Many questions remain in Israel about the content of the agreement of the upcoming 60-day ceasefire agreement in South Lebanon, while at the same time various reservations and criticisms are expressed as to the possibilities of implementing the ceasefire framework on a purely practical level. The immediate reaction of the right wing of the government coalition last night was typical, with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir going so far as to call the truce framework a “declaration of surrender to Hezbollah”. In addition to the intra-governmental reactions, representatives of the municipal authorities of the border towns in northern Israel did not miss the opportunity to express their fierce criticism against the impending truce, referring to the conditions of the Israeli withdrawal from South Lebanon in 2006. They consider that what is said to be in effect in the near future future, are a simple repetition of what happened in the past.

Amidst this negative climate, it would not be an exaggeration to say that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is trying to “square the circle”, having since morning held a series of successive contacts with both his government partners and the representatives of the 60,000 displaced Israeli citizens. who left their homes in northern Israel 14 months ago. After all, it is no coincidence that, in the end, the 60-day ceasefire agreement was decided to be put to the judgment of the limited composition of the cabinet, responsible for security and defense issues. This is expected to meet today at 16:30 local time (and Greek time) and will not be put to a vote by all government ministers.

Problems regarding the implementation of the agreement

Loud criticism in Israel centers on how the ceasefire agreement will be implemented on the ground. It is a fact that, despite its limited capabilities, the regular Lebanese army will be called upon to shoulder a heavy burden. According to what has become known so far about the content of the agreement, the Lebanese army, in a period of 60 days, managed to control and operate 200 border posts, disarm Hezbollah and destroy its military infrastructure located south of the Litani River . In fact, it is worth noting that the so-called “Badr Force”, an armed faction of Hezbollah, made it clear yesterday with statements made public in the Lebanese media, that it is not going to hand over its weaponry to the Lebanese army.

On the other hand, this morning the state Israeli radio reported that a written US commitment will be attached to the text of the agreement, according to which, in case of non-compliance with the agreed terms, the Israeli forces will have freedom of action in the region. Sources in the Israeli prime minister’s office tell DW that the agreement contains “secret terms” that precisely define the conditions for Israel to take military action, adding that “this is the important fact that convinces Netanyahu that the agreement will be sustainable”.

Britain and Germany in the implementation mechanism?

Regarding the mechanism for implementing the ceasefire agreement on the ground, although no further details have been announced so far, the Yediot Aharonot newspaper reports for the first time that, in addition to the United States and France, the monitoring committee for the implementation of the A ceasefire in South Lebanon will involve Britain, Germany and most likely an Arab country – something the Beirut government has repeatedly called for. In fact, it is no coincidence that, for the first time since the start of the war, the head of the Israeli army, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, went abroad to hold meetings in London with his British counterpart “as well as with other chiefs of the armed forces of other states”, as reported by local Israeli media.