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Ongoing conflict between Hezbollah and Israel From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah started exchanging fire along the Israel–Lebanon border and in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on 8 October 2023. Israel also carried out airstrikes throughout Lebanon and in Syria. The clashes were part of the spillover of the Israel–Hamas war and the largest escalation of the Hezbollah–Israel conflict since the 2006 Lebanon War. On 30 September 2024, Israel escalated the conflict into a ground invasion of Lebanon.
| Israel–Hezbollah conflict (2023–2024) | |||||||
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| Part of the Hezbollah–Israel conflict, the Middle Eastern crisis (2023–present) and the Iran–Israel conflict during the Syrian civil war | |||||||
Israel Attested Hezbollah presence in Lebanon Lebanon under Israeli control Syria Areas ordered evacuated by Israel See here for a more detailed map | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Hezbollah[1] |
 IsraelAllies: | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Naim Qassem Hassan Nasrallah X Hashem Safieddine X Fuad Shukr X Ibrahim Aqil X Ali Karaki X |
 Benjamin Netanyahu Israel Katz Yoav Gallant[a] Herzi Halevi Ori Gordin Tomer Bar | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
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List of units:
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List of units:
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
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Lebanon:
Per IDF:
Syria:
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Israel:
Per Hezbollah:
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842,000[64] – 1.4 million+ Lebanese displaced[65] 96,000 Israelis displaced[66] 232 Syrian refugees killed by Israeli forces[67] | |||||||
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On 8 October 2023, Hezbollah started firing guided rockets and artillery shells at Israeli positions in the occupied Shebaa Farms, which it said was in solidarity with Palestinians following the Hamas attack on Israel and beginning of Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip.[68][69] Israel retaliated by launching drone strikes and artillery shells at Hezbollah positions near Lebanon's boundary with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
In northern Israel, the ongoing conflict has forced approximately 96,000 individuals to leave their homes,[70][66] while in Lebanon, over 1.4 million individuals have been displaced,[71] with Hezbollah saying it would not stop attacks against Israel until it stops its attacks and military operations in Gaza.[72] During the conflict, Israel has launched attacks at a much higher rate than Hezbollah has.[73] Between 21 October 2023 and 20 February 2024, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) recorded an estimated 7,948 incidents of artillery fire from the south of the Blue Line (from Israel to Lebanon) and 978 incidents of artillery fire from the northern side (from Lebanon to Israel).[74]
There was a significant escalation in September 2024, starting with the Lebanon pager explosions, which targeted Hezbollah and were widely attributed to Israel. Forty-two people were killed and thousands wounded. On 23 September, Israel began an aerial bombing campaign[75] throughout Lebanon, codenamed Operation Northern Arrows,[76] which included assassinations of senior Hezbollah commanders. Israel said its attacks would continue until its citizens could return safely to the north. The first day was the deadliest, with Israeli strikes killing at least 558 people and injuring more than 1,800 including children, women and paramedics.[77] On 27 September, the Israeli Air Force bombed and destroyed Hezbollah's main headquarters in Beirut, killing Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.[78] On 1 October, the Israeli military began a full-scale invasion of southern Lebanon, also known as the Third Lebanon War by some Israeli sources,[79] although it had been conducting limited ground operations for some time.
