Israel and Hezbollah say they don't want war - but they are both ready for it

The Israel-Hezbollah exchange of attacks this morning represents a major intensification of the confrontation. The Israeli military reports that on Sunday morning, almost one hundred fighter planes carried out preemptive attacks against Hezbollah facilities in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah retaliated by firing missiles and rockets into northern Israel. This would be the biggest Israeli attack on Lebanon since the full-scale conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006 if the 100 planes claimed are indeed that many.

Israel launched its strikes at around 04:30 local time (01:30 GMT), and it was reported that Hezbollah was preparing a major offensive 30 minutes later, at 05:00 local time.
The New York Times reported, citing an unidentified Israeli intelligence officer, that they included rocket attacks on Tel Aviv, the nation's largest city, located deep within central Israel.
Ultimately, Hezbollah claimed to have launched around 300 rockets and missiles into northern Israeli military installations, where air raid sirens had been activated.

Hezbollah issued a statement in which it described this as the initial stage of its reaction to the Israeli strike in Beirut on July 30 that killed a senior commander named Fouad Shukr.
The next day, Ismail Haniyeh, the political head of Hamas, was assassinated in Tehran, the capital of Iran, and it is commonly thought that Israel was responsible for the attack.
The area has been waiting for a reaction from Iran and Hezbollah ever since.

Diplomats have been trying to stop the Gaza situation from turning into a larger regional confrontation for some weeks now.
The United States has issued a warning that such diplomatic efforts may not succeed if Israel and Hamas are unable to reach an agreement on a truce and captive release.
However, negotiations to reach a ceasefire agreement for Gaza following almost ten months of conflict have failed despite strong US pressure.
The Israeli military claims it is prepared to battle on two fronts: the northern border with Lebanon and Gaza.
However, Hezbollah is a much more powerful entity than Hamas.

It is said to have some 150,000 missiles, some of which are able to strike targets all throughout Israel.
Its fighters are more armed and more skilled than those of Hamas, with some having served in the Syrian conflict.
Some wonder if Israel is ready for another war now that the Gaza battle has lasted for almost a year.
Thousands of reservists from the Israeli army have been called up to battle in Gaza; they frequently serve multiple deployments.
However, a large number of Israelis, particularly those in the north, believe Hezbollah must be defeated.

Since the beginning of the Gaza War, tens of thousands of residents have had to leave their homes. Many people have experienced business losses.
Tens of thousands of residents have also been compelled to flee their homes in southern Lebanon due to fears of Israeli attacks.
Leaders of Israel and Hezbollah declare that they do not wish for another all-out conflict. However, everyone claims to be prepared for it.