Israel says situation on Lebanon border 'not sustainable'

Israeli officials and media reacted with satisfaction on Monday after a long-expected missile attack by the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement appeared to have been largely thwarted by pre-emptive Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon.

Both Hezbollah and Israel seemed content to let Sunday's attack, in retaliation for the killing of a senior Hezbollah commander in Beirut last month, count as settled for the moment.

Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer said Hezbollah had suffered a "crushing blow" from the Israeli strikes but that a longer lasting solution was still needed.

"The current situation is not sustainable," he told a briefing, referring to the tens of thousands evacuated from their homes in northern Israel, a situation mirrored on the other side of the border in southern Lebanon. "Israel will do its duty and return its population to our sovereign territory."

"Maybe - just maybe - Israel's success at foiling Hezbollah’s retaliation might pave the way to concessions by Hamas in the negotiations over a hostage deal, given the failed bid to see the war expanded to engulf the entire region," wrote Avi Issacharoff, a commentator in Israel's biggest-selling daily Yedioth Ahronoth.