Israel far-right minister says Lebanon ceasefire now ‘big mistake’

JERUSALEM: Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir warned on Monday (Nov 25) that reaching a ceasefire deal for the war in Lebanon, which is currently under discussion, would be “a big mistake”.
The United States is leading diplomatic efforts to end the fighting in Lebanon, where Israel in late September escalated its air campaign and launched a ground offensive into the south after nearly a year of cross-border fire with the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
“An agreement with Lebanon is a big mistake,” Ben Gvir wrote in a post on X, adding that ending the fighting now would be a “historic missed opportunity to eradicate Hezbollah”.
“I understand all the constraints and reasons, and still it is a grave mistake,” Ben Gvir wrote, referring to the Iran-backed Islamist movement.
Ben Gvir called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to continue fighting until there was “absolute victory”.
This sentiment is shared by other right-wing political leaders regarding the war against Hamas in Gaza, which was sparked by the Palestinian militant group’s attack on southern Israel in October 2023.
This comes as Israeli media reported on Monday that Netanyahu was likely to green light a US ceasefire proposal despite his minister’s reservations.
They have also expressed concerns over discussions of French involvement in a potential ceasefire’s enforcement.
France has supported the push by the United States, Israel’s biggest supporter, for a truce in the conflict.
During a visit to Lebanon and Israel last week, US envoy Amos Hochstein reported “further progress” towards a ceasefire.
On the ground, the Israeli military announced Monday it had carried out strikes against “Hezbollah command centres in the Dahieh area” in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
The Israeli army said about 250 projectiles were fired from Lebanon toward Israel Sunday by Hezbollah, one of the highest numbers in recent weeks.
Israel launched massive air strikes in Lebanon on Sep 23 against Hezbollah, which, following the October 2023 attack, had opened a “support front” for Hamas by firing rockets into Israeli territory.
The Lebanese health ministry estimates that at least 3,754 people have been killed in the country since October 2023, most of them since September.
On the Israeli side, 82 soldiers and 47 civilians have been killed in 13 months.