Relative quiet alone is not a strategy. What is required is a comprehensive and systematic effort to change the reality inside Lebanon itself.
This week’s developments in northern Israel require us to look at reality with clear eyes, beyond the immediate headlines. To understand the true significance of recent events, the situation must be examined across four strategic layers – from civilians under fire in the Galilee, northern Israel, through the streets of Beirut, all the way to the White House and the negotiations surrounding a potential agreement with Iran.
In practice, we are dealing with two separate developments. The first was the cancellation of the American green light previously given to Israel to strike in Dahiyeh, Hezbollah’s stronghold in Beirut, after Hezbollah intensified its attacks on Israeli communities over the past two weeks.
The second was the publication of a joint statement by Israel, Lebanon, and the United States, which on the one hand emphasized the shared interest in reaching a peace agreement between the two countries and ending Iranian influence in Lebanon through Hezbollah. On the other hand, the statement also highlighted the gaps between the parties: Israel stressed the need to disarm Hezbollah, but Lebanon emphasized the need for an Israeli withdrawal from its territory.
