Turning a burden into an asset

Gadi Ezra argues that southern Lebanon should be transformed from a buffer zone into a free trade area, through economic cooperation between Israel, Lebanon, and the US. He cites the explosion of the Ali al-Taher ridge as evidence of the failure of previous diplomatic solutions, and proposes an economic model that would incentivize calm and raise the cost of instability for Hezbollah.

In an opinion piece, Gadi Ezra argues that southern Lebanon should be transformed from a burden into an asset, not just a buffer zone but a free trade area. He cites last month's explosion of the Ali al-Taher ridge, which destroyed the nerve center of Hezbollah's Badr unit, as evidence of the failure of previous diplomatic solutions. Ezra proposes an economic model in which Israel, Lebanon, and the US would demarcate an area and recognize it as a free trade zone, with the land remaining Lebanese and ownership shared. Companies would operate in agriculture and medicine, with the US bringing most of the investment. The three governments would hold "golden shares" with veto power over who enters. Each company would pay "peace dues," and a tenth of the profits would be dedicated to education for tolerance and deradicalization. Ezra argues that money incentivizes calm and raises the cost of losing it, and that Hezbollah is first and foremost an economic institution. He cites a May 2026 poll in which 58% supported the disarmament of Hezbollah, and support for peace with Israel jumped from 25% to 49% in less than a year. Ezra concludes that the next alliance in the region, with Israel at its center, will grow from such places, not from another imaginary ceasefire.