Israel’s ground offensive will not go beyond southern Lebanon, a senior Israeli army commander said today, for the first time outlining the scope of the two-week-old campaign.
The commander, Colonel Hemi Livni, said Israeli forces would focus on trying to destroy outposts and rocket launching sites of Hezbollah guerrillas in southern Lebanon.
“The intention is to deal with the Hezbollah infrastructure that is within reach,” Livni, who commands Israeli troops in the western sector of southern Lebanon, told Israel Army Radio.
“That means in southern Lebanon, not going beyond that.
“I don’t know of any intention to go 70 kilometres into Lebanon,” he added.
Earlier, Israeli forces surrounded the Lebanese border town of Bint Jbail. Livni said troops planned to enclose additional border villages.