Hezbollah is a Lebanese Shiite political party and paramilitary group, formed in 1982 by Muslim clerics with Iranian funding to fight the Israeli invasion of Lebanon.[80] After the war, Israel continued to hold borderland buffer zone in southern Lebanon with the aid of proxy militants in the South Lebanon Army (SLA).[81] In 2000, Israel withdrew from South Lebanon to the UN-designated and internationally recognized Blue Line border.[82] Hezbollah quickly took control of the area. It has justified its continued existence, occupation, and attacks on Israel by citing both allegations of Lebanese prisoners in Israel and continued Israeli control of the Shebaa farms region, occupied by Israel from Syria in 1967 but considered by Hezbollah to be part of Lebanon.[83][84]
Elimination of the state of Israel has been a primary goal for Hezbollah from its inception.[85][86][87] Hezbollah opposes the government and policies of the State of Israel.[88][89]
Since the 1948 Palestinian expulsion and flight, Palestinian refugees have had a presence in southern Lebanon as numerous refugee camps were established, which brought many Palestinian factions into south Lebanon, with it being often used as a center to launch rockets into northern Israel. The Palestine Liberation Organization was based in Lebanon after being expelled from Jordan by King Hussein in July 1971.[90] After they were involved in an insurgency in Southern Lebanon, until they were expelled to Tunis after the 1982 Lebanon War.[91]
A ceasefire was reached between Israel and Hezbollah at the end of the 2006 Lebanon War, based on the terms of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 which called for a demilitarized zone between the southern border of Lebanon and the Litani river. The UN Security Council resolution mandated only the Lebanese army and United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) could be armed in southern Lebanon. It also stated that neither side should cross the Blue Line, which marks the border between Lebanon and the Golan Heights, and divides the village of Ghajar between the two.[92][93] Despite this, both Israel and Hezbollah have outstanding obligations under UNSCR 1701.[94][95][96]
Since 2006, Hezbollah fortified southern Lebanon,[97] obstructed UNIFIL's access, built tunnels into Israel, and crossed the Blue Line.[98][99] Israel has also accused Hezbollah of using a local environmental organization as a front for its military activities near the Blue Line.[100][101] After retreating behind the Blue Line in 2000,[102][103] Israel reoccupied the whole of Ghajar in 2006, including the Lebanese part of the village.[104][105] Israel continues to occupy Ghajar and an adjacent area,[96][102] and has repeatedly breached Lebanese airspace, waters, and borders.[106][107][108] UNIFIL reports that Israel entered Lebanese airspace on more than 22,000 occasions between 2007–2021.[109][110]
On 6 April 2023, in response to the 2023 Al-Aqsa clashes, dozens of rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israel, injuring three Israeli civilians.[111] The Israel Defense Forces said that it intercepted 25 rockets fired from Lebanon,[111] which it said were fired by Palestinian factions Hamas and PIJ with Hezbollah's approval.[112]
The attacks were the largest escalation between the two countries since the 2006 Lebanon War.[112] The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) described the situation as "extremely serious" and urged restraint.[112]
On 15 July, the IDF fired warning shots and used riot dispersal munitions on 18 people, including journalists and parliamentarians that crossed the border from Lebanon and walked 80 meters into Israeli-occupied territory.[113]
On 8 October 2023, a day after Hamas launched its 7 October 2023 attacks on Israel and Israel began its bombing of Gaza, Hezbollah joined the conflict in "solidarity with the Palestinians",[114][115] initially firing on Israeli military outposts in Shebaa Farms and the Golan Heights — both territories under Israeli occupation.[114] Since then, Hezbollah and Israel have been involved in cross-border military exchanges that have displaced entire communities in Israel and Lebanon, with significant damage to buildings and land along the border. From 7 October 2023 to 20 September 2024, there were 10,200 cross border attacks, of which Israel launched 8,300.[116] Over 96,000 people in Israel[117] and over 111,000 in Lebanon have been displaced during this period.[118] Israel and Hezbollah have maintained their attacks at a level that causes harm without escalating into a full-scale war.[119]
Hezbollah has stated it will continue attacking Israel until Israel halts its operations in Gaza,[72] where over 40,000 Palestinians have been killed.[120][121] Israel demanded that Hezbollah implement UNSC 1701 and withdraw its forces north of the Litani River.[95][122] Diplomatic efforts, led by U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein and France, have so far been unsuccessful in resolving the conflict.[123][124]
