Several leaders of Israeli opposition parties called on the government to order a ground invasion into southern Lebanon, joining the call of other ministers and coalition party leaders after Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Friday.
In a visit to the northern town of Kfar Giladi, Democrats chairman Yair Golan pointed to a Lebanese village overlooking the Kibbutz and said that the IDF needed to conquer it so that “there will not be a direct line of fire.”
In an interview later on Army Radio, Golan said that the residents of the North will “not be able to return to their homes if the terrorists are so close.”
“A ground invasion of Lebanon is necessary in order to ensure that there is no Hezbollah presence south of the Litani River,” Golan said.
Additionally, in a video statement, Yisrael Beytenu chairman MK Avigdor Liberman called for Israel to “flatten” Lebanese towns near the border and only then begin a ground invasion, since they were full of “mines and tunnels.” According to Liberman, there were “no uninvolved people” left in the towns, and “whoever remained there were Hezbollah members.”
If there is no deal, Israel should invade Lebanon
National Unity chairman MK Benny Gantz also said that if a “strong and trustworthy” deal was not signed soon, Israel should invade Lebanon and “create facts on the ground.” Any deal would require Israeli enforcement in order to ensure that “an army of terror will not deploy on our borders and threaten our citizens.”
“The attack needs to be continued, and the harm [to Hezbollah] should be deepened in a continuous, lethal, and speedy way,” Gantz stressed.
A “war of attrition is not in the state of Israel’s interest,” he added.
The leader of the opposition, MK Yair Lapid, called on the government to announce the diplomatic and strategic goals for the northern conflict.
“In parallel to the operational activity, now is the right time to take a diplomatic step, when we have an advantage, when we are winning,” Lapid said. “Our goal is a hostage deal in the South and a diplomatic agreement that will distance Hezbollah from the northern border,” Lapid added.
He warned that the war in Gaza against Hamas was an example of a “ground operation without a diplomatic goal” and that IDF soldiers were therefore required to reenter the same places again and again.
“The political echelon’s goal is to define the endgame for the security system and to get the Americans on board instead of squabbling with them,” Lapid underscored.
“Building an alternative governing mechanism in Gaza with the Saudis and the Emiratis and distancing Hezbollah beyond the Litani” should be Israel’s objective as well, Lapid said.
