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| Top Netanyahu confidant visited Russia last week amid Lebanon ceasefire efforts ‐ report |
| 2024-11-10 |
| [IsraelTimes] Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer secretly visited Russia last week, Army Radio reported Sunday, in what appeared to be part of Israel’s efforts to reach a ceasefire in Lebanon where it is battling the terror group Hezbollah. Dermer’s office said that it had no comment on the report. Dermer then flew to Washington on Saturday night for talks with US officials, the Ynet outlet reported. Russia is a major player in Syria, and its cooperation in a diplomatic arrangement to end fighting between Israel and Hezbollah could be an important piece of a deal that keeps the Iran-backed group from rearming. Syria, an ally of Tehran, is a key supply route of weapons from Iran to the Lebanon-based terror group Hezbollah, which Israel says has suffered massive damage to its leadership, infrastructure, and arsenal as a result of the Israeli military offensive. That ground operation was launched after 11 months of near-daily rocket fire and drone attacks — at times deadly — which caused the evacuation of some 60,000 residents from areas close to the northern border. Meanwhile, Lebanese politicians told the Hezbollah-affiliated outlet Al-Akhbar that US special envoy Amos Hochstein told them he assured the country’s Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Najib Mikati last week that he would arrive in the country within ten days. However, other unnamed sources told the outlet that Lebanon has not been given any official date for Hochstein to arrive, with one source casting doubt on the envoy’s ability to achieve anything after coming up emptyhanded for the past year. The source noted that Israel has said it will expand its ground operation in southern Lebanon and that Iran is believed to be posed to launch a third direct attack on Israel. Meanwhile, US President-elect Donald Trump has informed the Biden administration that he expects to see progress in the efforts to reach a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, the Ynet news site reported Saturday. Citing anonymous US officials, the report added that Hochstein is confident that the two sides will be able to reach an agreement and bring an end to more than a year of cross-border fighting and Israel’s ground operation in southern Lebanon. On Friday the Lebanese MTV outlet cited unnamed US sources as saying that Trump told Hochstein to continue his work and “make a deal with Lebanon.” US officials have said they will make a final push to reach deals on the conflicts between Israel and the Hamas and Hezbollah terror groups, although it is unclear how much leverage they have over Israel and other actors in the region now focused on the incoming Trump administration. In October, ahead of the November 5 presidential election, Trump pledged to end the “suffering and destruction in Lebanon.” “I want to see the Middle East return to real peace, a lasting peace, and we will get it done properly so it doesn’t repeat itself every 5 or 10 years,” he added at the time. A Russian delegation visited Israel on October 24. A source in Netanyahu’s office told The Times of Israel that the Russian delegation’s visit was not connected to hostages held by Hamas in Gaza since October 7, 2023 |
| Posted by:Skidmark |
| #2 When the carrot doesn’t work, Grom, apply a strong stick vigorously, then repeat. That’s basic applied psychology. ;-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2024-11-10 16:41 |
| #1 in what appeared to be part of Israel’s efforts to reach a ceasefire in Lebanon IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi approves expansion of Lebanon ground operations |
| Posted by: Grom the Reflective 2024-11-10 14:29 |