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The Israeli military says it has begun a “limited, localized” ground operation against Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon.
In posts shared on social media, the Israeli military said it was carrying out “targeted” ground raids in villages close to the Israeli border.
“A few hours ago, the IDF began limited, localized, and targeted ground raids based on precise intelligence against Hezbollah terrorist targets and infrastructure in southern Lebanon,” the military said. “These targets are located in villages close to the border and pose an immediate threat to Israeli communities in northern Israel.”
Baz Ratner / AP
The IDF said that the operation had been planned in recent months and was launched after approval by political leaders. The troop movement comes in the wake of days of Israeli airstrikes that killed the leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, and a number of the group’s commanders in Beirut.
“The Israeli Air Force and IDF Artillery are supporting the ground forces with precise strikes on military targets in the area,” the military said.
Israel said its airstrike operation on Iran-backed groups in Lebanon — an operation it calls “Northern Arrows” — will continue “in parallel to combat in Gaza and in other arenas.”
Israel expanded its airstrikes in Lebanon and beyond over the weekend, launching raids thousands of miles away on Yemen’s Houthi rebels. The strikes came amid growing concern that Israel’s nearly-yearlong war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon could spiral into a broad regional conflict, drawing in Iran and even the U.S. to back their respective allies.
Earlier on Monday, a U.S. official confirmed to CBS News that Israel had notified the U.S. that it intended to launch a limited ground incursion into Lebanon.
In another sign the invasion was imminent, Israel declared three small border communities to be a “closed military zone,” restricting access only to army personnel.
There were no reports of direct clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants. But throughout the evening, Israeli artillery units pounded targets in southern Lebanon and the sounds of airstrikes were heard throughout Beirut. Smoke rose from the capital’s southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a strong presence, shortly after Israel called on the residents of three buildings to evacuate.
Hussein Malla / AP
Israel has been emboldened by its recent battlefield gains against Hezbollah and appears intent on delivering a knockout blow to its archenemy. But a ground operation marks a new and potentially risky phase of fighting. It also threatens to unleash further devastation on Lebanon, where hundreds have been killed in recent Israeli strikes and hundreds of thousands have been displaced.
Hezbollah is a well-trained militia, believed to have tens of thousands of fighters and an arsenal of 150,000 rockets and missiles. The last round of fighting in 2006 ended in a stalemate.
Both sides have spent the past two decades preparing for their next showdown. While Hezbollah has built up a formidable arsenal, Israel has invested great sums into training and intelligence gathering. Recent airstrikes wiping out most of Hezbollah’s top leadership and the explosions of hundreds of pagers and walkie-talkies belonging to Hezbollah indicate that Israel has infiltrated deep inside the group’s upper echelons.
Hezbollah vowed Monday to keep fighting even after its recent losses. The group’s acting leader, Naim Kassem, said in a televised statement that Hezbollah would be ready for a ground operation. He said commanders killed in recent weeks have already been replaced.
The man widely expected to take over the top post from Kassem is Hashem Safieddine, a cousin of Nasrallah who oversees Hezbollah’s political affairs.
Israeli strikes in recent weeks have hit what the military says are thousands of militant targets across large parts of Lebanon. Over 1,000 people have been killed in Lebanon in the past two weeks, nearly a quarter of them women and children, according to the Health Ministry.
Early Monday, an airstrike hit a residential building in central Beirut, killing three Palestinian militants, as Israel appeared to send a message that no part of Lebanon is out of bounds.
Israel declared war against the Hamas militant group in the Gaza Strip after Hamas’ cross-border attack last Oct. 7 that killed 1,200 Israelis and took 250 others hostage. Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel the following day.
Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged fire almost every day since then, coming close to a full-fledged war on several occasions but stepping back from the brink.
But as Israel’s war against against Hamas has scaled back in recent weeks, it has turned its focus northward toward Lebanon and stepped up the attacks on Hezbollah. It says it will continue to strike the group until it is safe for displaced Israelis from border communities to return to their homes.
