The weekly editorial of Egypt’s state-owned daily Al Ahram, published on June 2, takes due note that “Washington has reacted leniently to Israel’s violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon,” setting only Israeli attacks against Beirut as a redline for the United States. With Iran not bending to U.S. demands, “it seems that the White House has decided to adopt a different strategy. Considering that Netanyahu starts each declaration of a new attack or assassination his army carries out by noting that this took place `in coordination with Washington’ or after informing the White House, it is rather hard to imagine that the latest Israeli escalation in both Lebanon and Gaza does not have the US approval,” the editorial charged.
“It cannot be a coincidence that at the same time the Israeli army was expanding its occupation of Lebanese territory in the south, going beyond the Litani River … Netanyahu started a new round of military attacks against Gaza and declared that he planned to expand the area Israel’s army occupies in the Strip from 60 to 70 per cent.” Al Ahram adds that Iranian reports also viewed such actions as the US seeking “to put pressure on Tehran to accept Trump’s terms for a deal by giving Israel permission to escalate attacks on both Lebanon and Gaza.”
Should Iran retaliate as it has threatened, “it would be the official declaration of the return to an all-out regional war, and the fulfillment of Netanyahu’s wishes to resume attacks against Iran….
