Concerns Grow as Conflict Escalates Between Israel and Hezbollah

20 Sep 2024, 13:36 by Anna Gordon · TIME

By Anna Gordon
Updated: September 20, 2024 10:07 AM EDT | Originally published: September 20, 2024 9:36 AM EDT

U.S., U.K. and United Nations officials urged restraint as tensions ramped up between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Lebanon’s health ministry reported that at least eight people were killed and 59 people were wounded in an Israeli airstrike in Southern Beirut on Sept. 20. The strike was a targeted assassination aimed at top Hezbollah commander Ibrahim Aqil, who was killed in the attack, according to Reuters.

After days of escalating conflict, Israel carried out extensive airstrikes targeting Southern Lebanon on Sept. 19 and Hezbollah retaliated on Sept. 20, prompting fears of further conflict and a wider Middle East war. It comes just days after thousands of pagers and other wireless devices, many of which were used by Hezbollah, exploded in Lebanon and parts of Syria in an unprecedented deadly attack that killed at least 37 people and wounded 3,000. While Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attack, Hezbollah officials and multiple news outlets have suggested that the Israeli government was responsible.

Hezbollah said on Sept. 20 that it had launched multiple strikes targeting Israel’s military in the north of the country. Around 140 rockets were launched at northern Israel, the IDF said, with some fired at the occupied Golan Heights, Safed, and Upper Galilee areas intercepted. The IDF later said that it had launched an airstrike on Lebanon’s capital Beirut. In a post on social media platform X earlier in the day, the Israel Foreign Ministry wrote, “Make no mistake: those who harm the people of Israel will pay the price.”

The 15-member United Nations Security Council is expected to meet today to discuss the tensions. A spokesperson for the United Nations Interim Peace Keeping Force in Lebanon, expressed concern about the tensions at the border between Israel and Lebanon. "We are concerned at the increased escalation across the Blue Line and urge all actors to immediately de-escalate," Andrea Tenenti, told Reuters.

White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said that the U.S. is “afraid and concerned about potential escalation.” During a press briefing on Sept. 19, Jean-Pierre said, “The way to move forward is diplomatic resolution. We think it is achievable. Obviously it is urgent.” She added: “Diplomacy is key here when we talk about potential escalation, which we do not want to see.” On Sept. 18, Antony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State, called on “all parties” to avoid further escalating the conflict. Meanwhile, U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy called for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah on Sept. 19.

In October 2023, Hezbollah began striking Israel’s Northern border region in solidarity with Gaza, where there is an ongoing war with Israel. Israel has responded with cross-border attacks, and the two groups have been trading strikes almost daily for nearly a year. Until now, neither group has let things escalate into a full-scale war, but some in the diplomatic community are concerned that could change soon.

Israel says its goal is to allow all internally displaced Israelis to return to their homes in the border region. Currently, 97,000 Lebanese people and 60,000 Israelis have been forced to evacuate their homes since the tensions began in October of last year, according to Al Jazeera.

Late on the evening of Sept. 16, before the pager attack, Netanyahu’s security cabinet officially added the safe return of Israel’s Northern residents to their homes as one of the war’s goals.

“The possibility for an agreement is running out as Hezbollah continues to ‘tie itself’ to Hamas, and refuses to end the conflict,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Sept. 16. “Therefore, the only way left to ensure the return of Israel’s northern communities to their homes, will be via military action.”

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said in a televised address on Sept. 19 that Israel’s actions were a declaration of war and vowed to respond. “The enemy crossed all rules, laws, and red lines. It didn’t care about anything at all, not morally, not humanely, not legally,” he said. “It can be called war crimes or a declaration of war–whatever you choose to name it, it is deserving and fits the description.”

He also said that Israel would pay a price for its actions and that Hezbollah would continue cross-border attacks so long as Israel maintains its presence in Gaza. “The enemy will face a severe and fair punishment from where they expect and don’t expect,” he said.