A month after the ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel came into effect, concerns are growing in Lebanon about its possible collapse.
“We are sitting on a time bomb: we don’t know when it will explode again,” a Lebanese government source told dpa.
In late November, the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia and Israel agreed to a ceasefire after more than a year of attacks from both sides. Although the ceasefire remains largely in place, sporadic violations have occurred, some of which have resulted in fatalities.
“The prevention of civilians in certain areas in southern Lebanon from returning to their homes raises our concerns that Israel is not respecting all aspects of the ceasefire,” said another government source close to Hezbollah.
The Lebanese army said on Thursday that Israel raided the southern areas of al-Qantara, Adsheet al-Qusayr and Wadi al-Hujeir in violation of the ceasefire agreement.
The military said it has since strengthened its deployment in the above-mentioned areas, while continuing to monitor the situation in coordination with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Fayyad described the raid in a statement as an “extremely dangerous” development that poses “a serious risk.”
Makram Rabbah, a political analyst and outspoken critic of Hezbollah, told dpa: “What is happening is not a violation of the ceasefire, but an implementation of the ceasefire that gave Israel the right to make any attempt to stop Hezbollah to tackle rearmament.”
Since the ceasefire was imposed on November 27, the total number of Israeli violations has risen to more than 259, a Lebanese security source said.
As part of the agreement, Hezbollah must withdraw to positions north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometers from the Israeli-Lebanese border.
Meanwhile, Israel has committed to a phased withdrawal of its ground forces from Lebanon, expected to be completed within 60 days. The Lebanese army should monitor the implementation and enforcement of the agreement.
Riad Kahwaji, the founder of the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis, told dpa that Israel is taking advantage of the situation because it knows Hezbollah has suffered a significant blow.
He said the international community is turning a blind eye to Israel’s violations because no one wants Hezbollah to rebuild its arsenal.
Kahwaji said this is the case “as long as Hezbollah does not respond to the violations,” adding that he thinks this is unlikely because it knows “this would unleash a massive response.”
