If Hezbollah stays in north, there will be no 'Israel' here: JP

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media
30 Nov 2023 16:44
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A report by The Jerusalem Post reveals the profound threat Hezbollah poses to "Israel", through testimonies of settlers who cannot return to the settlements along the northern border with Lebanon.

Smoke rises from Israeli artillery shelling in al-Dhayrah, a Lebanese border village with occupied Palestine, Monday, Oct. 16, 2023 (AP)

A recent report by The Jerusalem Post condemns Hezbollah's responses to the attacks "Israel" has been launching toward the South of Lebanon since October 7.

Cited by the journal, settlers in northern occupied Palestine fear returning to their settlements as their government has yet to guarantee safety from Hezbollah's retaliation. They have been protesting under a "1701 or 10.07” campaign: the first referring to the UN Security Council Resolution that ended the 2006 July War and the second to the October 7 Operation Al-Aqsa Flood conducted by the Palestinian Resistance.

Of course, The Jerusalem Post, in its op-ed, failed to mention the constant breaches of Lebanese sovereignty perpetuated by the Israeli occupation forces.

'Permanent threat of Hezbollah'

Meanwhile, the mayor of the "Kiryat Shmona" settlement, Avichai Stern, was quoted as saying, "We were promised that we will no longer see Hezbollah on the border and that anyone on the border will be shot, but in actuality, they returned. What is preventing them from firing a Kalashnikov from the fence in the border communities?."

Reflecting a state of utmost fear from Hezbollah's strikes in response to the Israeli aggression on South Lebanon, Stern added, "After October 7, does anyone have any doubts about the intentions, threats, and capabilities of our enemies beyond the border?"

Head of "Israeli" Kiryat Shmona settlement:

They promised us that Hezbollah members would not return to the border fence, and here they are again pic.twitter.com/IRvftUYO5M
— AoR News 🇵🇸🇱🇧🇸🇾🇮🇶🇮🇷🇾🇪 (@AoR3138) November 29, 2023

That is why the Israeli mayor urged Israeli settlers not to return to the settlement, Israeli media reported, stressing, in a message to the settlers in northern occupied Palestine, that they should not come back as long as the situation on the borders with Lebanon remains unchanged.

Israeli media reported that settlers in the north are angered by statements made by Israeli Security Minister Yoav Gallant who mentioned transpiring what he called "military achievements" in the north into a situation that allows settlers to return to the area. The media also urged the Israeli government not to abandon the settlers.

According to Maariv, many council leaders and settlers in the north remain concerned that the ceasefire might end the war in the north but will not resolve what they refer to as the "permanent threat" of Hezbollah.

The newspaper cited a northern Israeli settler as saying that it would be a mistake to return settlers to the northern settlements when there is no strong deterrence against the constant threat from Hezbollah.

"Metulla" local council head David Azulai said in a recent meeting, “Israel needs to understand that if Hezbollah is not pushed back beyond the Litani, there will not be a state here. We are facing a second War of Independence for our existence. Every Arab state, Iran, and Hezbollah are watching us, and if we do not deal with the northern threat, they will see our weakness.”

Azoulai underlined that he was constantly hearing that the Israeli occupation managed to deter the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah, which he denied, by stressing that it was "Israel" instead that was deterred.

The strongest army in the region?

Operation Al-Aqsa Flood has done well to expose the fear Israelis have toward the Islamic Resistance Hezbollah.

On October 11, siren alarms went off in settlements throughout the Palestinian-Lebanese northern border as a swarm of "Hezbollah drones" flew over the occupied territories.

6:24

This is INSANE

All israeli occupation settlements near the Lebanese borders are lit

israelis reporting that Hezbollah released a SWARM of drones pic.twitter.com/KXvDmfF21r
— Hussein (@EyesOnSouth1) October 11, 2023

Hezbollah later denied sending drones, which were later revealed to be ducks migrating.

On October 9, four Israeli soldiers were wounded in a "friendly fire" incident near the border with Lebanon amid rising tensions in the region.

In a statement, the army said soldiers stationed in "Shtula" opened fire on a vehicle that arrived at high speed and attempted to bypass their checkpoint.

It later turned out to be a military vehicle, and four soldiers inside were hurt, according to the statement.

As per Israeli officials, investigations are underway to draw future lessons.

Back in 2020, reports of a chicken sending Israeli troops into a frenzy went viral. A Lebanese boy's chicken crossed the border toward occupied Palestine, which triggered Israeli soldiers, who were already on their toes, into firing gunshots, thinking it was a plot by Hezbollah.

The child was quoted saying, “When I chased and wanted to grab the chicken and bring it, the frightened Israeli soldiers opened fire in the air. I didn’t feel scared because I wanted my chicken. They [Israelis] took the chicken and never gave it back … I want it back."

These incidents are of course gut-wrenching for Azulai who said the IOF and the government “have to remove the threat from the northern border.”