Israeli military complex says escalation unrelated to Lebanon gas deal
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Israeli military and security sources say there is no link between the rockets fired from Lebanon toward occupied Palestine and the gas deal reached with the country under the previous administration.
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A helicopter flies over a base of the UN peacekeeping force, in the southern town of Naqoura, Lebanon on October 14, 2020 (AP)
Israeli security and military sources dismissed Thursday's statements made by Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the gas agreement reached with Lebanon last year and the latest escalation that took place on the Palestinian-Lebanese borders.
"Contrary to Netanayhu's statements, the gas agreement [with Lebanon] has nothing to do with the latest developments," Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported, citing security and military sources.
According to the sources, "There is no connection between the rockets fired from Lebanon during Easter and the series of attacks that preceded it and the gas agreement signed between the Bennett-Lapid government and Lebanon."
About two weeks ago, Netanyahu blamed the recent escalation that took place at the Palestinian borders with Lebanon on the gas agreement and the protests being carried out by the opposition against the occupation's judicial reform plans.
The previous government signed the gas agreement with Hezbollah free of charge, the Israeli premier claimed, saying "Israel is under attack" and claiming that "the government will restore calm and security and improve deterrence."
The premier's opponents are continuously and increasingly accusing him of lying, with even his allies declaring that they do not trust him.
The northern settlements in occupied Palestine were subjected to an intense rocket attack earlier in the month, originating from Lebanese territory, in an event described by the Israeli media as the "most dangerous" since the Second Lebanon War.
This escalation came in the wake of the events that took place in Al-Aqsa Mosque two days ago, after the Israeli forces stormed the mosque, assaulted the worshipers, and tried to expel them by force.
Moreover, the Israeli occupation shelled Lebanon in what was described as an act of retaliation, drawing condemnations from Lebanese officials.
Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said Beirut condemns the Israeli attacks on the country, by air, land, and sea.
This came in a letter to the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the International Security Council, through Lebanon's mission to the United Nations, according to the Lebanese Cabinet.
Moreover, former Israeli Security Minister Avigdor Lieberman touched Friday on Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's Quds Day speech, sending messages of pessimism throughout the Israeli occupation days after the aforementioned shelling.
"A multi-front confrontation is inevitable, and as a matter of fact, Nasrallah's statements indicate a pivot in that direction," Lieberman said.
"He (Netanyahu) has nearly fully destroyed Israeli deterrence," Lieberman underlined.
"Today, the situation today is worse than it was before the Yum Kippur war (1973 October war), and the problem is, no one here can manage the crisis," he said.
![In a 2021 interview with Frontline by former US special representative James Jeffrey, he says he had "engaged with [HTS] via backchannels while serving in President Trump’s State Department. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)](https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/media/image/2024/12/21/b4a69f2e-8682-43e4-9d37-49482b304ab3/3.png?v=2&format=webp "In a 2021 interview with Frontline by former US special representative James Jeffrey, he says he had \"engaged with [HTS] via backchannels while serving in President Trump’s State Department. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)")
