Israel is plotting a huge attack on Lebanon in order to take on Hezbollah, sources close to the terror group have claimed.
Al-Akhbar, a Lebanese newspaper with close links to Hezbollah, reported on Tuesday that Beirut had recently received diplomatic messages warning of the threat of an impending Israeli attack.
Sources reportedly that international delegations raised the alarm, while Britain is reportedly expecting Israel to launch the attack in June, according to Israel‘s most popular newspaper, Israel Hayom.
Former Lebanese minister Walid Jumblatt said that Qatar – a main funder of Hamas in Gaza – also raised concerns regarding an Israeli assault.
Rocket exchanges between the IDF and Hezbollah over the border with Lebanon have ramped up since Hamas’ October 7 terror attack which saw 1,200 people killed.
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The rising tensions have led to fears that Israel could be dragged into a war with Hezbollah having already diverted much of its military resources to the campaign against Hamas in Gaza.
On Sunday, the IDF said it had held military drills including “many scenarios that simulate the expansion of the war in the northern arena, and multi-front war scenarios”.
Last week, Hezbollah’s leader said the group is “pressuring Israel” from the north.
In a speech via video link, he said: “This battle concerns Palestine, but also concerns the future of Lebanon and its water and oil resources.
“This front is a support front that is part of the battle that will determine the fate of Palestine, Lebanon, and the region strategically.”
In recent days, the north of Israel has seen huge bushfires as a result of Hezbollah’s rockets.
Hezbollah fired at least 40 rockets on Sunday after the IDF carried out strikes against the terror group overnight.
Naftali Bennett, a right-wing Israeli politician and former prime minister, said on X that the north of Israel is “on fire.”
He said: “The fire is spreading… we must save the north. Places that were flourishing and beautiful have become cities of ruins.”