“U.S. Warns Israel Against Escalating Fight With Hezbollah”, Wall Street Journal | “Will Netanyahu Finally Succeed in Dragging the US in a Regional War before the US Presidential Elections after having failed twice recently?” Survivability News Exclusive Analysis.

According to a Wall Street Journal report on Sept 16, 2024, a top U.S. envoy warned Israel over escalating the fight with Hezbollah in Lebanon, while Israel’s defense minister said military action is becoming the only way to return Israelis evacuated from northern border areas back to their homes.

The US warning was delivered by top Biden administration diplomat Amos Hochstein to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in Tel Aviv on Monday on September 16, 2024, reflect growing U.S. concern that the conflict in Gaza could spread.

Why is the US worried?

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been trying to drag the United States into a regional war for years. Moreover, since the Hamas attack on October 7th, 2023, Israel unleashed all its military might on Gaza. Many will still remember the unconditional support given by the US, UK France, Germany and other western governments and their respective leaders visiting Netanyahu in Tel Aviv to show 100% solidarity. Who can forget the slogans “finish the job”, or “finish them all,”

A senior MLi Group Middle East and geopolitical expert said.

“Remember Netanyahu’s famous war goal of “Total Victory”? He has been repeating this goal for the last eleven months. Alarmingly, he (Netanyahu) and all western leaders believed that Israel should be able to destroy Hamas, and ‘finish the job’ in a few weeks – sadly, 346 days on, the reality on the ground proved to be totally different. Even Israeli media has warned about Netanyahu extending the war to stay in power.”

The expert added.

” The hard question that must be asked is: Will Netanyahu finally succeed in dragging the US in a regional war before the US Presidential elections after having failed twice recently?”

 Concluded the MLi Group expert with concerned emphasis.

The Reality on The Ground?

346 days since Israel’s war on Gaza started, Hamas is still fighting from its underground tunnels causing unprecedented losses to the Israeli Army while vowing to continue fighting until Palestinians get their freedom or die trying.
On the other hand, Netanyahu’s and his extremist government’s only success has been in pulverizing Gaza over and over with confirmed civilian death toll of over 40,000 killed, with 20,000 being children. Many governments and human rights groups around the world have called what Israel has perpetrated on Gaza as a “Genocide” and without defeating or finishing Hamas, let alone “Total Victory”. This has brought in calls for Israel’s war on Gaza civilians to end as well as military support to the Palestinians coming from Hizballah in Lebanon, the Houthis from Yemen and other groups from Iraq, further escalating the war.

Why Does Netanyahu’s Want to Drag the US Military into his Wars?

One of Netanyahu’s ultimate goals of dragging the US military into his war is to covert his failure to show “total victory” or any victory since oct 7th to help him appear victorious and remain in power. Losing his PM role leaves him exposed to many indictments over corruption charges that can end him up in jail for years. His failed attempts to drag the US in are many. His most recent two are:

Netanyahu’s first failure to drag the US in was when Israel bombed the Iranian consulate in the Syrian capital Damascus last April. However, when Iran responded with 341 missile attacks on Israel, the US, UK and Frensh Air forces all helped shoot down many of these Iranian missiles however, the US did not get involved in direct military strikes on Iran as Netanyahu plotted and hoped.
Netanyahu’s second failure to drag the US in was when he ordered the assassination of Hamas lead negotiator Ismail Haniya while Haniya was in Tehran during the inauguration of Iran’s new president in late July. Iran has vowed to retaliate but has not done so to date.
Even Israeli media has warned about Netanyahu extending the war to stay in power.

Latest US Warning to Israel

Gallant said he told Hochstein in the meeting that Hezbollah’s continued attacks were foreclosing the possibility of a diplomatic solution and that, “the only way left to ensure the return of Israel’s northern communities to their homes, will be via military action.”

The prime minister’s office said Netanyahu, in a separate meeting, “made it very clear that it will not be possible to return our residents without a fundamental change in the security situation in the north.” His comments didn’t mention force.

Israeli officials have been raising their rhetoric on Hezbollah as pressure builds for a military solution in the north, saying time for a diplomatic solution is running out.

Overnight, Israel’s security cabinet updated its war goals to include returning residents of the north to their homes.

Last week, Israel’s military said that it completed exercises preparing troops to operate within Lebanon. The public announcement came days after Gallant told forces that the military would soon shift its center of gravity toward the north, as it prepares to scale down its operations in Gaza.

Gallant told Hochstein in their meeting that Israel is reaching a point where a resolution must be found for the Israeli citizens evacuated from their homes.

“We do not accept a situation in which 55,000 people have been evacuated from their homes and dozens of homes have been destroyed in the north,” an Israeli official said.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, on a phone call with Gallant, urged his counterpart to give diplomacy time to bear fruit.