Quotes
There was not an impact on the talks in Cairo,
White House national security John Kirby told reporters on Monday The Americans are offering promises, not guarantees...Hamas won't accept this, because it virtually means Hamas will release the civilian hostages in return for a six-week pause of fighting with no guarantees for a negotiated permanent cease-fire,
the Egyptian official, told the AP, speaking on the condition of anonymity In a very constructive meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu today, he confirmed to me that Israel supports the bridging proposal,
Blinken said to the press, ... according to the AP It’s particularly challenged, of course, by the fact that Hamas uses that environment to their operational and tactical advantage, and I think it becomes particularly hard to ask the Israelis to use all the discretion in the world,
They did not have an impact on the ceasefire talks, which is a good thing, and we were glad to see that,
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Monday I don’t know that there’s been a more complex operational environment than Gaza in the history of warfare, especially modern warfare where so much of the fight is subterranean and you’re trying to affect those subterranean networks from the air or from the ground,
Christopher Maier, assistant secretary for special operations and low-intensity conflict, said during a Defense Writers Group event last week We have to assume that Iran remains postured and prepared, ... We’ve got to make sure we’re postured and prepared, and we are. It’s not something we take lightly.”
The timing of these events is crucial as they coincide with negotiations in Cairo aimed at a ceasefire in Gaza as well as significant Shia religious commemorations,
Hezbollah’s recent missile attacks are reportedly in response to the killing of Fuad Shukr, a senior Hezbollah commander, and not directly related to the death of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh,
Lebanon is in an extremely difficult situation, and an overwhelming majority of citizens of all sects, including many Hezbollah supporters, would not favour a wider war,
The initial response was to Shukr’s assassination and a message of support to the Palestinian negotiator. Things are linked to the results of the negotiations and the Israeli response.”
Qassem Kassir, a Lebanese political analyst believed to be close to Hezbollah, told Al Jazeera Hezbollah’s ability to carry out a sophisticated attack despite Israel’s preemptive measures demonstrates its resilience and operational capacity,
Hezbollah’s actions are likely designed to increase pressure on Israel during these talks, leveraging the timing to boost its popularity and strategic position in the region,
Today, it is clear that Netanyahu is setting new conditions. There’s no longer any reason to wait.”
In his speech, Nasrallah said This round seems to be over,
Karim Emile Bitar, professor of international relations at St Joseph’s University in Beirut, said Israel’s claim … might be an exaggeration for political gain as there have been no reported significant casualties among Hezbollah forces,
Imad Salamey, a professor of political science at the Lebanese American University in Beirut, told Al Jazeera We decided to respond individually for reasons that will become apparent over time,
But its ultimate goal in this conflict is self-preservation, it is therefore using propaganda in lieu of the kind of military action that would spark all-out war,
The military option... is bad because Israel cannot rapidly defeat Hezbollah”, which “has an arsenal of missiles that is much more substantial than Hamas’s,
Horowitz told AFP in Jerusalem Diplomatic pressure contributed to avoiding a broader conflagration,
the diplomat based in Beirut told AFP, noting however that cross-border violence