Hezbollah has declared an escalation to a ‘new phase’ in its conflict, signaling intensified tensions in the region. The announcement has sparked concerns about potential wider unrest.
The Lebanese Shia Islamist militant organization Hezbollah has announced that its military conflict with Israel is moving into a new phase after the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) in Gaza earlier this week.
Hezbollah significantly increased its missile attacks on the neighboring country following the commencement of Israel’s military operation against Hamas in the Palestinian enclave last fall. This Israeli action was a response to Hamas militants’ deadly incursion into Israeli territory in October 2023, during which they killed approximately 1,100 people and took over 200 hostages.
Last month, a wave of explosions involving hand-held pagers and radios occurred throughout Lebanon, resulting in the deaths of dozens and injuries to thousands of Hezbollah militants as well as civilians. Although Israel has not formally taken responsibility for these incidents, many analysts suspect that its intelligence services were involved. Subsequently, this was accompanied by widespread Israeli airstrikes and a limited ground operation in southern Lebanon initiated earlier this month.
Lebanese authorities report that Israeli attacks since last October have resulted in the deaths of over 2,000 people.
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In a Thursday statement, Hezbollah declared an escalation to a new phase in their confrontation with Israel, indicating that this will be evident in the upcoming days’ developments and events. The group emphasized that its rocket attacks are increasing daily, noting for the first time the use of precision weaponry.
The organization cautioned that “hundreds of fighters…are completely ready to respond to any Israeli ground invasion into villages in southern Lebanon.”
Hezbollah targeted an Israeli army base in Binyamina with a drone carrying explosives last Sunday. The next day, IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari announced that the attack had resulted in the deaths of four soldiers and left seven others seriously injured.
Earlier this month, the Israeli military announced that it had lost eight commandos in two different firefights in southern Lebanon.
On Friday, the IDF announced that it had killed Muhammad Hassin Ramal, who was Hezbollah’s commander for the Tayibe area in southern Lebanon.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated last week that they have “eliminated thousands of terrorists, including Hezbollah’s longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah, his successor, and even the successor’s replacement.”
On September 27, an Israeli airstrike in Beirut resulted in the death of Nasrallah.
Earlier this month, the IDF reported that its forces had “eliminated approximately 440 terrorists” since the start of their operation against Hezbollah in Lebanon, including 30 commanding officers.
