IDF attacks Hezbollah terror assets in Lebanon

Last week, the IDF struck four crossings in the mostly Shi’ite Hermel area along the Syria-Lebanon border, disrupting weapons smuggling attempts.

By JNS

The Israel Defense Forces on Sunday struck a structure used by Hezbollah terrorists in the Bir al-Sansal area of Southern Lebanon, the military said.

According to the IDF, the site had recently been identified as a weapons manufacturing facility operated by the Iranian-backed proxy.

In a separate strike, the IDF targeted Hezbollah terror infrastructure in the Beqaa Valley.

“The activity of Hezbollah terrorists at these sites constitutes a violation of the ceasefire understandings between Israel and Lebanon,” the military said, adding that it “will continue to operate to remove any threat to the State of Israel.”

The military on Sunday also struck a Hezbollah terror operative in the Bazouriye area, close to close to Tyre in southwestern Lebanon, it stated.

On Wednesday, the IDF struck four crossings in the mostly Shi’ite Hermel area along the Syria-Lebanon border.

In a separate attack, the military killed Muhammad Awasha, describing him as a key Hezbollah arms dealer and smuggler.

Also on Wednesday, the IDF said that it carried out airstrikes on Hezbollah infrastructure across several areas of Southern Lebanon, targeting weapons storage facilities and an underground arms depot embedded in the middle of civilian neighborhoods and used to turn residents into human shields.

The IDF also targeted and killed Abu Ali Salameh, a terrorist who served as a Hezbollah liaison officer in the village of Yanouh in Southern Lebanon’s Tyre District.

Ali Salameh engaged in a “cynical exploitation” of the residents of Yanouh, the military said, embedding terrorist infrastructure within the population.

On Dec. 13, the IDF submitted a request to the ceasefire enforcement mechanism demanding action against a Hezbollah weapons storage facility in Yanouh.

The U.S.-led International Monitoring and Implementation Mechanism is meant to supervise the November 2024 Israel-Lebanon ceasefire agreement.

According to the terms, neither Hezbollah forces nor its infrastructure are permitted in the southern Litani area.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem declared last week that the Iranian-backed terrorist army would not disarm and “the aggression against Lebanon cannot continue,” saying the organization has the “right to defend ourselves.”

The remarks followed statements by Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji, who said in a recent interview with Sky News Arabia that Israel retained the right to strike Lebanon until Hezbollah fully disarms.

Rajji was quoted as saying that “as long as weapons are not permanently restricted, [Jerusalem] unfortunately has the right to continue its attacks according to the agreement.”

Hezbollah started attacking Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, one day after the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel, opening a second front in the country’s north that lasted until the truce on Nov. 27, 2024.

The truce terms required Hezbollah to disarm, starting in regions adjacent to the border, with the Lebanese Armed Forces mandated to establish a monopoly over weapons in the country.

The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office in a Jan. 8 statement said that while Beirut’s efforts were “an encouraging beginning,” they were “far from sufficient” given Hezbollah’s ongoing Iran-aided rearmament efforts.

“The ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States between Israel and Lebanon states clearly that Hezbollah must be fully disarmed. This is imperative for Israel’s security and Lebanon’s future,” said Jerusalem.