US concerned about an Israeli ground attack on southern Lebanon
Shafaq News/ The United States is increasingly concerned that Israel may launch a ground offensive in southern Lebanon, as tensions with Hezbollah continue to rise along the border, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.
The explosion of communication devices in Lebanon against Hezbollah members on Tuesday and Wednesday has heightened the Pentagon’s fears of a potential ground war in the region, the report said.
Before these incidents, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had already expressed concerns during a Pentagon meeting on Monday, telling top officials that he feared “Israel might launch an attack soon,” following months of escalating rocket exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran.
“I am very worried about this spiraling out of control,” a senior US military official told the Wall Street Journal, echoing similar sentiments from colleagues at the Pentagon.
Recently, Israel moved thousands of special forces and paratroopers from Gaza to northern Israel, near the Lebanese border, signaling preparations for potential conflict. Since the outbreak of the Gaza war in October last year, Washington has been increasingly concerned about the possibility of a broader regional conflict erupting on Israel's northern front, which could draw in other regional powers.
While US officials stressed that they had “seen no indications of an imminent invasion, such as the mobilization of reserve forces,” other military officials warned that “Israel could opt for a smaller-scale operation at short notice, without major military buildup.”
On Wednesday, Israeli Security Minister Yoav Gallant said on the social media platform X: “We are at the start of a new phase in the war. We are allocating resources and forces to the northern arena and our mission is clear: ensuring the safe return of Israel's northern communities to their homes. To do so, the security situation must be changed.”
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Wednesday that “We still don’t want to see an escalation of any kind. We don’t believe that the way to solve where we’re at in this crisis is by additional military operations at all.”
Kirby added “We still believe that the best way to prevent escalation, to prevent another front from opening up in Lebanon, is through diplomacy.”
On Thursday, Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah issued a stern warning to Israel, stating that it would be impossible to restore the northern settlements near the Lebanese border unless the ongoing aggression in Gaza and the West Bank ceased. "Even a total war will not bring the settlers back to the north," he warned.
In a final, defiant remark, Sayyed Nasrallah dared Israel to enter Lebanese territory. "If the enemy dares to step onto our land, hell awaits them," he declared, signaling that Hezbollah’s resistance to Israeli aggression remains undeterred.
