Report: Israel mulls military move to force Lebanon to sign 'stable agreement'

The Israeli army is preparing for a military move with the aim of weakening Hezbollah and bringing it and the Lebanese government to sign a “stable agreement” with Israel, Israel’s Channel 12 reported on Thursday.

The Israeli army is preparing for “the possibility that they will be required to enter combat in the near future,” the channel added, quoting senior Israeli officials as saying that "there are already existing plans."

“The Americans conveyed a message to Lebanon with the aim of preventing the crisis through diplomatic means, but are backing Israeli plans,” the channel said.

“The new (military) move was built in dialogue and coordination with the U.S. and the Americans conveyed a clear message to the Lebanese: reach an agreement and disarm Hezbollah. This shows their attempts to prevent the crisis through diplomatic means, but without such a solution, the U.S. will support an Israeli military move,” Channel 12 added.

It explained that the goal of the fighting, if necessary, is to “harm Hezbollah's attempts to rebuild  and to emphasize to it and the Lebanese government that Israel is serious in its intentions and demands regarding the issue of disarmament.”

"Hezbollah will not be allowed to grow stronger. They will not return to October 6 (2023). We will increase the attacks and re-enter the fighting if necessary," senior Israeli official told Channel 12.

The channel noted that the peak of tensions is expected in about a month, when “the operation announced by the Lebanese Army to destroy Hezbollah's infrastructure south of the Litani River will end.”

“If the Lebanese declare that the army has cleared the area designated for it, Israel will probably not accept these claims, and at this point tensions are expected to increase,” Channel 12 said.

Israel has recently increased its attacks in Lebanon, both against Hezbollah operatives and against alleged Hezbollah infrastructure. According to the latest intelligence in Israel, Hezbollah continues to “accumulate missiles, rockets, artillery means, and additional combat equipment. The weapons arrive via smuggling routes from Syria, which remain partially active, and by sea, but at the same time, some of them are manufactured in Lebanon,” Channel 12 said.

Following the ceasefire agreement, the Lebanese government tasked the army with formulating a plan to centralize weapons in the hands of the state, namely the disarmament of Hezbollah south of the Litani River by the end of 2025.

“The Lebanese Army is trying to fulfill the task assigned to it, but not effectively. This is especially evident in the central region of the country and in the south, where Hezbollah members are not arrested by the Lebanese Army, and in fact there is difficulty in locating the thousands of rockets that the … organization still possesses, according to estimates,” Channel 12 added.