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West has 'no coherent plan' to avoid war between Israel and Hizbollah

Hizbollah has military capabilities superior to many European armies, a new report said - AP
Hizbollah has military capabilities superior to many European armies, a new report said - AP

Britain and the West should put pressure on Iran to rein in Hizbollah’s presence in southern Lebanon in order to avoid a “new major war” between the militant group and the Israeli military, the former head of the British army has warned. 

Lord Dannatt, former Chief of the General Staff, said the West had no coherent strategy to deter Hizbollah’s military build up in Lebanon and as a result was risking a sudden eruption of conflict “either by accident or by design”. 

“In the absence of a concerted international effort to rein in Iran in the region - and no such coherent Western strategy currently exists - we must be prepared to expect Israel to defend its vital security interests robustly,” Lord Dannatt writes in The Daily Telegraph

“Many criticise the Israeli Defence Forces for being heavy-handed but, having quizzed their Chiefs of Staff personally, I believe they would act within acceptable legal and moral standards. 

“Yet the legitimate military objectives Israel would be forced to attack in a conflict with Iran, and its proxy terror-armies hiding among civilians in Lebanon and Syria, would make for a very grave war.”

Lord Dannatt spoke ahead of the launch of a new report on the prospects of an Israel-Hizbollah war compiled by the High-Level Military Group (HLMG), a group of former senior Western military officers.

Israel is bracing for an eventual conflict on its northern border - Credit: REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo 
Israel is bracing for an eventual conflict on its northern border Credit: REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo

The report concludes that the UK and other European countries should classify Hizbollah in its entirety as a terrorist group, instead of making a distinction between its armed wing and its political wing. 

The UK government argues that “the military and political activities of Hizbollah are distinct” and that proscribing the entire group would be counter productive. 

The report also argues that the West should make clear it would support Israel in the event of a conflict, “to send a clear message to Iran and Hizbollah that it will be confronted by a superior military force with the full support of its allies”. 

It concludes also that the US should make financial support to Lebanon conditional “on a plan to strip Hizbollah of its de facto status as the leading force in the country”.

The HLMG was formed by the Friends of Israeli Initiative, a pro-Israel group launched by José María Aznar, the former Spanish prime minister.

The HLMG previously issued a report exonerating the conduct of the Israeli military in the 2014 Gaza War. A UN report on the same subject concluded that both Israeli forces and Palestinian militants committed “serious violations” of human rights law during the conflict.  

Israel has warned repeatedly that Hizbollah is stockpiling 100,000 missiles in southern Lebanon, often storing weapons in civilian areas. Israeli military officers have said it is likely there would be severe civilian casualties in Lebanon if a new war breaks out. 

Around 900 Lebanese civilians and 44 Israeli civilians were killed in the 2006 war between Israel and Hizbollah.