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2026-04-10 Israel-Palestine-Jordan
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'Katz's Joy.' Israeli Strikes on Lebanon Are Destroying the Middle East Ceasefire
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Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited
by Leonid Tsukanov
[REGNUM] With the formal ceasefire between Iran, the United States, and Israel taking effect, tensions in the Middle East have not subsided. Quite the contrary. After ceasing attacks on the Islamic Republic, the Jewish state quickly shifted its attention to Lebanon, where it intensified its pressure on Hezbollah.
Apparently, the Israelis were counting on Tehran not standing up for its fellow members of the "Axis of Resistance." However, Iran proved no timid and quickly demonstrated that it would not abandon its allies in trouble.
INTIMIDATION CAMPAIGN
On the evening of April 8, just hours after the cessation of mutual shelling with Iran, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) aircraft launched a massive air strike on Lebanese territory.
The attacks affected not only the infrastructure of the southern provinces but also targets in the central and eastern parts of the country. According to the Israeli General Staff, more than a hundred targets were hit. The bombings killed more than 250 local residents. The number of injured exceeded a thousand.
| In ten minutes. Seriously impressive. |
The operation, codenamed "Eternal Darkness," was marketed by the Israelis as a deterrent aimed at the Shiite movement's top leadership. Among the targets declared for elimination were senior Hezbollah figures, including its Secretary General, Naim Qassem.
Moreover, Israel hoped that through massive bombing, it would accelerate the exodus of residents from the southern regions of Lebanon, which would help speed up the clearing of border areas and the creation of a so-called “security zone” in the Litani River region.
Israeli "hawks" are not hiding their joy at the operation's results. As Defense Minister Israel Katz noted, the surprise massive strikes were a "new record" for the Israeli armed forces, surpassing even the legendary anti-Lebanon Operation Pager of 2024 in terms of damage.
However, objective monitoring shows a rather contradictory result of "Eternal Darkness": not all targets declared in flight missions as Hezbollah facilities were actually such, and most of the field commanders managed to escape the shelling.
Moreover, strikes on densely populated areas dramatically increased the number of civilian casualties. This enraged officials in Beirut, which demanded an explanation from Washington. However, the White House responded to the legitimate outrage succinctly: "Lebanon is a separate conflict."
NOT A WORD OF APPROVAL
The massive bombing of Lebanon failed to gain support from the international community—more than fifty countries condemned Israel's actions within the first 24 hours.
| Let us pause for a moment to enjoy exactly how much Israel does not care about the opinion of countries that do not share her interest in her own survival. |
Even countries previously considered candidates for a rapid normalization of relations with the Jewish state, such as Saudi Arabia and Syria, voiced criticism.
| Lots of pro forma statements in that part of the world, much less actual concern underneath. |
The message in all cases was the same: by solving tactical problems in Lebanon, Israel is disrupting the strategic settlement in the Middle East and, apparently, will soon launch a new round of high-intensity conflict.
At one point, US President Donald Trump decided to explain to an indignant public that the Israelis were acting within the strategic parameters available to them. "The cessation of Israeli strikes on Lebanon was not part of the ceasefire agreement with Iran because Hezbollah is present in the country," the White House chief stated.
US Vice President J.D. Vance subsequently attempted to smooth things over somewhat. Speaking to reporters, he reiterated that Lebanon "was not part of the deal," and that this framing of the matter had allegedly been agreed upon with the Iranians and confirmed by Pakistan, which acted as a mediator.
This decision was designated as temporary, to facilitate the achievement of initial agreements. According to the Americans, the status of the Lebanese theater of operations was planned to be discussed face-to-face, likely at a meeting of delegations in Islamabad.
Vance, however, continued Trump's line. He called Iranian attempts to pressure Washington to expand the agreement post-factum a "misunderstanding" and hinted that it would be foolish to disrupt such a fragile ceasefire over such "trouble."
He later added, however, that Israel had agreed to "temporarily limit" strikes on Lebanon as part of efforts to reach an agreement between Washington and Tehran. However, Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet did not confirm this.
PANIC IN RIYADH
Washington's initial calculations appear to have been based on the belief that Iran would ignore events in Lebanon for some time, focusing on restoring its own defense capabilities and, more importantly, stabilizing its systems of governance.
The White House believes that the country's new Rahbar (Supreme Leader), Mojtaba Khamenei, is "dead or dying," and that generals and influential officials are running the country in his name. This belief is based, in part, on the fact that only Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has spoken about the progress of peace negotiations with the United States, although previously such matters were addressed by the Supreme Leader's Office.
Rumors of a coup in the Islamic Republic were fueled, among others, by Iranian opposition figures close to Trump, and at some point the US president believed he had already won, and that the enemy would seize any opportunity to escape the conflict.
In practice, things turned out differently. The Iranian leadership took the incident as an insult. They were quick to point out that the peace concept that formed the basis of the upcoming negotiations referred to Lebanon as part of the battlefield, meaning the ceasefire should fully apply to it.
In retaliation, Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz again. This time, the blockade is more severe—simply buying off shipowners is no longer an option. Tankers are turning around in the closed zone one after another and being laid up. The Houthis, who are backing their "Axis of Resistance" allies, have once again threatened to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the region's second-most important shipping route, have also joined in.
To ensure that their demands weren't perceived as empty threats, Iranian missile forces deliberately escalated the situation: by the end of the day, they attacked Saudi Arabia's East-West oil pipeline, damaging one of its pumping stations. Considering that this energy artery is currently the only route for transporting Saudi oil from its fields to its shipping ports, the attack caused genuine panic in Riyadh. Saudi diplomats spent half a day calling the White House, demanding that Trump "show common sense."
Washington found itself trapped. It turned out that Tehran didn't really need negotiations: between the stability of its "axis of resistance" and a temporary respite, the Persians unhesitatingly chose the former. Meanwhile, cutting off diplomatic communication now would further deepen the conflict and provoke further nervousness both within the United States and among the White House's regional allies, something the American administration clearly doesn't want.
At the same time, the Republicans also cannot give in to Iran's demands—and not so much out of a desire to save face. Israel is actively opposed to this option, unwilling to halt its offensive against Hezbollah even with Vance's announced "temporary de-escalation." This is especially true after the "voluntary-compulsory" halt to operations against Iran. It will be difficult for the Americans to make another gesture by including Lebanon in the settlement zone.
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Posted by badanov 2026-04-10 00:00||
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Posted by Procopius2k 2026-04-10 06:55||
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