The explosion of electronic devices in Lebanon could be a prelude to a wider attack, says the WSJ.
The explosion of pagers and other electronic devices in Lebanon has sharply increased the Pentagon’s concerns about a possible ground war between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported.
The paper quoted US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin as telling senior Pentagon officials at a meeting on Monday, before the hundreds of explosions on Tuesday and yesterday, that he feared Israel might soon launch an offensive against Hezbollah, with which Israel has been exchanging rockets and air strikes since October 8.
According to the WSJ, Israel’s ‘brazen’ pager and radio attacks in Lebanon have heightened US concerns about a possible invasion. “I am very concerned that this is getting out of control,” said a senior defence official, echoing comments made by other Pentagon aides since Tuesday.
After months of operations in Gaza, the Israeli army moved a division of commandos and paratroopers from the south of the country to the north in recent days, according to a person familiar with the matter. The division comprises thousands of troops.
US officials said there had been no call-up of reservists, which would be the most important sign that an invasion was imminent, and that even if an invasion was decided, it could be weeks before Israeli forces were in a position to launch a major offensive. But US defence officials said Israel would be able to carry out a smaller operation more quickly without making other major military moves.
We are at the beginning of a new phase in the war, we are allocating resources and forces to the northern region, and our mission is clear: to ensure the safe return of communities in northern Israel to their homes,’ Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said yesterday: ‘This requires a change in the security situation.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also said in a video message that Israelis evacuated from northern Israel because of clashes with Hezbollah would ‘return safely to their homes’. That is exactly what we will do,’ Netanyahu said.
US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby also told reporters that there was still a way to end the crisis through diplomacy, not war. Nothing is inevitable,’ Kirby said of a possible conflict.
Hezbollah said it would retaliate against Israel for the pager attacks. The Israeli authorities made no public statement about the explosions. The Lebanese government blamed Israel, saying Tuesday’s attacks killed 12 people and wounded more than 2,800, while yesterday’s killed 20 and wounded more than 450.
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant told US special envoy Amos Hochstein in Tel Aviv on Monday that ‘military action is the only way to return the residents of the north to their homes’.
“You do it as a shaping before you do anything else,” said a former defence official, according to the WSJ, referring to the timing of the detonation of pagers, radios and other electronic devices.
