Lebanon is preparing for a possible large-scale strike after Israel's security cabinet authorized a military response to a rocket attack from Lebanon that killed 12 teenagers and children on a soccer field in the Golan Heights on Saturday. This was reported by UNN with reference to France24.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Monday to give a “tough” response to the strike that killed children in the Golan Heights, as diplomats sought to contain the escalation between Israel and Hezbollah.
Visiting the site of a rocket attack that killed 12 children in the town of Majdal Shams, Netanyahu said: “The State of Israel will not and cannot ignore this. Our response will be, and it will be severe.
Israel and the United States have blamed the strike on the Iranian-backed Lebanese movement Hezbollah, which has been exchanging fire with Israeli troops almost daily since the war in Gaza between Hamas and Israel began in early October.
Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib said that diplomats are working to contain Israel's expected response. “Israel will escalate in a limited way, and Hezbollah will respond in a limited way... These are the assurances that we have received,” Bu Habib said in an interview with local television station Al-Jadeed.
Several analysts told AFP that this is likely to be the case, as Israel fears fighting a two-front war.
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The United States, France, and other countries are trying to contain the escalation, Habib added, and Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said that “negotiations are ongoing with international, European, and Arab parties to protect Lebanon and remove danger from it.
On Monday, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said he was “confident” that a larger war could be avoided.
Iran's new president, Massoud Peseshkian, whose country supports Hezbollah and Hamas, has warned Israel against attacking Lebanon, which he said would be “a big mistake with grave consequences.
On Monday, Pezeshkian spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron, and the Elysee Palace reported that Macron told his counterpart that “everything possible must be done to avoid a military escalation” and called on Tehran to “stop supporting destabilizing forces.
“Hezbollah denies responsibility for the rocket attack on Majdal Shams, although the group claimed several strikes on Israeli military positions that day.