Lebanon cannot be defined as state, claims Israeli minister

Occupied Palestine (Quds News Network)- Israel’s Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli claimed that Lebanon is not fulfilling the definition of a state, adding the Israeli military has the right to “take over” areas in Lebanon.

The far-right minister argued that the Israeli military should establish buffer zones inside of Lebanon in order to protect Israelis living in the north.

“Lebanon, despite having a flag and political institutions, does not meet the definition of a state,” he wrote on X on Saturday night.

“In the absence of a monopoly on the use of force both internally and externally, the Lebanese government is not a sovereign entity,” the Israeli minister claimed.

In light of the Lebanese government’s “failure to exercise its sovereignty over Hezbollah-controlled southern Lebanon,” he said the Israeli military had the right and responsibility to “take over” any area from which missiles have been, or could be, fired into Israel.

Chikli also claimed that both Syria and Iraq “currently do not meet the definitions of a state, given that various militias, foreign armies, and local military forces control different regions within these countries.”

Chikli wrote, “the State of Israel has a duty to exercise its sovereignty, to protect its citizens instead of keeping them away from their homes, and to repel and keep the enemy away.”

He then proposed establishing an Israeli-controlled “buffer zone” over any area in Lebanon from which missiles have been, or could be, fired.

“It’s the right and most just thing to do, from a security point of view and a political and moral one.” Chikli declared.

Attached to his post was a map of Lebanon with his suggestions for buffer zone areas designated with red circles.

לבנון, למרות שיש לה דגל ולמרות שיש לה מוסדות פוליטיים לא עונה להגדרה מדינה.

בהיעדר מונופול על הפעלת הכוח הן כלפי פנים והן כלפי חוץ ממשלת לבנון היא לא יישות ריבונית. על מרחב הגבול עם לבנון המאוכלס ברובו באוכלוסייה שיעית עויינת שולט באפקטיביות ארגון חזבאללה שבשמונה לאוקטובר פתח… pic.twitter.com/pVrszT5tFf

— עמיחי שיקלי – Amichai Chikli (@AmichaiChikli) September 21, 2024

He concluded, “We cannot go back to another evacuation scenario on the northern border, the one we share with the Lebanese entity, which does not in any way meet the definition of a state.”