A view of the Lebanese side of the border near Metula during an IDF operation to destroy Hezbollah tunnels crossing over into Israeli territory, Dec 5, 2018. (Kobi Richter/TPS)
If Hezbollah does not withdraw from the border with Israel by next week, the IDF will escalate military, according to the report.
By World Israel News Staff
The Israeli government has given March 15th as the deadline for a diplomatic resolution ending the ongoing cross border fire with Hezbollah or face military escalation, according to a report from a Lebanese news outlet.
The Al-Akhbar newspaper, which is affiliated with Hezbollah, asserts that Israeli officials have told international negotiators that a deal, which would see Hezbollah forces withdrawn north of the Litani River, must be reach by next week.
If that does not happen, Israel will use military force to push back the terror group, marking a major escalation in the long-simmering conflict that could lead to an all-out war between the parties.
American Envoy to the Middle East Amos Hochstein has made numerous trips to Beirut and Jerusalem in recent months, in an attempt to broker an agreement to stop the fighting.
“A diplomatic solution is the only way to end the current hostilities” and obtain “a lasting fair security arrangement between Lebanon and Israel,” Hochstein told reporters in Beirut on Sunday.
He added that “a temporary ceasefire is not enough,” insinuating that he would seek to implement a UN Security Council ruling from 2006 that bars Hezbollah from southern Lebanon and calls for negotiations regarding border demarcations between Israel and Lebanon.
The Al-Akhbar report noted that Hezbollah leaders have repeatedly said that they will not stop firing at Israel until Jerusalem reaches a truce with Hamas.
But a ceasefire between Israel and the Hamas terror group would not necessarily result in the end of hostilities with Hezbollah.
Israel has stated that a truce with Hamas will not affect its determination to push Hezbollah forces further away from the northern border.
“The goal is simple — to push Hezbollah back to where it should be,” said Defense Minister Yoav Gallant last week.
“Either by agreement, or we will do it by force.”
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