Hezbollah Archives - Page 8 of 22

Israeli Soldiers Discover Lebanon is No Joyride

CrossFireArabia
October 25, 2024

The Israeli occupation army announced, Friday morning, the killing of two officers and three other soldiers in battles in southern Lebanon, bringing the announced death toll to 10 in less than 24 hours.

Israeli army radio said the Lebanese Hezbollah launched rockets intensively the previous Thursday night towards the forces stationed in a village in southern Lebanon.

It reported Hezbollah launched a barrage of rockets towards a gathering of the occupation army inside a village in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon, and one of the rockets fell near a building where a force from the 89th Battalion was present according to Jordan24.

This is addition to fighters from a logistical convoy that was about to leave the place after renewing the force’s supplies to continue fighting. As a result of the rocket attack, 24 soldiers were injured, five of whom were killed, four were seriously injured, seven were moderately injured, and eight were slightly injured.

Israeli media reported that the dead included the deputy commander of the 89th Battalion, and all five dead were from the 8th Armored Brigade, 89th Battalion.

The Israeli Ministry of Defense announced 890 soldiers, officers, police officers, and security personnel were killed since October 7 of last year.

The Israeli army reported in a statement published by Israeli media four reserve soldiers were killed and six others were wounded during a clash with Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon, Wednesday, when a group of Hezbollah fighters emerged from a tunnel in a rugged area and threw hand grenades at the force.

يوم أسود على نتنياهو وجيشه وجنوده،مقتل 13ضابط وجندي من قوات جيش الاحتلال الإسرائيلي على جبهتي غزة ولبنان في أقل من 24ساعة..#غزة_تذبح_بصمت pic.twitter.com/Xu31IKpr3B
— A Mansour أحمد منصور (@amansouraja) October 25, 2024

It pointed out that the number of dead does not include settlers and that among them are 808 officers and soldiers from the Israeli army, 75 members of the Israeli police, and 7 members of the General Security Service (Shabak).

Since September 23, the occupation forces have expanded the scope of the genocide they have been committing in Gaza since 7 October, 2023, to include most areas of Lebanon, including the capital Beirut, through unprecedentedly violent and intense airstrikes, and have also begun a ground incursion into the south, disregarding international warnings and UN resolutions.

The aggression on Lebanon has resulted in the deaths of 2,574 people and the injury of more than 12,000 others, including a large number of women and children, in addition to more than 1,340,000 displaced persons.

Hezbollah Statistics

Hezbollah, and with numbers and statistics drawn up the latest heavy losses it inflicted on the Israeli occupation forces, despite the intensive aerial bombardment.

Hezbollah confirmed that the Israeli army was unable to occupy any of the villages on the front edge of southern Lebanon, confirming that its elements confronted the Israeli forces on five axes on the border according to Al Jazeera.

The party said 70 Israeli soldiers were killed and more than 600 wounded in addition to the destruction of 28 Merkava tanks, four military bulldozers, an armored vehicle, and an armored personnel carrier, in addition to the shooting down four drones.

News

Stop Supplying Israel With Weapons

CrossFireArabia
October 22, 2024

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian:

“The governments and forces that talk about human rights and international law are violators of all laws and rights by supplying Israel with weapons and shamelessly defending every crime against humanity.”

Opinion

Nervous Mideast Awaits: Gaza, Lebanon and Possibly Iran

CrossFireArabia
October 22, 2024

In recent days, the region has witnessed significant events, the most notable of which was the assassination of Yahya Sinwar, the de facto leader of Hamas. This event, heavily relied upon by Israel, came at a time when the military focus had already shifted to the Lebanese front. This shift has kept the war atmosphere ablaze, making it difficult for the international community to put more pressure on Netanyahu to end the war in Gaza.

Meanwhile, Israel will likely manoeuvre by appearing to offer concessions in humanitarian aid and relief efforts, while in reality escalating its pressure on Hamas and seeking to take advantage of the uncertainty within the movement following Sinwar’s death. This situation may force Hamas to urgently craft a new political strategy for the coming phase, especially as its upcoming political battle promises to be one of its most complex challenges.

On the Lebanese front, Hizbollah managed to deliver strikes inside Israel in recent days, the most prominent of which was the drone attack targeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence. Although the attack did not cause significant damage, its symbolism was considerable. Netanyahu quickly seized the opportunity to shift the narrative in his favour, moving from a position of blame in the eyes of some allies to portraying himself as a victim. This allowed him to launch a new campaign of mobilization. Through this effort, Netanyahu aims to gain a green light for a series of operations that could go beyond military and security targets to also include political objectives in Lebanon and Iran, with potential extensions into Syria and Iraq.

These are not meteorites, these are Iranian missiles in Israel pic.twitter.com/LBah0DPSmt
— S p r i n t e r (@SprinterFamily) October 1, 2024

At the same time, Israel has intensified its attacks on Hizbollah across various regions of Lebanon, targeting individuals and locations, particularly in Beirut’s southern suburbs. It is clear that Israel aims to dismantle the urban infrastructure of this area while also contributing to ongoing demographic displacement efforts. The broader goal appears to be turning the southern suburbs into an uninhabitable zone, displacing its residents. Ultimately, Israel seeks to reshape Lebanon’s security landscape by creating a deep buffer zone in the south, ensuring a different form of international presence that would replace the current UNIFIL forces, and stripping Hezbollah of its social strongholds in the future.

