Israel denies talk of ceasefire amid escalation with Hezbollah

While the US and other world powers have pushed for a 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah, Israel's prime minister said operations continue with "full force".

A statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said the reports about a ceasefire were "incorrect", publicly pushing back on US pressure.

"This is an American-French proposal that the prime minister has not even responded to. The report about the purported directive to ease up on the fighting in the north is the opposite of the truth. The Prime Minister has directed the IDF to continue fighting with full force, according to the plan that was presented to him."

He said the fighting in Gaza will also continue until all the objectives of the war have been achieved, meaning the dismantling of Iran-backed militia Hamas, and the return of the 101 hostages still in captivity.

On Wednesday night, the United States, France and allies released a joint statement calling for an immediate 21-day ceasefire across the Israel-Lebanon border while also expressing support for a ceasefire in Gaza.

"The situation between Lebanon and Israel since October 8th, 2023 is intolerable and presents an unacceptable risk of a broader regional escalation," the joint statement said.

Israel's foreign minister, Israel Katz, also denied the ceasefire claims. Writing on X, he said: "There will be no ceasefire in the north. We will continue to fight against the terrorist organization Hezbollah with all our might until victory and the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes," as 63,000 Israelis remain displaced.

On Wednesday, Israel's chief of staff mobilized two more reserve units, believed to be as many as 4,000 troops talking of a possible ground invasion.

“You hear the jets overhead; we have been striking all day. This is both to prepare the ground for your possible entry and to continue degrading Hezbollah, Gen Herzi Halevi told troops Wednesday.

“The sense is that your military boots, your manoeuvre boots, will enter enemy territory,” he said. “Your entry there with force... will show (Hezbollah) what it is like to meet a professional combat force."

The public pushback from Israel comes after a tense year with the US which has constantly pushed the Jewish state towards a ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza and threatened to withhold arms sales.

It has made relations between old friends Netanyahu and outgoing US President Joe Biden increasingly tense as the pair came to blows on the war goals in the wake of October 7 when Hamas killed 1,100 mostly civilians and took over 250 hostages.

Iran's most powerful proxy, Hezbollah, began an almost daily bombardment of Israel in allegiance with Hamas and has since sent over 8,000 projectiles towards Israel's north, displacing tens of thousands.

Retaliatory strikes have seen over 100,000 displaced in south Lebanon and since last week, as many as 100,000 more have fled as Israel stepped up its military offensive against Hezbollah.

Around 1,500 operatives have been left out of action after two days of attacks in which pagers and walkie-talkies belonging to the militia exploded. Israel has neither confirmed or denied the incident which sent shockwaves through the group.

On Friday, a mass assassination of the group's commanders also left the designated group devastated at its highest ranks.

Israeli strikes as deep as Beirut have since left hundreds more dead while Hezbollah continues to barrage Israel's north. On Tuesday, Hezbollah fired its first surface-to-surface missile to Tel Aviv which Israel's military says it intercepted.