US special envoy Amos Hochstein dismissed as “fantasy” the notion that the Zionist entity could have secured a better deal in which it would have been able to maintain a buffer zone inside Lebanon.
During a round of interviews hours after the ceasefire came into place, Hochstein was presented with criticism voiced by former prime minister Naftali Bennett, who said the agreement’s lack of planned buffer zone in Lebanon will allow Hezbollah to rebuild homes along the border that the resistance group can use as a staging point for a future invasion of the northern settlements and as launch pads for the many anti-tank missiles.
“Yes, there are fantasy deals that are utopia where you get a ceasefire agreement with a security zone, but those won’t ever happen,” Hochstein responded to Channel 12.
The senior adviser to US President Joe Biden maintained that a buffer zone would require ‘Israel’ to remain in Lebanon as an occupying force — something that no sovereign country would accept, Israeli media reported.
“If you choose to have a dead zone or a demilitarized zone, then you are there as an occupier, and you are not there in agreement; which means that while you may have two, three, four or five kilometers inside Lebanon, there won’t be an agreement to stop [Hezbollah from] shooting at Israel from longer ranges,” Hochstein said.
Asked whether ‘Israel’ should’ve continued in its efforts to degrade Hezbollah militarily following the massive blows, Hochstein told Channel 12, “At some point, you have to get to a deal itself.” During a briefing with Jewish American community leaders earlier in the day, Hochstein pointed out that the Zionist entity had never established a war aim of fully dismantling Hezbollah.Thousands of displaced Lebanese are returning to their homes in the south of the country as the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire agreement takes effect.
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) November 27, 2024
Tel Aviv’s stated goal for the northern front was to allow the tens of thousands of Israelis to return to northern settlements near the Blue Line, which wouldn’t have been possible without a deal, he said.
Hochstein was pressed on reports that he had also given ‘Israel’ an “It’s now or never” ultimatum that ultimately convinced Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to a deal.