Israel Escalates Strikes On Hezbollah In Lebanon Amid Rising Tensions‌ ‌

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Last week, thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies belonging to the operatives of the Hezbollah terror group exploded all over Lebanon in what foreign reports say was an Israeli operation. Israel has not comment.

On Friday, a targeted Israeli strike in the Beirut neighborhood of Dahiya killed 16 Hezbollah operatives, including Hezbollah’s senior commander Ibrahim Aqil, wanted by the United States in connection with the 1983 bombings of the US Embassy in Lebanon.

Israel has also stepped up strikes on missile launchers and other strategic targets throughout Lebanon. This morning alone, launching over 300 strikes on weapons depots and other targets.

The dramatic increase in Israel’s actions against Hezbollah is the first major initiative against the terror organization since hostilities broke out a year ago.

A day after the October 7 Hamas attacks from Gaza, Iran-backed Hezbollah began launching rockets, drones, and rocket-propelled grenades at Israeli communities near the Lebanon border.

At least 27 civilians have been killed in Israel so far as a result of these attacks, and a similar number of soldiers and some 80,000 people have been forced out of their homes and communities in the north for almost a year because of the missile attacks and threats of invasion.

Over the course of the year, the range of Hezbollah’s fire has been consistently increasing. Two days ago, the cities of Kiryat Bialik and Yokne’am Illit — located nearly 50 km (164042 feet) (30 miles) from the border — sustained hits by Hezbollah rockets for the first time in many years.

Taking into account all the latest developments, it’s inevitable to wonder whether an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah is on the cards.

Col. (ret.) Itamar Yaar, former deputy head of the National Security Council (NSC) and director of Commanders for Israel’s Security (CIS), says neither side has an invested interest in such a war.