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Israeli official: A full-scale war between Israel and Lebanon is not in Israel's interest

2024-07-30

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BEIJING, July 30 (Xinhua) -- Israel will strike Hezbollah in Lebanon but will not seek to launch a full-scale war, several Israeli officials said on July 29.

Reuters reported, citing four Israeli officials who requested anonymity, that Israel does not want to drag the Middle East into a full-scale war. These officials include senior Israeli Defense Ministry officials and diplomats, but they did not provide detailed information on the Israeli military's action plan. The diplomat said: "At this moment, that (full-scale war) is not in our interest."

This is a photo taken in Safed, northern Israel on June 27, showing an interceptor missile launched by the Israeli army in response to incoming rockets. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Ayar Margolin/Gini Pictures)

On the 27th, the Israeli-occupied town of Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights was attacked. The Israeli army accused Lebanon's Hezbollah of launching rocket attacks, killing at least 12 people and injuring more than 30 people in Majdal Shams. Hezbollah denied the claim. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu visited the site of the attack on the 29th and vowed to launch a fierce attack on Hezbollah.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Israeli President Herzog on the phone on the 29th. U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that Blinken stressed the importance of avoiding the escalation of the conflict, and the two sides also discussed issues such as the return of residents on the Israeli-Lebanese border and ceasefire negotiations in the Gaza Strip through diplomatic means.

Israeli soldiers stand guard near the site of a rocket attack in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on July 9. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Ayar Margolin/Gini Pictures)

Since the current round of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict broke out in October last year, Hezbollah in Lebanon has continued to attack Israeli military targets in support of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), and the Israeli army has responded with air strikes and artillery fire. The border conflict between the two sides has continued to this day, forcing a large number of border residents in southern Lebanon and northern Israel to evacuate.

According to the Lebanese Civil Defense Department, an Israeli drone launched an airstrike on southern Lebanon on the 29th, killing two people and injuring three. In addition, the Israeli military said that the Israeli army shot down a drone that entered Israel from Lebanon.

According to AFP, since the outbreak of the current round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel has caused at least 529 deaths in Lebanon, most of whom are Hezbollah members, and at least 22 Israeli soldiers and 24 civilians have been killed.

This is a photo of a rocket attack in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (taken on July 9). Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Ayar Margolin/Gini Pictures)

Affected by the latest situation, some airlines have canceled or postponed flights to Beirut, the capital of Lebanon. Lufthansa will suspend flights until August 5, Air France canceled flights from Paris, the capital of France, to Beirut from the 29th to the 30th of this month, and Lebanon's Middle East Airlines postponed some flights back to Beirut.

If the conflict between Lebanon and Israel escalates, it may also lead to the interruption of negotiations on ceasefire and release of detained persons in Gaza Strip. Egypt and Qatar are mediating the negotiations. David Barnea, Israel's chief negotiator and director of the Intelligence and Secret Service (Mossad), has just returned to Israel after the negotiations in Rome, the capital of Italy. The Israeli Prime Minister's Office said that the negotiations will continue, but did not provide more information. (Chen Lixi)