IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot
Photo: Motti Kimchi
Eisenkot: IDF working quietly against Iranian weapons factory in Lebanon
Chief of staff says Israel is using quiet measures to foil Tehran's plans to manufacture precision-guided missiles for Hezbollah in Lebanon, but escalation of the situation is not on the cards; '11 years after the Second Lebanon War, we've been taking advantage of this time to dramatically improve our capabilities,' Eisenkot says.
IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot said Wednesday the military was working quietly against a factory for precision-guided missiles Iran is building for Hezbollah in Lebanon.
"It's at the top of our list of priorities, but at the moment we're talking about a very limited capability," Eisenkot told the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. "We're working against it using quiet measures to avoid a deterioration of the situation."
Such deterioration, Eisenkot said, is not expected, noting that while he "didn't identify an intention by our enemies to attack, the IDF is improving its preparedness for any scenario."
IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot (Photo: Motti Kimchi)
Hezbollah, he said, "continues violating resolution 1701 (UN ceasefire agreement that ended the 2006 Second Lebanon War) under civilian guise and in urban areas. UNIFIL contributes to the peace, but they don't do enough to report what's happening on the ground to the decision makers at the UN."
Despite that, "11 years after the Second Lebanon War, we have a better security situation, and we've been taking advantage of this time to dramatically improve our capabilities," Eisenkot said.
Addressing the worsening humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip following the Palestinian Authority-requested reduction in electricity Israel provides Gaza, the IDF chief said, "We're interested in a positive dynamic in the strip, but Israel can't be expected to give from its own budget while Hamas is investing money in terrorism."
