Why Israel-Hezbollah tensions risk boiling over now
CNN
A full-blown war appears to have become more likely – even if both sides have no desire for one, analysts believe.
Israel and the Lebanese Iran-backed Islamist group Hezbollah have been ramping up cross-border attacks after months of low-intensity fighting, prompting the Israeli military to warn that it is prepared to launch a large-scale attack on its northern border. With both sides trading fire for more than eight months, experts say Israel feels it can no longer ignore its northern front or delay taking action there. A full-blown war appears to have become more likely – even if both sides have no desire for one, analysts believe. Here’s what we know: Lebanon and Israel have officially been in a state of war for decades. Israel launched a devastating invasion of Lebanon in 1982, sending tanks all the way to the capital Beirut, after coming under attack from Palestinian militants in the country. It then occupied southern Lebanon for 22 years until it was driven out by Hezbollah, which emerged from the rubble of the Israeli invasion.
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Israel is at a “high level of readiness” for a response from Iran, an Israeli military source told CNN, as US officials visited the Middle East for a renewed push to resolve the conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon. Follow live updates.