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'More than justified''No country would tolerate such a situation'

North on the brink

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi has named the military's offensive operation against Hezbollah "Northern Arrows".

By Carly Adno September 26, 2024, 8:00 am Edit
The Iron Dome air defence system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, as seen from Haifa. Photo: AP Photo/Baz Ratner
The Iron Dome air defence system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, as seen from Haifa. Photo: AP Photo/Baz Ratner

Foreign Minister Penny Wong says the government is “gravely concerned” about the escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah and has urged any Australians in Lebanon to leave immediately.

Israel has carried out massive airstrikes across southern Lebanon in its attempt to force Hezbollah to stop its 11 months of indiscriminate fire on northern Israel. The Israeli military sent text messages to people in southern Lebanon warning anyone near or inside places where weapons were stored to evacuate immediately. According to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel is “destroying thousands of missiles and rockets aimed at Israeli cities and Israeli citizens”.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi has named the military’s offensive operation against Hezbollah “Northern Arrows”.

“We are alarmed by the escalation and the loss of civilian life both in Lebanon and also the attacks into Israel,” Wong told reporters during a press conference in New York.

When asked how much confidence she had that Prime Minister Netanyahu wanted de-escalation, Wong said she would leave it to others to answer that question.

“I speak for Australia, and Australia has a very clear view that a wider regional conflict is not in the interests of the people of the region – just as Australia has a clear view that the cause of peace demands both a ceasefire as well as the release of hostages,” she said.

“It demands the observance of international humanitarian law … it demands a two-state solution, in accordance with what the UN agreed many, many years ago at the establishment of Israel, which was two states – a Palestinian state and an Israeli state.”

Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) co-CEO Peter Wertheim said it is “perverse” to preach to Israel about the need for a two-state outcome.

“If the Foreign Minister wishes to advance the cause of peace, she should be directing her advice to the regime in Iran and its proxies Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis,” said Wertheim.

Executive director of the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) Colin Rubenstein said the situation across the north of Israel has been “intolerable” for the last 11 months, with dozens of communities housing more than 60,000 people evacuated.

“Hezbollah has fired over 8000 rockets, drones and missiles into Israel and rejected all international efforts to negotiate ceasefire arrangements that would allow Israeli – and Lebanese – civilians near the border to return home,” said Rubenstein.

“No country would tolerate such a situation, and Israel is more than justified in taking appropriate military action necessary to end it.”

Zionist Federation of Australia (ZFA) CEO Alon Cassuto said Hezbollah, funded, trained, and armed by Iran, has a singular mission to destroy Israel.

“This is not a territorial dispute between Israel and Lebanon; Hezbollah’s actions are explicitly aimed at terrorising Israelis,” said Cassuto.

“For decades, they’ve spread terror and violence across Lebanon and Israel, displacing nearly 200,000 innocent civilians from their homes across both nations. Israel has every right to defend itself – no sovereign nation would tolerate relentless rocket fire and the mass displacement of its citizens for nearly a year.”

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