Israel Targets Hezbollah in Ground Raids

Israel Targets Hezbollah Strongholds, Blasts Rock Tel Aviv

On Tuesday, Israel announced the start of “limited, localized, and targeted” ground raids against Hezbollah’s targets and infrastructure in southern Lebanon. This escalation highlights the ongoing hostilities between Israel and the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group.

An Israeli security official stated, “Our war is with Hezbollah, not the people of Lebanon.” On the same day, Hezbollah launched missiles at Israel’s Gilot base and the Mossad headquarters in the suburbs of Tel Aviv, claiming retaliation for the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Just hours before the IDF’s announcement, Israel warned residents in Dahieh, a Hezbollah stronghold, to evacuate, followed by multiple airstrikes in Beirut.

The ground operation comes shortly after the Israeli airstrike that killed Hassan Nasrallah. In the past two weeks, more than 1,000 people have died in the conflict, with up to a million likely displaced.

The IDF reported that several projectiles have crossed from Lebanon toward central Israel, including the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, with some intercepted.

Israel’s Magen David Adom ambulance service reported that a man has been injured and is “conscious, with a shrapnel wound to the head, in moderate condition.”

Regarding the ground raids, an Israeli security official stated that the operation is “limited to specific areas and specific times.” “We will not allow an October 7-like attack on any of Israel’s borders,” the official added.

A Wall Street Journal report noted that special Israeli forces entered a network of subterranean tunnels reportedly dug by Hezbollah members near the Blue Line separating Israel from Lebanon.

In its announcement, the Israeli military stated that the Air Force and IDF Artillery are supporting ground forces and that “Operation ‘Northern Arrows’ will continue based on situational assessment.”

The IDF’s announcement follows the approval of the “next phase” of Israel’s war with Hezbollah by its National Security Cabinet. Israel has also informed the U.S. about “a number of operations,” including ground operations in Lebanon.

Earlier Tuesday, an Israeli strike targeted Mounir Maqdah, commander of the Lebanese branch of the Palestinian Fatah movement’s military wing, in a building in the Ain El-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp.

Meanwhile, in Syria, a recent Israeli strike resulted in the deaths of TV anchor Safaa Ahmed and two others.

The Lebanese Health Ministry reported that at least 95 people were killed in Israeli strikes in the last 24 hours, with 172 others injured.

On Monday, Hezbollah’s deputy leader Naim Qassem declared that “resistance forces are ready for ground engagement.”

Lebanese security sources informed that troops have pulled back from positions along the southern border with Israel to at least 5 kilometers north of the frontier.

Aakhir Tak Editor-in-Chief

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