As Israel works to contain the surrounding fronts, from Gaza to the West Bank, it continues to escalate its strikes against Lebanon and maintains Syria under constant attack to disrupt the presence of Iran and Hezbollah and cut off potential logistical supplies. These actions indicate that Israel is paving the way to target Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

At the same time, Yemen and Iraq remain potential sources of threat. The United States’ robust engagement in targeting the Houthis with specialized operations, particularly using B-2 bombers, suggests that Iraq might be the front activated to distract Israel and create a security crisis within its borders. This aligns with recent operations from Lebanon that aim to create internal security turmoil in Israel, seeking to disrupt daily life. These efforts are expected to escalate through multiple operations using diverse methods, as has already been observed in recent weeks.

The intensification of attacks on Lebanon, the isolation of Syria, and the significant US military buildup, including the deployment of the “THAAD” missile defence systems to Israel, all fall under the broader preparations for what could come after an Israeli strike on Iran. This further suggests that the groundwork has been laid for a significant and targeted attack on the IRGC.

Sensing this looming threat, Iran’s foreign minister has embarked on a wide-reaching diplomatic campaign across the region, though it appears that none of its objectives have been met. The campaign’s primary goal was to prevent military action against Iran while highlighting the dangers of entering an open confrontation with Iran and the security risks it would pose across the region.

The region’s entry into a phase of direct targeting of Iran opens the door to new repercussions. Large swaths of geography could face waves of violence and attacks, particularly given the possibility that various groups and cells may act independently. This raises the level of security threats across much of the region, including areas that are not currently involved in the active conflict zones.

Dr Amer Al Sabaileh, a professor in Jordan University, is a columnist for the Jordan Times

News

War on Lebanon Costs Israel $134 Million Daily

CrossFireArabia
October 21, 2024

Yedioth Ahronoth points out that a senior Israeli economic official says that enduring a long war in the north and south is hard on the Israeli economy. He noted the expansion of the war in the north has cost the Finance Ministry an extra $6.7 billion since the beginning of last September.

He added the expenses of one day of fighting in Lebanon amounts to around $134 million and may increase soon, pointing out the costs of ammunition used in Lebanon are very high.

The Israeli official stressed the expansion of the war requires an increase in the budget in light of the absence of funding sources according to Al Jazeera.

Recent data showed the growth of the Israeli economy continued to decline in the second quarter of this year, against the backdrop of the ongoing war waged by Israel on the Gaza Strip and its expansion into Lebanon.

Israel is spending $134 million a day on its invasion of Lebanon, and the amount could soon increase, Yedioth Ahronoth reports, citing Israeli officials. pic.twitter.com/386I8jtl1D
— S p r i n t e r (@SprinterFamily) October 20, 2024

The Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics stated that the gross domestic product rose by only 0.3% on an annual basis in the period from April to June, down from the 0.7% growth rate announced the previous month, and the 1.2% growth rate announced last August.

Ten days ago, the Israeli Finance Ministry announced that the budget deficit reached 8.8 billion shekels ($2.34 billion) in September, as the war on the Gaza Strip escalated and expanded to Lebanon and other fronts.

The deficit rose in the 12 months through September to 8.5% of GDP, from 8.3% in the 12 months through August.

The rise in the deficit to 8.5% comes from an increase in military and civilian spending to finance the war, and the deficit has risen for the sixth consecutive month above the annual target set by the government at 6.6%.

Worth noting in 2023, Israel’s budget deficit was at 4.2%, and it plans to reduce it to 4% next year is now out of reach.

Spending on the war, which began on 7 October, 2023, exceeded 103 billion shekels ($27.35 billion).

News

Hezbollah: ‘Israel Will Not Rest’

CrossFireArabia
October 21, 2024

Hezbollah said Monday that it downed an Israeli drone and targeted Israeli artillery positions and troop gatherings in nine attacks carried out by its fighters on Sunday night.

In a series of statements, the group reported shooting down an Israeli Hermes 900 drone but did not specify the location of the incident.

Hezbollah also said it launched rocket barrages at Israeli artillery positions in the Beit Hillel and Odem settlements, as well as the Beit Hillel military base in northern Israel.

The group fighters also targeted Israeli troop concentrations in Khillat Warda, the eastern neighborhood of the town of Markaba, and a military movement in Jabal Kehail in the southern Lebanese town of Maroun El Ras.

Additionally, Hezbollah launched missile strikes on Israeli forces at the Al-Malkiyya site and hit the Kiryat Shmona settlement in northern Israel.

Israel has mounted a huge air campaign in Lebanon since Sept. 23 against what it says are Hezbollah targets, killing more than 1,500 people and displacing over 1.34 million.

The aerial campaign is an escalation from a year of cross-border warfare between Israel and the Lebanese group since the start of its offensive on the Gaza Strip, in which Israel has killed more than 42,600 people, most of them women and children, since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas last October.

Israel expanded the conflict on Oct. 1 this year by launching an incursion into southern Lebanon according to Anadolu.