Jerusalem, Undefined—The United States on Wednesday said Israel must avoid any Gaza-like military action in Lebanon after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned it risked “destruction” like that in the Palestinian territory.
“There should be no kind of military action in Lebanon that looks anything like Gaza and leaves a result anything like Gaza,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told journalists.
But Israeli armed forces chief Herzi Halevi vowed it would keep up the intensive bombing of Hezbollah targets that has already killed more than 1,200 people since September 23, “without allowing them any respite or recovery.”
In a phone call on Wednesday, US President Joe Biden told Netanyahu to “minimise harm” to civilians in Lebanon, particularly in “densely populated areas of Beirut”, the White House said.
It added the two leaders had agreed to stay in “close contact” over the coming days.
Netanyahu said in a video address addressed to the people of Lebanon on Tuesday: “You have an opportunity to save Lebanon before it falls into the abyss of a long war that will lead to destruction and suffering like we see in Gaza.”
He added: “Free your country from Hezbollah so that this war can end.”
Iran conflict concerns
A Lebanese government source told Agence France Presse (AFP) that Hezbollah had accepted a ceasefire with Israel on September 27, the day an Israeli strike killed the Iran-backed militant group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah.
But they said Israel’s response had torpedoed the ceasefire plan, backed by Washington and its allies, and the Lebanese government had “had no contact with Hezbollah” since his death.
Biden and Netanyahu’s call had been expected to focus on Israel’s response to last week’s missile barrage by Iran.
Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said: “Our attack on Iran will be deadly, precise and surprising.”
Iran fired some 200 missiles at Israel in what it said was retaliation for the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. Most were intercepted by allied air forces or Israel’s own air defences.
Biden has cautioned Israel against attempting to target Iran’s nuclear programme, which would risk major retaliation, and is also against striking the country’s oil installations, which would send world crude prices spiking.
