Observers: Israel continues its war to change political, military reality in the region

In light of the rapid developments witnessed by the region, especially the situation in Gaza and Lebanon, the recent Arab-Islamic summit held in Riyadh emerged as a pivotal event, in an attempt to lay the foundations for a new phase of dealing with the ongoing war, as it stressed the need for a ceasefire and achieving a two-state solution.

An Arab-Islamic summit was held in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on November 11 to discuss the war in Gaza and Lebanon and developments in the region, and resulted in 38 items.

With the escalation of Israeli aggression, driven by a desire to change the geographical and political realities in Gaza and Lebanon, the challenges facing the international community and the Arab world in finding effective solutions to end the war are increasing.

In this context, the question arises about the possibility of achieving stability in the region, and the possibility of translating the results of the Arab-Islamic summit on the ground in order to cease fire and end the war. Will the summit succeed in establishing calm, or will its fate be like its predecessors?

What is happening are merely formal and moral decisions

The head of the International Federation of Lebanese Businessmen and Women and Dean of the Faculty of Business Administration at Saint Joseph University, Dr. Fouad Zmokhal, spoke to ANHA's agency in this context, and noted that the history of international summits shows that they rarely yield real results in terms of stopping the war or reaching an enforceable truce, and therefore what is happening are merely formal and moral decisions without finding their way to implementation on the ground.

Fouad Zmokhal explained that this war: "which is essentially regional between Iran and Israel, has made Lebanon pay the price again on its land in the conflicts of others, and the pressure on Israel, which is waging a destructive war on Lebanon, does not seem to lead to results, while the summit decisions remain ink on paper."

Regarding the role of the United States with President Trump taking over, Zmokhal believes that due to the expected change in the US administration, the influence of the United States will be limited until January, the date when the new administration officially assumes its duties.

However, pressure on Iran will not change its policy, which indicates that the war may last longer, and that the two-state solution, which is one of the most prominent solutions to the Palestinian issue, will not be achieved at the present time due to the Israeli and American positions.

Zmokhal pointed out that Lebanon has lost many of its economic and military components in steadfastness and will not regain its rights except through the implementation of international resolutions related to peace and stability, most notably resolutions 1701 and 1559, and the imposition of the Lebanese army’s control over all Lebanese territories to be the sole protector of Lebanon and its people.

Zmokhal stressed that Lebanon is at a crossroads: either building a real state based on institutions and law, respecting the constitution and citizens, or sliding into chaos and division.

Director of the Lebanese Center for Research and Consultations, Hassan al-Qutb, expressed some optimism about the recent Arab-Islamic summit. He confirmed to our agency that it established a new phase of dealing with the Palestinian and Arab affairs in general, by emphasizing the two-state solution and attracting the widest international support for this solution.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia also confirmed that normalization with this usurping entity cannot take place, despite the great American pressure, except after implementing and achieving the two-state solution.

Hassan al-Qutb believes that what is required is to activate this path so that it does not remain a decision without implementation or passes unnoticed.

Al-Qutb stressed that Israel, with its military escalation supported and funded by the United States and its arbitrary decisions, is trying to occupy the lands of the West Bank and change the reality of the Gaza Strip by dividing it into three provinces, with the establishment of military points inside the Strip, and Israeli extremism, and this may require further Arab and Palestinian escalation, and will embarrass countries that have previously normalized, so how about countries that are under pressure to enter the path of normalization.

Changing the political, security, and geographical reality in the region is Israel's goal from its ongoing military escalation, and its increased demand for armament may frighten neighboring countries and push them to act similarly. The biggest problem, according to al-Qutb, will be the decline in Israeli economic growth with the increase in armament and involvement in endless conflicts. The deteriorating security in the region will also lead to a decline in Jewish immigration to Israel and to the reluctance of foreign workers to come to work in Israel, which will make it need Palestinian labor. Consequently, it will be forced to reconsider its escalatory policies and positions and return to the negotiating table with a more open and serious mindset. This also requires changing Israel’s political leadership, because changing positions requires changing political and leadership faces.

Lebanon faces a new resolution that goes beyond 1701

So far, Resolution 1,701 has not been implemented by either party. According to Qutb, Hezbollah has benefited from its dominance over political power in Lebanon to evade its implementation. On the other hand, Israel has used Hezbollah’s, and thus the Lebanese government’s, failure to comply as a reason for not entering into the actual implementation of the provisions of Resolution 1,701.

The political authority in Lebanon has admitted that the resolution has not been implemented, as represented by the initiative of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister Najib Mikati, and former Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt, who announced Lebanon’s readiness to commit to implementing the resolution in full. This is a clear admission that it has not been implemented previously, i.e. for 18 years.

Qutb explained that the irony lies in the fact that when the American mediator demanded the implementation of the resolution, Hezbollah and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri refused. However, when Israel was in a strong position during this fierce and bloody war, the duo agreed to implement the resolution. However, Israel rejected this request because it became able to impose its conditions with different standards.

Thus, Lebanon may be facing a new UN resolution whose terms and conditions go beyond Resolution 1,701. Berri's rejection of any amendment to the aforementioned resolution is nothing more than words, as he does not have the ability to reject it, whether by amendment or change.

Israel, through its continuous escalation and its violation of all international taboos, laws and humanitarian standards, is relying on an American decision and desire aimed at changing the security, political and economic reality in the region.

This requires political and security stability, while the main obstacle remains Tehran and its allies, from Lebanon to Baghdad and Sanaa, after Damascus has clearly left this axis, according to al-Qutb.

According to al-Qutb, Iran seeks to be a partner in the proposed settlements in the region, which the United States and Israel reject, with undeclared Arab approval. The new relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran also represent a prelude to normalizing Iran's relations with its Arab surroundings, and suggest to Western countries that Iran is under a new, more moderate, frank and objective leadership.

Therefore, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian does not hesitate to issue public positions indicating Iran's readiness to reach an understanding with the United States in various fields and controversial issues.

Hassan al-Qutb explained: “But the United States wants to trim Iran’s claws, especially in Lebanon, where Hezbollah is Iran’s main claw in the Arab and Islamic world and on the borders with occupied Palestine.

Therefore, it can be said that the open war in Lebanon, Gaza and the West Bank will not stop until the American vision for the region is achieved, Israel’s security is guaranteed, and Iran withdraws into its own country.

Iran, with its determination to prolong the war in Lebanon, seeks to delay any direct confrontation between it and Israel, especially with the declared support of the United States for Israel’s security, the presence of military build-up in the region, and with the arrival of Trump, a strong ally of the Jewish state.”

T/ Satt.

ANHA