “Israel” under the chairmanship of UNIFIL to supervise the implementation of UN Resolution 1701, as it does not welcome the inclusion of additional representatives except the United States and France. 

It rejects the inclusion of Germany and Britain, knowing that the latter had previously proposed the establishment of watchtowers along the border with Lebanon, provided that the surveillance cameras are directed at Lebanese territory only.

Channel 12 has also revealed that one of the basic provisions of the US proposal is that the Lebanese army will be the “only legitimate entity” that can operate in South Lebanon, and will receive assistance to control the border crossings. It added that it was proposed to increase the number of UNIFIL forces before the Israeli invaders left the Lebanese areas in which they would operate.
For its part, the Lebanese side also insists that the Lebanese army alone be granted the authority to monitor the ground with the assistance of UNIFIL, not the other way around. It further rejects granting UNIFIL free rein to raid and search within Lebanese territory based on Israeli allegations.

The Lebanese side also rejects facilitating the enemy’s acquisition of data on Lebanese citizens.
Besides, the Lebanese side wonders whether the US proposal will grant the committee the authority to monitor violations by “Israel” and Hezbollah, and to select its executive tools to curb them. It is worth noting that the American side had acknowledged the failure of this mechanism to prevent the violations of resolution 1701.