ERROL BARNETT:
00:00:00
Welcome back. Israel's military killed a senior member of Hezbollah during a strike on the Lebanese capital of Beirut over the weekend. It's been almost a year since a US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and the militant group went into effect. Hezbollah condemned that attack, saying Israel's strike crossed a red line, while Prime Minister Netanyahu said Israel would not allow Hezbollah to rebuild its forces. CBS News contributor Robert Berger joins us now from Jerusalem to talk more about this. Good morning, Robert. And so why did Israel launch this strike? And could it reignite tensions along its northern border? Well, Israel says that Hezbollah is rebuilding and rearming after the war ended about a year ago with that ceasefire and that Lebanon is not carrying out its obligation to disarm Hezbollah, which really isn't much of a surprise. Hezbollah are a very powerful group, and they've refused to disarm. So Israel definitely is stepping up the pressure. We've seen much more limited airstrikes over the past few weeks. But targeting the deputy-- targeting the commander of Hezbollah forces, the military chief of staff, is certainly an escalation. And Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying the message is clear if Lebanon, the Lebanese government, won't disarm and dismantle Hezbollah, Israel will.
ERROL BARNETT:
00:01:24
All right, Robert Berger in Jerusalem. Thank you, Robert.
