Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Two were martyred in an initial toll of the Israeli drone strike that targeted the al-Asira neighborhood in the city of Baalbek, eastern Lebanon
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: An Israeli drone strike targeted the al-Asira neighborhood east of Baalbek, eastern Lebanon
Sheikh Naim Qassem to the pager attack survivors: You are the greatest resistance. Know that 'Israel' will fall because it embodies aggression, crime, and occupation; victory is truly yours
Sheikh Qassem to the pager attack survivors: The value of what you are doing despite your wounds is immense, and here you are, treading the path of the Master of Nation's Martyrs and the leaders
Sheikh Qassem to the pager attack survivors: You are moving forward with insight deeper than sight itself. The enemy sought to eliminate your role in the battle, yet you remain steadfast and continue the fight
Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem to the pager attack survivors one year later: You are healing from your wounds and rising above them. You have successfully passed the test
Palestinian media: Reports of stabbing operation in occupied al-Quds.
Israeli media: Sirens blare in Arava in South, near Ramon Airport.
Egyptian PM Mostafa Madbouli: Egypt is targeted in plans to redraw regional map
AEOI Chief Mohammad Eslami: Our presence in IAEA General Council and fact-checking helped in preventing unilateral rhetoric that aims to portray Iran as an unregulated country

Israelis wanted 'pre-emptive strike' on Lebanon: Did Biden halt it?

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Wall Street Journal + Barak Ravid
  • 24 Dec 2023 00:58
  • 3 Shares
6 Min Read

A WSJ article claims that the Israeli regime wanted to "pre-emptively" strike Lebanon days after the start of the Resistance's operation on October 7. Barak Ravid contests the claims.

  • x
  • Israeli soldiers take positions near the Gaza Strip border, in southern occupied Palestine, December 11, 2023 (AP)
    Israeli soldiers take positions near the Gaza Strip border, in southern occupied Palestine, December 11, 2023 (AP)

The Israeli occupation regime wanted to launch a "pre-emptive" strike against Lebanon, allegedly to strike the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah, days after the start of Operation al-Aqsa Flood on October 7, the Wall Street Journal reported. However, US President Joe Biden prevented his allies from taking this step out of fear of a regional war.

Reportedly, the Israeli occupation had "intelligence" that Hezbollah Resistance fighters were planning an operation similar to the one carried out by the Palestinian Resistance, wherein they would cross the border as part of a multipronged attack in a bid to corner the Israeli occupation. 

The United States saw this intelligence as being unreliable, and as it sought not to bring about a regional war, it called on the Israeli occupation to heed.

The United States first caught wind of the Israeli occupation's plan early on October 11 after the Israeli regime informed its backers in Washington that they believed Hezbollah was planning an operation, and the Israeli occupation knew that it could not hold back on its own; therefore it asked the Biden administration for support.

Top US military and intelligence advisers, such as CIA director William Burns and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, convened for a high-stakes meeting a few hours later to discuss what the Israeli occupation was saying. At the end of the meeting, Washington determined that it should not help the Israeli occupation carry out such a blunder because it did not go with US intelligence on the matter.

US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a 45-minute call that ended with the latter saying he would discuss the issue with his cabinet after he was not convinced by Biden's words for "Israel" to stand down.

Israeli Journalist Barak Ravid contests the WSJ report

Israeli Journalist Barak Ravid, who is also a contributor on Axios, commented on the WSJ article in an X post downplaying the Biden administration's influence over the events and giving more credit to internal divisions inside the Israeli Cabinet.

According to Ravid, Biden did not convince Netanyahu not to attack Lebanon, adding that Netanyahu had no intention of doing so. The Israeli Journalist added that at the start of the war, Gallant and the Chief of Staff intended to launch an attack, and Netanyahu was unwilling to do so.

Because Netanyahu did not want to launch an attack, he did not answer calls from Gallant for several hours on October 11. He also concluded with Gantz the emergency government's membership at the same moment to counter the pressure from Gallant.

That evening, when it was decided that the former Chief of staff join the government, Netanyahu felt more secure having two former chiefs of staff (Eisenkot and Ganz opposed the strike in Lebanon) on his side to reject Gallant's and the chief of staff's idea, Ravid continued.

