![Israel must continue to be able to deter Hezbollah, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar stressed on Wednesday, speaking amid efforts to reach a ceasefire with Iran's Lebanese terrorist proxy. "We need to keep the freedom to act if there will be violations. And we will have to act in time, before the problem will grow," the minister told a gathering of nearly 100 foreign ambassadors in Jerusalem, the Times of Israel reported. A deal to end more than a year of fighting on the northern border must be durable, Sa'ar said, saying Jerusalem “would like to reach an agreement that will stand the test of time." He added that a ceasefire would be an "opportunity" for Lebanon to regain its sovereignty after the Israeli military severely degraded the Iranian-backed group in recent months. He called for the Lebanese Armed Forces to be strengthened and urged the international community to invest more in the economically devastated country, which is drowning in debt following years of mismanagement and corruption. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz also emphasized on Wednesday the necessity for Jerusalem to be able to act against any Hezbollah threats that may arise after a ceasefire deal is implemented. “The condition for any political settlement in Lebanon is the preservation of the intelligence capability and the preservation of the [IDF’s] right to act and protect the citizens of Israel from Hezbollah,” Katz said. Meanwhile, U.S. special envoy Amos Hochstein remained in Beirut for a second day on Wednesday to discuss "technical details" of an American ceasefire proposal with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who heads the Hezbollah-allied Amal movement. President Joe Biden's point man in the Land of the Cedars announced he would travel to Israel on Wednesday night, speaking after he made "additional progress" in a second meeting with Berri. Hochstein was scheduled to meet with Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer shortly after his arrival, followed by a tête-à-tête with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the following day. “The meeting today built on the meeting yesterday, and made additional progress,” Hochstein said. “So I will travel from here in a couple hours to Israel to try to bring this to a close if we can.” The Biden envoy added that he will work with the incoming Trump administration on ceasefire efforts, saying that he has kept the president-elect's transition team informed of progress. Hochstein described as "very productive" his meetings with Lebanese officials on Tuesday. “We have a real opportunity to end the conflict, and now is the moment to decide. We are committed to doing everything we can to work with Lebanon and Israel to end this conflict,” Hochstein said at a press conference on Tuesday. Hochstein also met on Tuesday with Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, and he was scheduled to meet with Lebanese Armed Forces commander Gen. Joseph Aoun. Mikati emphasized that Lebanon’s primary objectives are achieving a ceasefire and safeguarding its sovereignty. He highlighted the need to implement international resolutions and bolster the Lebanese Armed Forces in the southern part of the country. Lebanon delivered its written response to the latest U.S. proposal on Monday. According to Ali Hassan Khalil, an aide to Berri, the response included “comments” that were “presented in a positive atmosphere.” He did not provide details on the nature of the comments, saying only that they “affirm the precise adherence to [U.N. Security Council] Resolution 1701 with all its provisions,” according to Reuters. Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem said in a speech on Wednesday that the terrorist group had "read the ceasefire proposal. "We have our comments, and Nabih Berri has comments, and ours and the Lebanese government's comments are, Inshallah ['God willing'], identical," Qassem said. "We have decided not to discuss these ceasefire proposals or our comments in the media. All I will say is that Israeli is trying to obtain through negotiations what it couldn't through war." The terrorist leader vowed to “continue our efforts on the ground, whether the negotiations succeed or not. “We are confronting a savage enemy, and we will remain on the ground, no matter the cost, as we will also increase the cost for the enemy. We are facing Israeli human monsters supported by American human monsters,” threatened Qassem. Disarm and retreat Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 Second Lebanon War, stipulated that Hezbollah must disarm and retreat north of the Litani River, but was never enforced. The Litani lies some 20 miles from the Israel-Lebanon border. Its enforcement, along with Israeli freedom of operation in Lebanon should Hezbollah violate the terms of a ceasefire agreement, are the key sticking points in the current negotiations. Netanyahu emphasized during a speech in the Knesset plenum on Monday that Israel will not allow Hezbollah to “return to the state it was in on Oct. 6, 2023. “We will be required, in order to ensure our security in the north, to systematically carry out operations—not only against Hezbollah’s attacks, which could come. Even if there is a ceasefire, nobody can guarantee it will hold. So it’s not only our reaction, a preventive reaction, a reaction in the wake of attack but also the capacity to prevent Hezbollah from strengthening,” he said. Hezbollah has launched some 16,000 rockets, missiles and drones from Lebanon at Israel since joining the war in support