Israel's 2 goals in Lebanon: Decouple Hezbollah-Gaza, restore deterrence
"Our aspiration is to strike Hezbollah with a force that it has not yet experienced, while remaining below the threshold of regional war or bringing Iran into direct war," a senior Israeli political source told Al-Monitor.
TEL AVIV — Israel’s massive aerial bombardment of Hezbollah-linked targets in Lebanon over the past two days — the most lethal in nearly two decades — is part of a two-pronged plan, designed to squeeze Hezbollah as hard as possible without sparking an all-out war.
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The campaign has resulted in over 500 deaths and more than 6,000 injuries in Lebanon, according to local authorities. In Israel, Hezbollah's rocket launches have left 1 person dead and at least 10 others wounded.
One goal is to pressure Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah to stop conditioning a cease-fire with Israel on a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip. Israel hopes that delinking the two fronts and the concerted bombings will convince Hezbollah to withdraw its forces away from Israel’s northern border and allow tens of thousands of Israelis to return to the homes they were forced to abandon almost a year ago.
