Middle-East: ‘might is right’ shows “failure of diplomacy” -Analyst

As the Middle East braces for Israeli strikes, under what conditions can a negotiated solution prevail over might is right?

A political analyst on Thursday (Oct. 03) said a “regional conflict” was made possible by a long period of failure of diplomacy.

Baraa Shiban notably advocated boosting the capacity of the Lebanese state.

“What we are witnessing today is the failure of diplomacy over a long period of time. And things are getting out of out of control,” the associate fellow with Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) said.

“If we try to bring the Lebanese government into the table, they do not have control over their southern border. This is a place where Hezbollah forces have been entrenched for quite a long time. They’ve built a network of a network of tunnels, and they have been preparing for this war with Israel for quite a long time. So one thing (that the International community could do) is ensuring or boosting the capacity of the Lebanese state, to ensure that they have control over their southern border”.

The Lebanese army said Thursday (Oct. 03) it came under Israeli fire and responded.

Calls for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Lebanese militant group and political party have waned.

Moreover, a ceasefire deal in Gaza has slipped out of focus.

“Things will get out of control once there is a an all-out war inside Lebanon because once you add a new actor, whatever deal that was on the table for Gaza is no longer possible,” he said.

Iranian Foreign Minister has said it backs a ceasefire in Lebanon, but only if it has Hezbollah’s support and occurs simultaneously with a ceasefire in Gaza.

The latest war in the decades-old Israel Palestinian conflict erupted October 7 last year after a deadly attack on Israel by Palestinian militant groups.

Since then, Israel has notably conducted deadly strikes on Gaza, Iran, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen.

Additional sources • Vox – iranintl

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