Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will hold a discussion on Wednesday about Syria and its link to Lebanon, after President Donald Trump said he was close to letting Syria handle Hezbollah. Israeli officials are deeply concerned that this is not just rhetoric, but part of a plan taking shape behind the scenes.
The worry in Jerusalem is that Syria could regain a dominant role in Lebanon, as it had for decades until 2005. Over the past weeks, Israeli officials say they have seen signs that Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa is looking for ways to expand control into Lebanese areas. Israel fears Damascus could strengthen its influence along the border, where smuggling routes for weapons have long operated, and cultivate local Lebanese power centers.
Trump said last week that he wanted Syria to take on Hezbollah, and on Tuesday al-Sharaa pushed back in an interview with a Gulf radio station. He said Syria could help find “a safe path to a solution,” but that did not mean war. He called a Syrian role “completely positive,” said Hezbollah is seen by some states as part of the Iranian camp, and warned of a “very great danger.” He added that Syria would act through Lebanese institutions and the Lebanese state.
Trump told Fox News earlier on Tuesday that he was “disappointed” Israel could not remove Hezbollah and said he was close to “giving this to Syria,” meaning allowing al-Sharaa to move into southern Lebanon and fight Hezbollah. But al-Sharaa has effectively rejected that idea. Israeli security officials view the scenario as their worst case, with one source telling Channel 12 it would be “like throwing a match into a barrel of explosives.” Israel is also considering allowing the Lebanese army to take over a Hezbollah tunnel complex in the southern village of Tebnine, an option discussed in recent political and military meetings and possibly due to come up in the next round of negotiations on Tuesday.
