Kiryat Shmona Mayor Condemns Potential Ceasefire with Hezbollah

Kiryat Shmona Mayor Avichai Stern criticized a potential ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, warning it could endanger Israel's northern regions. He questioned the decision, arguing it jeopardizes security and revokes military gains against Hezbollah. The agreement includes ceasefire terms and Hezbollah's withdrawal, monitored by international teams.

In a strong critique of a possible ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah, Kiryat Shmona Mayor Avichai Stern cautioned that such an agreement risks destabilizing Israel's northern front, drawing parallels to the deadly attacks on October 7th. Stern emphasized his bewilderment at shifting from a strategy of total military victory to what he termed as total surrender.

Stern expressed deep concerns for the 22,000 residents of his city, forewarning that they might face returning to a 'destroyed city without security and without a future.' The tentative agreement reportedly involves a reciprocal ceasefire and the withdrawal of Hezbollah and Israeli forces from southern Lebanon, an area delineated under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701.

Additional stipulations include international oversight led by the United States, while Israeli forces retain the authority to respond if the ceasefire terms are breached. The backdrop of this controversy is a series of escalations, beginning with the October 7th assaults and continuing with persistent rocket attacks by Hezbollah on northern Israeli communities, displacing over 68,000 residents. The enduring conflict has claimed over 1,200 lives and resulted in numerous hostages being taken.

(With inputs from agencies.)