"Sitting on a time bomb"

Lebanon fears collapse of ceasefire with Israel

The Israeli army in Lebanon (archive photo)(Bild: APA/AFP/Jalaa MAREY)

The Lebanese government fears that the ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel will not hold. "We are sitting on a time bomb that we don't know when it might explode again," said a Lebanese government representative. Violations of the agreement would cause concern.

As reported, a ceasefire came into force on November 27 to end the fighting between Israel's military and the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia. It was brokered by representatives of the USA and France and is initially set to last for around two months. However, tensions have remained high since then, as both sides have accused each other of violating the ceasefire. There have also been casualties.

Border crossings attacked
Just this Friday, Israeli fighter jets attacked seven border crossings between Syria and Lebanon. This is intended to prevent the supply of weapons to Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. According to the Israeli military, a truck on which a rocket launcher was mounted was also confiscated. Lebanese security circles confirmed the attacks.

A Hezbollah training session in Lebanon (archive image)(Bild: APA/AP)

According to Lebanese sources, Israel has violated the ceasefire 259 times since November 27. On the Lebanese side, 44 Hezbollah members who had violated the agreement had been killed, Israeli media reported. The information could not be independently verified.

Analysts consider disarmament important
However, experts have recently reassured that they do not see the ceasefire in danger. The disarmament of Hezbollah is important for the agreement, said political analyst Makram Rabah. As long as Hezbollah does not react to attacks, analyst Riad Kahwaji also rules out a collapse. "I think Hezbollah won't do it because they know that they would have to expect a massive counterattack," he said.