Israel’s cabinet fails to settle strategy amid ongoing war

Report by Amal Shehadeh, English adaptation by Karine Keuchkerian 

Between a full-scale war on Lebanon and an advance toward the Litani River, the Israeli cabinet concluded its discussions without reaching a decision on the nature of the confrontation. 

The debates were fueled by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who rejected even the idea of establishing a security zone inside Lebanon, claiming that Hezbollah is the one running Israel.

These internal discussions coincided with warnings from Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir about the risk of the Israeli reserve army failing under the pressures of war, while security officials criticized the government’s approval to recruit 400,000 reserve soldiers.

On the ground, the Israeli army, which has been reporting daily casualties in battles with Hezbollah’s Radwan Force, continues to intensify operations in southern Lebanon. 

The army is dividing its units to operate in more than five areas and is deploying to accelerate its plan for control, while uncovering a weapons cache in the town of Khiam.

All of this unfolds as towns inside Israel spend hours under fire from Hezbollah and Iran.