What Netanyahu's threat of Gaza-like destruction tells us about Israel's Lebanon goals

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's warning that Lebanon could face Gaza-like destruction fueled fears about Israel's invasion targeting Hezbollah.

New divisions sent to join an expanding ground invasion, troops raising a flag outside a border village and an unmistakable warning to Lebanese civilians: Israel is sending increasingly mixed signals about the goals of a military operation it had insisted was limited.

Concerns over the country's plans mounted Wednesday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu suggested that Lebanese people either rise up against Hezbollah or face destruction like the Gaza Strip.

For many observers, this amounted to a choice between civil war or the same fate as that of Palestinians in the besieged and bombarded enclave.

"You have an opportunity to save Lebanon before it falls into the abyss of a long war that will lead to destruction and suffering like we see in Gaza," Netanyahu said in a video address Tuesday delivered in English. "It doesn’t have to be that way."

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https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/netanyahu-threat-gaza-destruction-lebanon-israel-goals-rcna174633

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