Israel's Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant, has issued a stark warning to Lebanon, stating that the country could be sent "back to the Stone Age" if a war breaks out. This comes as the United Nations humanitarian affairs chief warned such a conflict between the two countries would be “potentially apocalyptic”.
“We do not want war, but we are preparing for every scenario,” Yoav Gallant told reporters on Wednesday in Washington, DC. “Hezbollah understands very well that we can inflict massive damage in Lebanon if a war is launched.”
Israel is capable of taking “Lebanon back to the Stone Age, but we don’t want to do it”, he said.
The border between Israel and Lebanon has witnessed daily exchanges of fire between Israeli forces and Hezbollah, an Iran-aligned Lebanese militant group, since the current war in Gaza began on October 7.
Tensions have been escalating along the border, with both sides engaging in a war of words. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened a "very tense operation" on the border with Lebanon, while Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has vowed a war with "no restraint and no rules and no ceilings" in the event of a major Israeli offensive against Lebanon.
Meanwhile, UN humanitarian affairs chief Martin Griffiths called Lebanon “the flashpoint beyond all flashpoints”.
“It’s beyond planning. It’s potentially apocalyptic,” he told reporters in Geneva, warning that a war involving Lebanon would draw in Syria and other countries.
Lebanon’s National News Agency reported about 10 Israeli attacks on areas near the frontier on Wednesday, including one that destroyed a building in Nabatiyeh, wounding five people, and Hezbollah claimed six attacks against Israeli military positions in the border region.
The tensions between Israel and Hezbollah have been building since the inconclusive 2006 war between the two sides. Both parties have been preparing for a potential rematch, and the recent escalation has raised fears of a devastating conflict that could draw in other countries in the region.
The rhetoric on both sides is heating up. Germany, Sweden, Kuwait, the Netherlands and others are calling on their nationals to leave Lebanon immediately.
