(JNS) Israel’s northern border is not one front. It is two very different arenas, and they cannot be treated the same way.
Lebanon and Syria both pose serious security challenges to Israel, but the nature of those challenges is fundamentally different. In Lebanon, the main problem is clear: Hezbollah. In Syria, the challenge is broader, more unstable and still unresolved. That is why a framework agreement may be possible with Lebanon, while with Syria, it is still premature.
In Lebanon, Israel knows what it is dealing with. The Lebanese state is weak, its army is limited, and Hezbollah operates as a state within a state. The question is not whether there is a threat. The question is how to push that threat back from the border and ensure that it stays there.
That clarity makes a framework agreement at least conceivable. The key issues are concrete: Will Hezbollah be removed from Southern Lebanon? Will the Lebanese army take responsibility? Will there be supervision and enforcement? These are difficult questions, but they are specific ones. Israel does not need illusions...
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