An American Message to Israel Reveals the "Prohibited and Allowed" in Lebanon

SadaNews: An Israeli Channel 12 report revealed on Wednesday that the United States is preventing Israel from bombing Beirut, despite its recent decision to expand attacks on Lebanon.

It explained that "despite the American openness and understanding of the unusual situation that has arisen on the northern border (of Israel with Lebanon), Washington's message to Israel is clear: no to strikes on Beirut."

In contrast, an Israeli official stated that there is no American ban on Israeli assassinations targeting Hezbollah leaders in Lebanon recently.

The report revealed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed U.S. President Donald Trump through U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee about the expansion of military operations in Lebanon two days before announcing it.

However, according to Channel 12, the American stance remained decisive that Beirut should not be targeted, as "we do not want to see buildings collapse."

The United States believes that targeting buildings in the Lebanese capital could lead to widespread regional escalation and harm negotiations that are already stalled with Iran, as well as Trump's administration's efforts to create rapprochement between Israel and Lebanon.

An unnamed Israeli official mentioned that "the American restrictions apply only to buildings, while precision targeting operations are not prohibited if the operational opportunity arises."

Channel 12 also revealed that Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir pressured in the past two weeks for expanding strikes in Lebanon, but "the political level, constrained by diplomatic considerations, halted this direction."

In the last two days, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has attempted to pressure Netanyahu in an effort to convince him to change the approach in the Lebanese arena, seemingly indicating permission to target Beirut.

On Wednesday, various areas of Lebanon witnessed intense Israeli airstrikes on the first day of Eid al-Adha, while massive displacement was recorded after Israeli evacuation orders included dozens of towns in the south of the country.

Netanyahu announced on Tuesday that the army is intensifying its actions in Lebanon to "strengthen the security area in order to protect northern Israel," as he expressed.