In the province of Safed, north of Israel, calm is relative. Nothing to do with the exchanges of fire nourished last November. Since early July, a dozen Israeli strikes have targeted Hezbollah. The front has moved. No longer towards Lebanon, but towards Syria, a few kilometers away, in the heights of the Golan. Objective: slow down the rooting of the pro-Iranian axis on the other side of the border.
“Hezbollah is weakened, compared to what it was”slips an Israeli diplomatic source at the Tangwall Campagin. On the Lebanese border, the soldiers of the finish continue their patrols. But their presence divides. “They risk their lives for nothing”Santhile Sarit Zehavi, founder of the Alma Center, specializing in security issues north of Israel.
“On the ground, their influence is almost zero. »» In the south of Lebanon, the Israelis occupy five positions, beyond the blue line drawn by the UN. A nose to international law? “It’s true, it’s not legal”recognizes an Israeli officer. But no one respects international law, and we prefer that to count our dead. »»
Schools in slow motion
In these lands in the North, criticism from the international community leaves a bitter taste. “There is a deep misunderstanding of what Israel is”blows a senior local official. The refrain often comes back: “We are misunderstood. »» Regarding the ceasefire in Gaza, the Israeli authorities display a clear desire to see the application. But on their conditions. “There are still twenty hostages there. If Hamas had laid down arms and released all hostages, war would have been over for a long time. Applying the ceasefire is a matter of survival. Otherwise, we die. And Israel disappears. »»
Empathy towards the sufferings of the Palestinian people is clearly expressed. But as soon as it is about talking about the future of the Palestinians, the speeches become fuzzy. “The real problem is that they do not want to live next to Israel, but in its place”advance the local elected official. For Israeli officials, it is this refusal which explains the persistent dead end on the two-state solution, rejected, they say, by the Arab leaders.
Very close to the border, tensions linked to South Lebanon are never far away. Some evacuated families have not returned to their homes. Schools are slowing down. And convincing students to come back to study in the region is a challenge. “People no longer have Tsahal confidence”loose Assaf Langelvan, president of the Haute-Galilée Regional Council. Hope here is to rebuild quickly, turn the page, and regain the pre-war effervescence. The villages already dream of the return of tourists and a normal life, far from sirens and shelters.
In Lebanon, France could do much more
Relations with France? Assaf Langelvan describes them as fluctuatives. “There are ups and downs”he admits, while pointing the finger “Some criticisms of the French government, sometimes unjust”. However, he salutes the support of Paris to the Lebanese people. “We thank France for helping our Lebanese friends”he said, before qualifying: “It could do much more, especially financially. »»
Speaks to him from a region under constant tension. “War in Lebanon has touched my security, and that of my children”. He warns: “If Hezbollah rearm, we will have to continue the fighting. Other October 7 must be prevented from happening. »» For this local official, the answer goes beyond the military sphere alone: “The future goes through the education of our children. Not being firm there is to give up on existing. »»
Bombing Syria, an error?
For seventeen years, Hezbollah has been preparing the possibility of an invasion in Israel. The Lebanese Shiite movement has dug sophisticated tunnels, much more robust than those in Hamas. They are equipped with electricity, ventilated, sometimes air -conditioned, cut to last. Arms deliveries are continued there without interruption, sometimes from China or North Korea, often hidden in ambulances or humanitarian convoys. Smuggling bypasses radars. To raise awareness among international public opinion, Tsahal plays on the scale of comparisons.
“On October 7, it’s 1,200 dead, recalls a soldier. In proportion, it is equivalent to 15,000 dead in France. »» Same logic for hostages: nearly 250 people kidnapped that day, the equivalent of 2,500 French people on the population. The question is soon to arrive: “Would you have expected from France that it does not react?” »»
A little further, the Tangwall Campagin finds Gideon Harari. For twenty-five years, this former Israeli military intelligence officer served in a unit specializing in the recruitment and exploitation of agents in the Arab countries. He knows the blue line like his pocket. It is he who guides us to the Kfar Kila zone, a Lebanese town north of Metula, in this thin corridor of the north of Israel that is called the “Galileo finger”. Everything was shaved here. A ghost village. Tsahal hit hard, voluntarily. “It’s a message”, Harari blows. A way of telling residents around: if you collaborate with Hezbollah, you risk losing your home. »» In this Lebanese village, only ruins remain.
In this thin corridor in the north of Israel called the “” Galileo’s finger ”, Tsahal hit hard: everything was shaved
The former officer does not hide his disagreements with the current government strategy. “We have to make peace with our enemies”he lets go. For him, bombing Syria was a mistake. Former intelligence specialist, he pleads for a more diplomatic line with the new Syrian power. “We must collaborate with President Al-Charaa. He is someone very pragmatic. The problem is not him, it is his entourage ”he says, worried about seeing a Fragile dialogue started in recent months between Damascus and Jerusalem.
According to him, Israel would risk breaking a still stammering relationship, but carrying hope. “We were building something. Now is not the time to reduce everything to ashes. ” A vision that Sarit Zehavi does not share, the president of the Alma Research Center. She defends the recent Israeli strike on Damascus. “An agreement had been made with the Syrians: no military deployment in Soueida. They violated it by attacking the Druze community. Israel replied. »»
And add: “It was perhaps a test, a provocation calculated to gauge our reaction. »» But beyond the differences of analysis, a certainty is essential: because even if many affirm that “Iran declared war on the Hebrew state on October 7, 2023”another actor may well rebound the cards to the Middle East. Since the Soueida Crisis in Syria, Turkey has hardened the tone against the Hebrew State. Ankara multiplies convictions and strengthens its regional posture. Here, some whisper that the Turkish threat could ultimately exceed that of Tehran.
