By René Wadlow

On June 6, 2024, United Nations (U.N.) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an urgent ceasefire in the armed conflict on the Lebanese frontier between the armed forces of Israel and the armed militia within Lebanon of Hezbollah. Clashes between Hezbollah and the Israeli military along the Israel-Lebanon border have recently increased in scope in terms of both the territory under fire and the weapons used. Already 100,000 Israelis and an equal number of Lebanese have been forced to flee their home. UNIFIL – the U.N. peacekeeping forces in southern Lebanon – has not been able to prevent this escalation.

The Nongovernmental Organization (NGO) Human Rights Watch, in a new report called Lebanon: Israel’s White Phosphorous Use Risks Civilian Harm, stated that white phosphorous, which poses a high risk of burns and long suffering, was used by Israeli forces in at least 17 towns in southern Lebanon since October 2023. Amnesty International has also documented the use of white phosphorous in southern Lebanon. In addition, Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health says that the white phosphorous attacks have caused hundreds of forest fires in Lebanon.

An end to the armed conflict in the Gaza Strip remains the key to ending the hostilities between Hezbollah and the Israeli military. Hezbollah has stated that a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip is a precondition for stopping its attacks. Currently, there are discussions among Egyptian, Qatari, and U.S. mediators on a ceasefire with phases. The U.S. proposals were set out by U.S. President Biden on May 31, 2024, but progress is very uncertain.

A Gaza Strip ceasefire, while necessary, is only a first step in the process needed of negotiations in good faith among Israelis and Palestinians. On October 8, 2023, in light of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks on Israeli settlements, the Association of World Citizens (AWC) had stated,

“As Citizens of the World, we call for a ceasefire in the Israeli-Palestinian armed conflict:

– for the release of all hostages held by Hamas and other Palestinian groups;

– for the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, often under administrative detention without trial;

– for preventing the extension of the conflict to the frontier of Lebanon through negotiations with Hezbollah;

– for preventing an increase in violence on the West Bank among Israeli settlers and Palestinian villages;

– for the start of negotiations in good faith for a political solution that ensures freedom and the collective safety of Israelis and Palestinians.”

The AWC believes that these proposals can build on a pool of shared values, create a climate of dialogue and trust, and set the stage for a new political reality.

Prof. René Wadlow is President of the Association of World Citizens.