FT: Israel's operation in Lebanon not to end before US elections

Israel's ongoing military operation in Lebanon will probably not end before the US presidential election scheduled for November 5.

“Two weeks ago the Israelis were talking about a limited ground incursion for a couple of weeks, but that two weeks seems to be extending all the time,” one Western official said, Caliber.Az reports, citing The Financial Times.

“There is little optimism of Israel stopping soon before the US elections [on November 5].”

“We want them to stop now and agree to a political plan which is already broadly agreed. But it looks like, because they’re having such success militarily, they will keep going until they feel they are getting diminishing returns.”

The shifting rhetoric from Israel’s political leadership, and the scale of the military’s evacuation orders — covering more than 110 areas in Lebanon ranging from villages on the border to coastal areas 60km north, according to a Financial Times tally — has left officials across the region and in western capitals increasingly doubtful that the offensive will end soon.

By Khagan Isayev