Lebanese Army Readies for War with Israel

In mid-November, the Head of the Lebanese Army asked the military to be at “full readiness” to face “the Israeli enemy” at the Southern border, after Arab nations, including Saudi Arabia, vow to tighten their grip on the Lebanon’s Hezbollah.

"The army maintains its readiness on the Southern border to confront any Israeli military aggression or any attempt to encroach on parts of its land and maritime borders," Lebanese Commander General said.

"The army has the complete will to defend Lebanese rights through all of its available means and capabilities, no matter how much the enemy's threats and provocations may escalate," Aoun added.

Lebanon’s President has also expressed the country’s wish for stability in the region and readiness for Israel’s possible military intervention.

He stressed that in attacking Syria, Israel not only violates Lebanese territorial airspace but also violates UN Security Council Resolution 1701 resolution by building a wall along the Lebanese-Israeli border.

The President also said late February that the current border dispute between Lebanon and Israel “does not allow Israel to cross the border because there is a Lebanese decision to defend these land and sea borders”.

Aoun stressed in an interview with al-Sumariyah that he raised with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson the problem of the conflict with Israel over Lebanon's maritime and land borders, and explained to him that "Lebanon has maps dating back to the 1920s proving its rights to its land. These maps are available in the hands of the entire world and can not be manipulated.”

Defense Minister Yacoub Sarraf had also stressed early February that Lebanon won’t accept threats whether they were by Israeli enemy or any other side.

“Lebanon from the far North to the far South is standing to protect its territories,” the Minister said, adding that “Lebanon does not succumb to threats, and we confirm its sovereignty over its land, water and oil resources".

Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil had also said Lebanon has capabilities to counter “any threat", but only wants peace and stability in the region, warning that any potential aggressor state would suffer consequences, which could reach as far as Europe.

The Middle Eastern country has always chosen to "maintain constructive and sound policies" with its neighbors and other states in the Arab world, but this hasn't prevented "hostile actions" against Lebanon, Bassil added.

Israel launched two wars on Lebanon in 2000 and 2006, in both of which the Hezbollah resistance movement inflicted heavy losses on the regime’s military. Israeli forces regularly violate Lebanon’s sovereignty and target Lebanese patrol soldiers, while Israeli officials have even threatened another war on Lebanon.

In 2006, the Security Council unanimously passed a resolution calling for the cessation of all hostilities in Southern Lebanon following a devastating conflict between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah group, while Israel continues to carry out hostile acts against Lebanon in blatant violation of international regulations.

Additionally, Lebanon and Israel have nearly come to blows over a tender by Beirut for oil and gas exploration projects in two of the country’s 10 offshore blocks in the Mediterranean Sea, namely Block 4 and Block 9.