What is Lebanon’s situation in the conflict between Hamas and Israel?
As tensions escalate along the Israel-Hezbollah border, Lebanon has been placed on high alert. The Iran-backed Hezbollah group and Israel have exchanged fire in southern Lebanon, raising concerns about the potential for the ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel to escalate into a regional crisis.
A precarious calm currently prevails over southern Lebanon, one day after the exchange of fire between Hezbollah and Israel. Israeli army spokesperson shared on Twitter to report that there were unverified claims of individuals infiltrating from southern Lebanon into Israel. However, the Lebanese side has not yet confirmed these reports.
On the same day, and Israeli TV channel contradicted earlier reports of 12 rockets being fired from southern Lebanon towards the Galilee and Mount Hermon regions in Israel. The channel stated that the Israeli army is currently investigating the cause of sirens in northern Israel, with the Lebanese side also denying these reports.
The situation escalated on Saturday when Hamas’ military wing, initiated “Operation al-Aqsa Flood” in response to what they claimed were against Israeli violations against the Palestinian people in the West Bank and Jerusalem, particularly at the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Gaza launched rockets towards Israel, while Hamas militants infiltrated from Gaza into southern Israel, leading to many casualties as well as the taking of hostages.
In the meantime, Hezbollah did not hesitate to express its support for Hamas through a statement released by its media office. Hezbollah praised said operation against Israel, emphasizing its view that it was a decisive response to Israeli crimes and continued aggression against the Palestinian people. They portrayed military resistance as the sole viable option against Israeli occupation.
Amid concerns that the situation along the Lebanese-Israeli border could deteriorate further, the Lebanese army announced the deployment of additional forces to patrol border areas. They also indicated their coordination with United Nations peacekeeping forces (UNIFIL) to monitor the situation in response to significant Israeli military buildup in northern Israel.
Then again, reports were shared on Sunday regarding intense cross-border fire as an Israeli military patrol opened fire on a convoy of motorcycles on the Lebanese side of the border.
