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Saturday, December 23, 2023
Report: Israel was about to ‘preemptively’ hit Hezbollah when Biden convinced it not to
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Israel was about to ‘preemptively’ strike Hezbollah in Lebanon four days after Hamas’s October 7 massacres, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was talked out of the plan at the last minute by US President Joe Biden, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing unnamed officials familiar with the details.
The report says that “Israel had intelligence — which the US deemed unreliable — that Hezbollah attackers were preparing to cross the border as part of a multipronged attack.”
It continues: “Israeli warplanes were in the air awaiting orders when Biden spoke to Netanyahu on October 11, and told the Israeli prime minister to stand down and think through the consequences of such an action,” saying it could spark a regional war.
The report says the Biden administration has been focusing its efforts ever since on preventing an escalation that would require Washington’s military intervention.
The Times of Israel Community.