Two years after the Likud victory in Israel. In Lebanon and Gaza, clashes continue

The 2022 legislative elections led to the formation of the Netanyahu VI government, considered the most right-wing in Israeli history, notably including Itamar Ben-Gvir at the Ministry of National Security. October 7, 2023 then moved the executive towards a government of unity and emergency backed by a war cabinet in the presence of Benny Gantz. The last reshuffle dates from June 2024, marked in particular by the departure of Gantz, in a context of growing opposition and resumption of anti-Netanyahu demonstrations.

• For reservist general and former left-wing MP Yaïr Golan: “At the basis of Netanyahu’s policy, there is this decision not to confront the Palestinian question.”
• Former Israeli Minister of Health Nitzan Horowitz declared only a few days after the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023: “Netanyahu's policy has been explicitly to strengthen Hamas to deepen the tension between Hamas and Palestinian Authority in Ramallah.

In Lebanon, clashes between Israel and Hezbollah, supported by Iran, continue. Hezbollah, decimated since the death of its leaders but which still has 50,000 fighters and around 200,000 missiles and rockets, continues its attacks against Israel. Yesterday, Thursday, October 31, the IDF announced that it had bombed “weapons storage facilities and command centers used by the Radwan force” in the Qousseir region, in Syria.

• Following Sinwar's assassination on October 16, claimed as a victory by the Israeli prime minister, talks for a ceasefire in Gaza resumed in Qatar.
• The director of the CIA, Bill Burns, presented a new formula: Israel would end the fighting for a month and release several dozen Palestinian hostages, in exchange for the release by Hamas of ” about 8 hostages.

However, it is unlikely that an agreement will be reached before the US presidential election. Taher al-Nounou, a senior Hamas official, said yesterday: “We have already expressed our position on the idea of ​​a temporary truce in the war, which will only serve to resume aggression afterwards.” Hamas supports a permanent, not temporary, end to the war.”