There is heavy skepticism from the IDF about how effective the Lebanese army will be in keeping the peace versus Hezbollah attempts to rearm and restore its capabilities for threatening Israel, IDF Givati Brigade Chief Col. “E” told The Jerusalem Post in a recent interview. “We are skeptical about their abilities because their power is nothing compared to Hezbollah, but maybe the legitimacy it [allowing the Lebanese army to try peacekeeping] gives us will create some change. We need the Lebanese army to undermine Hezbollah,” said E.
In addition, the IDF Givati Brigade chief said that this legitimacy was critical after October 7. “We are no longer naive after October 7. We cannot go to sleep. We would prefer to go back to a state of quiet, but we live in the jungle of the Middle East, and we cannot forget this. We need to remember everything that happened to us. We need to be offensive-minded and ready to strike harder and faster in the next round than in this past round,” he said.
IDF Givati Brigade Weapons Commander Lt.-Col. "I” described to the Post watching the Lebanese army move into certain areas where the Givati Brigade was leaving. According to “I”, higher-level IDF and US officials handled the transition and handover of territory coordination, with I and his forces observing the Lebanese army from a safe distance for a period of minutes. Curiously, this handover of land occurred some days before the IDF officially acknowledged transferring territory in two key spots in southern Lebanon over to the Lebanese army. (Ed note: Again, the government and army of Lebanon have little or no control over the terrorist group Hezbollah, and the IDF knows that fact very well. Too bad the US government has not learned that fact.) (Read more)