of Hamas on Oct. 8, 2023, a day after the Gaza-based terrorist group’s massacre in southern Israel. More than 60,000 residents of northern Israel remain internally displaced due to the ongoing rocket and drone attacks from Lebanon. Seventy-six people in northern Israel have been killed by Hezbollah cross-border rocket, missile and drone attacks since the start of the war, including 31 soldiers and six foreign citizens, according to the latest data provided by the Prime Minister’s Office, updated on Sunday. In addition, 729 people have been wounded, including 497 civilians and 232 soldiers. Of these, 29 civilians and 37 soldiers were severely injured; 63 civilians and 38 soldiers were moderately injured and 405 civilians and 157 soldiers were lightly injured. Hezbollah’s leadership has been left in tatters following a series of targeted killings by Israel, including that of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut on Sept. 27. This was preceded by Israeli sabotage of Hezbollah communication devices that killed 39 people and wounded more than 3,400 members of the terrorist group. Israel has been waging a devastating aerial campaign against Hezbollah throughout Lebanon, including its stronghold of Dahieh south of Beirut. According to Israeli estimates, the terrorist group has lost most of its arsenal to the ongoing strikes. Then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in late October that Hezbollah had lost an estimated 80%-plus of its long-range rockets since the start of the war. Israel also continues to battle Hamas terrorists in Gaza. The terrorist group still holds 101 hostages in the Strip, 97 of whom were kidnapped on Oct. 7. Many of the captives are believed to be dead. Brazil summit Meanwhile, G20 leaders gathered in Rio de Janeiro for a summit put out a joint statement on Monday calling for “comprehensive” ceasefires in Gaza and Lebanon. The leaders of the world’s biggest economies called for U.S. proposals to end fighting in Gaza and free the hostages, and one for Lebanon “that enables citizens to return safely to their homes on both sides of the Blue Line.” The 13-point U.S. proposal presented to Lebanese officials on Nov. 14 includes a 60-day truce, during which Lebanon would redeploy its troops along the border. The proposal also calls for Moscow to prevent Hezbollah from resupplying itself via Syrian land routes. Hezbollah would retreat north of the Litani River, with the border area then being under control of the Lebanese Armed Forces, overseen by the United States and Britain. Israeli officials are emphasizing, however, that the Israel Defense Forces must retain freedom of operation in Lebanon to thwart attempts by Hezbollah to violate the agreement and rearm and reestablish itself. A senior Israeli diplomatic official told Israel Hayom on Saturday that the IDF will retain operational freedom to respond to any security threats from across the northern border, regardless of any diplomatic arrangements. However, a source close to Hezbollah told The Washington Post that the group’s “condition for progress remains clear: Israel must be prohibited from conducting operations within Lebanese territory.” Berri emphasized at the time that any ceasefire agreement must not include the ability for Israel to attack by land, sea or air, Channel 12 reported. “Otherwise, what’s the purpose of an agreement?” he remarked. Another sticking point is Lebanon’s objection to the United Kingdom and Germany monitoring the implementation of U.N. Resolution 1701. Beirut reportedly favors the United States and France. If the ceasefire efforts fail, there are plans in the works to expand ground operations in Lebanon, an Israeli military official told the Post. Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer discussed the proposal with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump during a visit to his Florida estate earlier this month, as well as with senior Biden administration officials in Washington. Dermer also traveled to Russia to discuss the ceasefire proposal. Tehran is telling its Lebanese terrorist proxy Hezbollah that it supports ending the war against Israel, The New York Times reported over the weekend. Ali Larijani, senior adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, met with senior Lebanese officials in Beirut on Nov. 15 to discuss the matter. Two Iranians affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps told the Times that Larijani conveyed messages to Hezbollah from Khamenei that he supported the end of the war and that the regime would assist with rebuilding the terrorist group’s forces and recovering from the war.](https://jewishwebsite.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Gideon-Saar-1320x880-2-218x150.jpg "Sa’ar: Israel must be free to act against Hezbollah truce violations")
Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said on Tuesday night following Iran’s ballistic missile attack on Israel that the IDF would respond with “precise and surprising offensive capabilities.”
The Islamic Republic fired more than 180 ballistic missiles at the Jewish state on Tuesday evening, forcing Israel’s entire civilian population of nearly 10 million people into bomb shelters.
A 37-year old Palestinian worker from Gaza was killed by shrapnel near Jericho, marking the only fatality during the onslaught.
“We have demonstrated our ability to prevent the enemy from achieving success, through the combination of exemplary civilian behavior and a very strong air defense system,” Halevi said at the conclusion of a situational assessment.
