Shafaq News– Middle East

Israel’s security cabinet is set to discuss the implementation of a military operation in Lebanon during its weekly meeting scheduled for next Thursday, according to Israel’s public broadcaster.

The broadcaster cited two informed sources as saying that Israel is considering launching a ground operation in Lebanon, rather than limiting its actions to airstrikes.

According to the report, US President Donald Trump did not oppose the idea of an Israeli military operation in Lebanon. However, he reportedly asked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their recent meeting in Florida to wait until ongoing contacts with the Lebanese government are concluded.

In his joint conference with Netanyahu, Trump described Hezbollah as acting badly, adding that “it remains to be seen what the Lebanese government’s efforts to disarm it will achieve.”

Meanwhile, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam denied claims that weapons handed over by Hezbollah would be thrown into the sea or transferred to Israel, stressing that any decision regarding such arms must fall under the authority of the Lebanese government.

Despite a US-brokered ceasefire reached on November 27, 2024, Israel has maintained positions at five or more locations south of the Litani River and carried out strikes in southern and eastern Lebanon, as well as Beirut’s southern suburbs.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has documented more than 10,000 Israeli violations of the truce, while Lebanon’s Health Ministry reports at least 340 people killed and over 970 wounded since the ceasefire took effect.