紐時賞析／利塔尼河左右以色列與真主黨之戰

以色列3月23日空襲黎巴嫩南部與北部的重要通道卡斯米亞橋，該橋跨越利塔尼河。歐新社

How the Litani River Shapes the Israel-Hezbollah War

利塔尼河左右以色列與真主黨之戰

The Litani River, a 90-mile waterway that cuts across southern Lebanon, has again become a focal point of the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah, the second in two years.

利塔尼河是一條長約90英里、橫貫黎巴嫩南部的水道，如今再次成爲以色列與真主黨最新一輪戰爭的焦點，這已是2年內第二次衝突。

After Hezbollah, an Iran-backed group, fired rockets into Israel last month, the Israeli military went on the offensive, launching large-scale airstrikes that Lebanese authorities say have since killed more than 1,000 people.

伊朗支持的真主黨上個月向以色列發射火箭彈後，以色列軍方隨即展開攻勢，發動大規模空襲。黎巴嫩當局表示，這些空襲至今已造成超過1000人死亡。

Israel has issued sweeping evacuation orders for all of southern Lebanon. Hundreds of thousands of residents were warned to move north of the Litani River before those orders were later extended farther.

以色列對整個黎巴嫩南部發布大範圍撤離命令。數十萬居民原本被要求移到利塔尼河以北，後來這些命令又進一步擴大。

The Litani’s role in the conflict dates back decades, shaped by repeated rounds of fighting along the Israeli-Lebanese border.

以色列與黎巴嫩邊境數十年來的多次戰鬥，塑造利塔尼河在這場衝突中的角色。

Until 2000, Israeli forces occupied a swath of southern Lebanon that they called a security zone, as they fought a grinding insurgency led by Hezbollah. After Israel withdrew, the area south of the Litani remained one of Hezbollah’s strongest bases of operations, where the group has deep support among the area’s Shiite Muslim community.

直到2000年，以色列軍隊一直佔領黎巴嫩南部一大片地區，稱爲安全區，當時他們正在對抗由真主黨領導的長期游擊戰。以色列撤軍後，利塔尼河以南地區仍然是真主黨最鐵桿的作戰基地之一，該團體在當地什葉派穆斯林社羣中擁有深厚支持。

That reality shaped a ceasefire that ended a major war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006. Under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, the area between Israel’s border and the Litani — roughly 15 to 20 miles to the north — was meant to be free of Hezbollah fighters. The resolution turned the river into the upper bound of a buffer zone that was to be controlled by the Lebanese military, with support from United Nations peacekeepers.

這樣的背景，也形塑了2006年結束以色列與真主黨大戰的停火協議。根據聯合國安理會第1701號決議，以色列邊境與利塔尼河之間的區域—大約往北15到20英里—本來應該完全沒有真主黨武裝分子。這項決議把利塔尼河設定爲緩衝區的最北界線，這個區域應由黎巴嫩軍隊負責控制，並由聯合國維和部隊提供支援。

Though the border remained relatively calm for two decades, Israel argued that Hezbollah was building up weapons and fighters south of the river. Lebanon’s government and Hezbollah accused Israel of remaining in disputed border areas and of repeatedly violating Lebanese sovereignty.

雖然邊境在接下來的20年間相對平靜，但以色列認爲真主黨一直在利塔尼河以南地區囤積武器和戰鬥人員。黎巴嫩政府與真主黨則指責以色列仍留在有爭議的邊境地區，並一再侵犯黎巴嫩主權。

In recent days, the Israeli military has attacked bridges and crossings over the Litani, accusing Hezbollah of using them to move fighters and weapons into southern Lebanon.

近日，以色列軍方攻擊利塔尼河上的橋樑和渡口，指責真主黨利用這些地方把戰鬥人員和武器運送到黎巴嫩南部。

Many in Lebanon fear that the Litani could become the ultimate objective of Israel’s expanding ground invasion, and possibly the boundary of a renewed Israeli-occupied zone in southern Lebanon.

許多黎巴嫩人擔心，利塔尼河可能成爲以色列擴大地面入侵的最終目標，甚至可能成爲以色列在黎巴嫩南部重新建立佔領區的界線。

文／Euan Ward，譯／國際中心

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