PERETZ CALLS FOR MNF ABLE TO BLOCK HIZBALLAH

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 002915 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/27/2016 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER EG IS IR LE SUBJECT: PERETZ CALLS FOR MNF ABLE TO BLOCK HIZBALLAH WEAPONS SUPPLIES REF: TEL AVIV 2879 Classified By: Ambassador Richard H. Jones for reasons 1.4 (b,d). ¶1. (C) Summary: Minister of Defense Amir Peretz told U.S. Representatives Peter Hoekstra, Jane Harman, Rick Renzi, and Darrell Issa, and the Ambassador July 23 that the GOI's goals in Lebanon are to secure the release of the two kidnapped IDF soldiers, see the implementation of UNSCR 1559, and give a multinational force (MNF) the mandate to block any re-supply of weapons to Hizballah. Peretz accused Hizballah of using Lebanese civilians for cover and to harbor Hizballah weapons. He highlighted Israeli efforts to minimize harm to the Lebanese civilian population. Peretz characterized Hizballah as the "vanguard of Iran" in the Middle East and said that Iran influences events throughout Lebanon. He asserted that the connection between sovereignty and responsibility has been broken and that this has allowed governments to deny responsibility for the rocket attacks against Israel. Even if the "certificate of origin" of the rocket attacks was Hizballah/Hamas, he argued, it was the "post office;" i.e., the Lebanese government and the Palestinian Authority (PA) that should be held responsible for each delivery. End Summary. -------------- Hizballah and Lebanon -------------- ¶2. (C) DefMin Peretz told CODEL Hoekstra that military operations alone would not be sufficient to end the conflict with Hizballah, and that well-planned next steps are critical. According to Peretz, if after defeating Hizballah in battle, Israel then released Hizballah prisoners, then Hizballah would still be the winner. Peretz argued strongly that both Hamas and Hizballah must be made to understand that there is no connection between the situations in Gaza and in Lebanon, and he emphasized that Hizballah must not be given any standing on Palestinian issues. Peretz outlined three key GOI goals in its conflict with Hizballah: 1) to secure the release of the two IDF soldiers kidnapped by Hizballah; 2) to establish a multinational force to implement UNSCR 1559; and 3) to give the MNF a mandate to block any weapons re-supply of Hizballah. The CODEL stressed the strong U.S. Congressional support for GOI efforts. In response to a question from Rep. Renzi, Peretz said that the MNF should be a force capable of controlling southern Lebanon and the borders with Syria -- "not like the current UN Force." ¶3. (C) Peretz highlighted his view that the connection between a country's sovereignty and its responsibility has been broken, allowing governments to deny responsibility for actions taken within their borders, such as Hizballah's launch of rockets from Lebanon against targets in Israel. He argued that the Lebanese government and the Palestinian Authority bear responsibility for rocket attacks originating in their territories. Peretz emphasized the connection between Hizballah and Iran, and Iran's influence in Lebanon. -------------- Hizballah's Use of Civilians -------------- ¶4. (S) Peretz told the CODEL that the GOI is trying to limit harm to civilians, but he made the point that when civilians harbor missiles "in their living rooms," they are involving themselves in the conflict. He characterized as "demonic" what he claimed was Hizballah's use of the Lebanese civilian population to hide its rockets and stressed that Israel could not allow Hizballah to protect itself this way. In response to Rep. Hoekstra's query as to whether evidence exists of Hizballah hiding missiles in civilians' residences, Peretz said that he would provide further information in a few hours, and added that the evidence was a result of years of careful work with highly sensitive intelligence sources -- "a carefully guarded secret." Hoekstra stressed that it is "very important" that the GOI share this information in order to help solidify support from the U.S. Congress for GOI actions. Peretz noted that it is hard to provide physical evidence, which was either destroyed by IDF attacks or is beyond reach behind enemy lines. The Ambassador suggested that Mossad Director Meir Dagan could provide the requested brief to the CODEL at their meeting (see reftel). ¶5. (C) Rep. Harman said it is important for Israel to stress to the international community all of its efforts to minimize civilian casualties. Peretz said the GOI has been consistently providing advance warning to civilians to leave before attacks, dropping leaflets, and sometimes even through telephone calls, e.g., to private machine shops in Gaza making parts for Qassam rockets. Peretz also said that the GOI had opened humanitarian corridors between Cyprus and Lebanon at Secretary Rice's request. ¶6. (C) Rep. Issa urged that Peretz establish "green lines" for the safe transit of displaced persons throughout Lebanon as soon as possible. He recognized that these lines might have to shift over time, but the IDF could advise of these changes through leaflets. Peretz admitted that Israel was aware of the IDP issue and the need to protect them. He agreed to consider Issa's proposal, but noted that the IDF is not on the ground and thus cannot guarantee anyone's complete safety. He suggested that the IDF could coordinate with the UN on the matter and might designate some such areas in the northern part of the country. -------------- Gilad on MNF -------------- ¶7. (C) In a side conversation after the meeting, MOD political advisor Amos Gilad described Israel's ideas for the MNF. He told the Ambassador that Israel "wants a reliable force "like in Afghanistan," where the NATO framework allowed "even Dutch troops" to kill 13 terrorists recently. Gilad underlined that having another force such as UNIFIL would mean "we're cooked." He also criticized what he referred to as a Ukrainian model, which he characterized as countries "only in (peacekeeping operations) for the money." Unofficially, Gilad said, the GOI supports Arab/Muslim participation, even by Egypt, although, he said, the German Foreign Minister had told the GOI that the Egyptians were not interested. Saudi Arabia could also help substantially, Gilad added. Their participation, for example, could help prevent Iran from playing a major role in Lebanese reconstruction, Gilad said, underlining that "We must not let that (Iranian participation) happen." ¶8. (U) CODEL Hoekstra did not have the opportunity to clear this message before departing the country. ********************************************* ******************** Visit Embassy Tel Aviv's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/telaviv You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website. ********************************************* ******************** JONES