Related News

Austin to announce $500 mln in weapons to Ukraine

9/11 suspects may avoid death penalty after Court reverses Austin

Although they did not have a major role in the decision-making process, the Americans did oppose the strike. If anything, Netanyahu's case against Gallant was enhanced by their opposition, Ravid concluded.

On high alert

In the backdrop of the call, the Israeli occupation forces went on alert in northern occupied Palestine as soldiers received orders from their commanders to remain vigilant and prepare to fight Hezbollah Resistance fighters who would enter occupied Palestine on paragliders and various vehicles from southern Lebanon.

Northern settlers were also ordered to head to bomb shelters immediately in light of the apparently unilateral tensions.

The warnings, nothing but false alarms, were solely a part of a lengthy series of those that had fueled fears of another attack, officials from both the United States and the Israeli occupations have said.

There were calls and meetings taking place for around six hours before t the situation returned back to normal and the Israelis agreed to yield to US pressures and stand down with Washington insistent that its intelligence indicated there was no imminent attack from the Lebanese side.

Netanyahu, after being pushed back by his closest ally, Joe Biden, agreed to capitulate and not go forth with his plan for an attack on Lebanon.

Lebanon in the crosshair

Following Operation Al-Aqsa Flood on October 7, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approached President Biden and suggested he persuade Egypt's President to open his country's borders and accept a large number of the more than 2 million Palestinians set to be forcibly displaced from Gaza.

Biden, at the time, believed it was extremely hard, considering that Egypt had been clear that it would not play a role in the displacement of Palestinians, only to adopt a more decisive position later, saying the US "under no circumstances" will permit forced displacement of Palestinians.

Many Israeli officials continue to support the proposal, which has not previously been revealed, highlighting the deep divisions between the US and "Israel" on what should happen in Gaza in the short and long term once "Israel" ends its bloody aggression on the Strip. 

While the Biden administration aims to limit the war to Gaza and halt the intense bombardment there, some Israeli officials are pushing to target Hezbollah in Lebanon next, a move that US officials have fought to prevent for weeks. 

Furthermore, US and Israeli authorities differ on how severely to punish violent Israeli settlers in the West Bank. 

Biden and Netanyahu disagree on practically every significant issue that will become essential when the war ends, something analysts attribute to their differing domestic politics.

Following October 7, Israeli voters shifted drastically to the right, while Netanyahu's support ratings plunged, forcing the Prime Minister to embrace the extreme right as a means of political survival. 

Biden, meanwhile, has been under increasing pressure from his Democratic base to stand up to "Israel" and take meaningful actions to end the bloodshed.

  • Lloyd Austin
  • Israel
  • Hezbollah
  • Benjamin Netanyahu
  • Israeli occupation
  • Lebanon
  • Lebanese resistance
  • Joe Biden
War on Gaza

War on Gaza

Most Read

Why is Choose Love using a firm with British and US intelligence connections to run a pro-Palestine musical event? (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)

Together for Palestine: Troubling questions about the organisers of this huge event

  • Opinion
  • 17 Sep 2025
Uprising against Volker Turk at the Human Rights Council over Gaza.

Uprising against Volker Turk at the Human Rights Council over Gaza

  • Politics
  • 12 Sep 2025
A screengrab from the ad played on Fox News. (X Screengrab)

Fox airs ad warning Trump not to let Netanyahu 'play' him on Gaza

  • US & Canada
  • 11 Sep 2025
Lapid: Egypt’s Arab Force plan a 'severe blow' to normalization

Lapid: Egypt’s Arab Force plan a 'severe blow' to normalization

  • Palestine
  • 14 Sep 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
A Hezbollah supporter who lost his sight in a pager attack carried out by "Israel" on Sept. 17, 2024, covers his eyes with a red headband inscribed with the name "Hussein" during Ashoura, July 6, 2025 (AP)
Politics

'We Have Recovered': Lebanon marks 1st anniversary of Pager Attack

The Arab neighborhood of El Za'im, on the outskirts of east Occupied Al-Quds in the West Bank, near where Israeli government says housing units will be built as part of the E1 settlement project, Thursday, August 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Palestine

'Israel’s' deliberate policies drive West Bank economy toward collapse

Ben & Jerry's ice cream shop, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025, in Cambridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Politics

Ben & Jerry’s co-founder resigns over parent company curbing activism

Trump’s approval rating falls to new low in second term: Poll
US & Canada

Trump’s approval rating falls to new low in second term: Poll

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS