Israel's Military Chief of Staff Admits the Possibility of War on the Lebanese Border is Greater than Before

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi (right) on Israel's northern border. (Source: Israel Defense Forces)

JAKARTA - The Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces said that the possibility of war on the northern Israel-Lebanon border in the next few months is 'higher than before'

Speaking to Israeli forces in the region, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said, "The IDF is increasing its readiness to fight in Lebanon, we learned many lessons from the fighting in Gaza, many of which are very relevant to the fighting in Lebanon, and there are some that must be adapted ," he said as reported by The Times of Israel, January 18.

"We want to achieve a very clear goal in Lebanon, to repatriate the population in the north, all the communities in the north," Lt. Gen. Halevi continued, referring to the estimated 80,000 Israelis displaced by daily attacks by the militant group Hezbollah.

He also said that achieving Israel's goal of repatriating residents who fled amid the Israel-Hezbollah clashes "must go through very significant changes," as quoted by CNN.

"I don't know when the war in the north (will occur). I can tell you that the probability of this happening in the next few months is much higher than before," said Lt. Gen. Halevi.

"I can tell you that I think we started with more advantages," he added.