Hezbollah, a terrorist group in Lebanon, has been trading fire over the border with Israel for the past year. Israel claims that they’re definitely only invading Lebanon because Lebanon isn’t stopping Hezbollah (Lebanon, practically speaking, can’t, because Hezbollah is better armed than the nation’s actual military). In service to this very noble goal, Israel has been indiscriminately shelling residential areas, because as we all know, that’s how to defeat terrorist organizations.
Rather predictably, the Israeli ultraright has already begun salivating over the prospect of having another bleeding ulcer like Palestine to genocide and colonize; while the Israel right pretends that the ultraright doesn’t exist and they DEFINITELY aren’t thinking the exact same thing. Realistically speaking, Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, started this shit to have another crisis to hang onto power with, as, absent the war(s), he’s deeply unpopular.
The UN isn’t coming down on them because the UN is powerless and slow. They just got around to ‘expressing concern’ for their own peacekeepers that are being fired upon in Lebanon.
What I don’t get is why?
It’s not a particularly dense region of resources, nor is it a particularly enjoyable climate. Like at least Iraq had some oil or something, otherwise you get a desert. Yay. Desert. What are we going to do with more desert?
If you’re talking about the government in general, the answer is Zionism. Literally that. It’s not driven by any kind of logic any more than Nazis had logical reasons to enslave the Slavs for their 1000 year Reich. If you mean only Netanyahu, he needs to extend the war so he doesn’t go to prison over the shit he got up to before October 7th.
Israel exists in a hostile neighborhood. It had to defend its existence several times. Israel itself is a very small country. It doesn’t have strategic depth, so can’t afford to give land in a war. That’s why Israel responds aggressively to attacks. It needs to deter further aggression.
There‘s no indiscriminate attack on Lebanon going on. Israel targets Hezbollah infrastructure and fighters specifically.
Hezbollah‘s goal in their program is the destruction of Israel. They are fundamentally opposed to peaceful coexistence. It’s in their own writings. That’s why they attack Israel any chance they get.
According to UNSC resolution 1701, Hezbollah should have left southern Lebanon and disarmed two decades ago. They didn’t, but instead built up their military infrastructure and armaments. Since October 8th 2023 Hezbollah has attacked Israel without rockets without pause. 100,000 Israelis fled the north of Israel to escape the rocket barrage since then. The Israeli government wants to enable their citizens to return to their homes and needs to destroy Hezbollah‘s military capabilities to achieve it.
Israel doesn’t want Lebanese territory. Otherwise they would have annexed or settled land during the previous occupation.
