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The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) continues to operate against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and other parts of the country, taking advantage of the ceasefire brokered by the United States which entered into effect on November 27.
The ceasefire agreement does call for the withdrawal of Hezbollah from southern Lebanon. It also says that the group’s infrastructure in the region should be dismantled. However, it also calls on Israel to end its violations of Lebanon’s territory, which is yet to happen.
On December 25, Lebanon’s state media said that an Israeli strike targeted the Baalbek region in the east of the country before dawn.
The strike near the town of Tarya did not result in casualties, the state-run National News Agency reported. A Lebanese security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the strike targeted “warehouses believed to belong to Hezbollah.”
On the same day, the IDF showcased loads of weapons which it claimed were captured from Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
In all, the IDF says the display includes arms and other equipment from some 85,170 individual items captured from Hezbollah.
The weapons at the display include some 6,840 rocket-propelled grenades and anti-tank missiles, including 340 Russian-made Kornets, along with their launchers; 9,000 explosive devices and grenades; 2,250 unguided rockets and mortars; 2,700 assault rifles; 2,860 other guns including sniper rifles; and 60 anti-aircraft missiles.
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The display also includes 20 Hezbollah vehicles captured by the IDF; 60,800 pieces of electronic equipment, communication devices, computers, and documents; and 300 pieces of surveillance equipment, including binoculars, according to the military.
The weapons and equipment were captured by Israeli troops during operations in over 30 villages in southern Lebanon since late September. Military officials say that some of the weapons that meet Israeli standards, such as the mortars, will be used by the IDF.
On December 27, Israel escalated against Lebanon. The IDF launched against what it said was infrastructure used by Hezbollah on the Syria-Lebanon border to transfer arms.
According to the military, Israeli Air Force fighter jets hit sites at the Janta crossing, located in the Beqaa Valley of eastern Lebanon.
“The Hezbollah terror organization uses civilian infrastructure to carry out terror activity and to transfer weapons, which are intended to be used to carry out terror attacks against Israeli citizens,” the military said.
Later on December 28, the IDF released footage from a tunnel belonging to Hezbollah’s elite Radwan force which was recently discovered and demolished in southern Lebanon.
The military said the 100-meter-long underground passage was used by Hezbollah to store numerous weapons, surveillance equipment, and other military gear. The tunnel also led to a Hezbollah command center, where the military said that it found rocket launchers used in previous attacks on Israel, alongside numerous explosive devices.
Recent Israeli operations in Lebanon led to speculations that the IDF won’t be withdrawing from the country after the end of the two-months ceasefire as agreed upon.
The United Nations peacekeeping force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) called on December 26 for a timely Israeli withdrawal from south Lebanon.
In a statement, UNIFIL voiced its concern over what it said was continued destruction by Israeli forces of residential areas, farmland and infrastructure in south Lebanon, deeming this a violation of UN Resolution 1701.
“UNIFIL continues to urge the timely withdrawal of the Israel Defense Forces and the deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces (in place of Hezbollah) in southern Lebanon, alongside the full implementation of Resolution 1701 as a comprehensive path toward peace,” the statement said.
Responding to the station, the IDF said that it was looking into UNIFIL’s criticism and declined further comment for the time being.
On December 27, Israel said that the deadline for its troop withdrawal from southern Lebanon, stipulated in a cease-fire agreement, is “not a sacred date.”
The Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation quoted unnamed Israeli security officials as saying:
“The two-month timeline for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon is not a sacred deadline, and the implementation of the withdrawal depends on field developments.”
“The plans presented to the U.S. mechanism, which coordinates between the Israeli and Lebanese armies and UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon), include gradual timelines based on steps taken by the Lebanese army,” the officials added.
They also stated that Israel had informed the U.S. that the withdrawal would only take place after the necessary conditions are met, without providing further details.
The broadcaster alleged that “Israel has monitored Hezbollah’s attempts to move personnel from Syria to Lebanon over the past two weeks.”
The agency also reported that “Israel has emphasized to the international community that it will not withdraw from southern Lebanon unless Hezbollah withdraws to the northern bank of the Litani River and the Lebanese army deploys along the border.”
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati responded on the same day by denying reports that Lebanon had been informed through intermediaries that Israel would not withdraw from southern Lebanon after the end of the ceasefire.
In a statement, Mikati’s media office emphasized: “This information is completely false.”
“The firm position that Mikati has conveyed to all relevant parties, including the U.S. and France, is that pressure should be exerted on Israel to withdraw from the Lebanese territories it occupied and stop its violations and hostile actions,” it said.
Overall, tensions remain high between Israel and Lebanon. The conflict with Hezbollah is not over yet, and while the group has tolerated IDF violations so far, this could change after the end of the ceasefire. On the other side, Israel is clearly trying to take advantage of the situation that emerged after the surprising fall of the Assad regime in Syria which left Hezbollah without a supply route.
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