“We will choose when to exact the price and showcase our precise and surprising offensive capabilities, in accordance with the guidance of the political echelon,” he continued.
IDF Spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said in a briefing with foreign media that, “We will decide the manner of response—when, where, and how.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Tehran in the aftermath of the attack that it “made a big mistake and will pay for it.” The premier also said at the start of a Security Cabinet meeting held in a secure bunker in Jerusalem that the strike on Israel “failed” and was “thwarted thanks to Israel’s air defense system, which is the most advanced in the world.”
איראן עשתה הערב טעות גדולה – והיא תשלם על כך. pic.twitter.com/B2yppgGqcE
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) October 1, 2024
“The regime in Iran does not understand our determination to defend ourselves and our determination to retaliate against our enemies. They will understand. We will stand by the rule we established: whoever attacks us, we will attack him,” Netanyahu continued.
Netanyahu also thanked the United States for helping to intercept the missiles fired from Iranian soil. Kan News reported that France, Jordan and other countries also worked to shoot down the missiles as part of a regional defense coalition.
Hagari said that “there were a small number of hits in the center of Israel and some other hits in southern Israel,” adding that “the majority” of the incoming missiles were intercepted by Israel and a defensive coalition led by the United States.
“Iran and its proxies have been attacking Israel since the 7th of October on seven fronts. Iran and its proxies seek the destruction of Israel. The Israel Defense Forces will continue doing everything necessary to defend the state of Israel and protect the people of Israel,” concluded Hagari.
דובר צה״ל לתקשורת הזרה: ״אנחנו נחליט את אופן התגובה – מתי, איפה ואיך״ pic.twitter.com/UfS4llWBFq
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 1, 2024
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian praised the attack as a “decisive response” to what he called Israeli “aggression.”
“In accordance with legitimate rights and with the aim of [establishing] peace and security in Iran and the region, a decisive response has been made to the Zionist regime’s aggression,” Pezeshkian posted on X.
Kan reported that after the Cabinet discussions, “Israel’s likely direction is to exact a heavy price from Iran, potentially through a strike on a strategic site such as oil facilities.”
“However, it is estimated that one of the considerations for decision-makers is the timing of the strike, allowing Israel to reposition its defenses in case of an additional Iranian response,” the report continued, adding that Netanyahu on Wednesday will convene another, smaller group for a security consultation.
Israeli officials told Axios reporter Barak Ravid that Jerusalem will launch a “significant retaliation” within days that could target Iran’s oil production facilities and other strategic sites.
The Islamic Republic has threatened to respond to any Israeli attack, and the officials said that if that happens, then all options are on the table, including strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
“We have a big question mark about how the Iranians are going to respond to an attack, but we take into consideration the possibility that they would go all in, which will be a whole different ball game,” an Israeli official said.
While bombing the oil facilities is under consideration, other options include targeted assassinations such as the one that killed Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran this past summer and taking out Iran’s air defense systems, according to the Axios report.
Israel responded with restraint to Iran’s April drone and missile attack, striking a single S-300 air defense battery. However, Israeli officials said this time the response will be much more significant.
A senior official told Axios that a decision was not made at the Cabinet meeting because Jerusalem wants to consult with the Biden administration, as an Iranian response would again require a coordinated defense with U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), more munitions for the Israeli Air Force and other operational support.
Halevi spoke by phone with CENTCOM Commander Gen. Erik Kurilla after the Iranian attack, the IDF said.
הרמטכ״ל, רב-אלוף הרצי הלוי, שוחח אתמול עם מפקד סנטקום, גנרל (****) מייקל אריק קורילה בסיום התקיפה מאיראן.
צה״ל וצבא ארה״ב פעלו יחד בהגנה ובשיתוף פעולה, מספר ימים לפני, בזמן ואחרי המתקפה האיראנית>> pic.twitter.com/jxloQ6JRdW— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 2, 2024
“The IDF and the U.S. military worked together in defense and cooperation several days before, during and after the Iranian attack,” the Israeli military said, adding that “the IDF will continue to deepen its relationship with the U.S. military, committed to strengthening regional stability and coordination between the armies.”
The U.S. president said on Tuesday that Washington and Jerusalem are discussing the response to the Iranian attack and that “it remains to be seen” what will happen.
A U.S. official told Axios that Washington supports an Israeli response, but that it should be measured. Biden said he will speak with Netanyahu regarding the Israeli response to the attack, with the call possibly taking place on Wednesday hours ahead of the start of the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah.
