Illustrative image. (The Israeli Defense Forces)
Two Hezbollah members were killed in drone strikes that targeted southern Lebanon on April 16, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced.
The first strike, in the town of Qantara, targeted a member of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan force, the IDF said in a statement, adding in a separate statement released later that a second strike targeted another member of the group in the town of Hanine.
The Lebanese Health Ministry confirmed that one person was killed in the strike on a vehicle in the area of Wadi al-Hujair, near Qantara, and a second was killed in the strike that targeted Hanine.
Click to see full-size image. Via X.
Click to see full-size image. Via X.
Earlier in the day, the IDF announced that it had struck infrastructure belonging to Hezbollah in southern Lebanon overnight. Lebanese media reported a series of strikes near the town of Ramyeh, close to the Israeli border. There were no casualties.
In the evening, a series of at least three strikes targeted the town of Aita al-Shaab in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese media reports.
Last November, Hezbollah accepted a ceasefire proposed by the United States to end a heated confrontation with the IDF. The group itself started the confrontation more than a year earlier with the aim to support its ally, the Palestinian Hamas Movement, in the Gaza Strip.
The ceasefire, which entered into effect on November 27, was supposed to end all clashes on the Israeli-Lebanese border by February 18. However, the Israeli military continues to launch strikes against Hezbollah. It also maintains troops at five strategic points in southern Lebanon.
The uptake in Israeli strikes on April 16 came after Hezbollah apparently walked back on talks with the Lebanese government to disarm.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said on April 15 that all weapons in Lebanon must come under exclusive state control in 2025.
Speaking to The New Arab outlet, Aoun said that “the decision has been made to place all weapons under the state.” He clarified that “the execution will happen through dialogue, which I believe must be bilateral between the presidency and Hezbollah.”
Aoun stressed that he was committed to avoiding internal conflict while pursuing the agenda, which could greatly weaken Hezbollah, saying he recently told U.S. deputy Mideast envoy Morgan Ortagus, “We want to remove Hezbollah’s weapons, but we will not ignite a civil war in Lebanon.”
In addition, the president claimed growing success in asserting the authority of the Lebanese military over Hezbollah all over the country.
“We have reached the point where the [Lebanese] army is carrying out its missions — south of the Litani, north of the Litani, and even in the Bekaa — without any obstruction from Hezbollah,” he said.
Aoun also suggested that Hezbollah members could be integrated into the ranks of the Lebanese military in the near future.
However, senior Hezbollah political leader and parliament member Mahmoud Qamati pushed back against the president’s claims, saying that Hezbollah will “stick to its weapons and its resistance” and that “any hand that reaches out to take them will be cut off.”
This stance has apparently provoked Israel, which is now once again escalating against Lebanon. In fact, the IDF could go as far as renewing its full-on operations against Hezbollah from the air and on the ground in the near future. Israel has already pulled out such a maneuver in Gaza.
Such a move in Lebanon may begin once a new ceasefire is reached in the Strip. While Hezbollah is guaranteed to put on a fight, the IDF will have the upper hand.
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