In November 2023, Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant warned that Beirut could meet the same fate as Gaza.[125] He made the same warning in January 2024.[126] In June 2024, Gallant visited the United States, seeking support for an escalation of the war with Hezbollah and a possible ground invasion in Lebanon.[127]
In the morning of 8 October, Hezbollah fired rockets and shells at the Shebaa Farms region in support of Hamas' attack onto Israel; in response, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) fired artillery shells and a drone into southern Lebanon.[128][129][130] Two Lebanese children were reportedly injured by broken glass.[68]
The next day, Israel exchanged a series of airstrikes on southern Lebanon near the towns of Marwahin, Ayta ash Shab[131] and Dhayra in the Bint Jbeil district.[132] This was after numerous Palestinian militants infiltrated the Israeli border,[133] which Hezbollah denied involvement with. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad militia claimed responsibility for the armed infiltration. The IDF killed at least two perpetrators (likely Palestinians),[132] while a third returned to Lebanon.[134] A Hezbollah media source announced three of Hezbollah's members died in the IDF retaliation.[135] Hezbollah fired rockets and artillery in retaliation.[136] During the clashes, two Israeli soldiers and Lt. Col Alim Abdallah, Deputy Commander of the IDF's 300th Brigade, were killed and another three were wounded.[30]
On 11 October, Hezbollah fired anti-tank missiles at an IDF position and claimed to have produced casualties. In response, the IDF shelled the area where the attack was launched.[137] The Lebanese-Italian hospital in Tyre admitted three injured civilians.[138] The IDF ordered residents of northern Israel to seek shelter following reports of drones being launched from southern Lebanon.[139] A Patriot missile was launched to intercept a suspicious projectile, after which the IDF found that the object in question was not a drone.[140] Warning sirens were activated across northern Israel after reports emerged that up to 20 infiltrators on paragliders had entered Israeli territory from Lebanon before the IDF dismissed the report as a false alarm.[141]
Hezbollah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem said "when time comes for any action, we will carry it out," stating that Hezbollah was ready and would contribute to confrontations against Israel according to its own plan.[142] The IDF fired artillery, into southern Lebanon following an explosion that caused minor damage to a section of the Israel–Lebanon border wall near the kibbutz of Hanita.[143]
The IDF released footage of a drone attack which, according to them, killed three infiltrators from Lebanon near Margaliot who were members of Hamas.[144] One of them was acknowledged by Hezbollah as one of their members. In the afternoon, Hezbollah fired 50 mortar shells and six anti-tank missiles towards five Israeli outposts in the Shebaa Farms.[145] Further IDF shelling killed two civilians in a Shebaa village; video and photographic evidence showed usage of phosphorus bombs.[146]
On 15 October, Hezbollah launched five anti-tank missiles towards northern Israel killing one civilian and injuring three others in Shtula.[147][148] UNIFIL said that their headquarters in Naqoura in southern Lebanon was hit by rocket fire with no casualties reported.[149] Lieutenant Amitai Granot, commander of the 75th Battalion of the IDF's Golan Brigade and son of Rabbi Tamir Granot, was killed in a missile attack on an IDF post bordering Lebanon.[26][27]
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On 13 October, while a group of Reuters, AFP and Al Jazeera journalists were transmitting a live video feed of an IDF outpost in Aalma ech Chaab, two tank rounds fired directly hit the group. The first killed Reuters photojournalist Issam Abdallah. The second strike was much more powerful and ignited the Al Jazeera vehicle, a white Toyota, which Al Jazeera journalists Carmen Joukhadar and Elie Brakhya, as well as their AFP colleague Dylan Collins were standing next to.[150] Reuters photographer Christina Assi was also critically injured.[151][152] The Lebanese Army has said the IDF fired the missile that killed Abdallah. Another Reuters reporter at the scene said Abdallah was killed by projectiles fired from the direction of Israel.[153] His last post on Instagram, posted a week before he was killed, was a photograph of Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian journalist for Al Jazeera Arabic who had been killed by Israel in 2022.[154][155]
A February 2024 report by the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon concluded that an Israeli tank killed Abdallah when it fired at "clearly identifiable journalists", and that this broke international law. The report "assessed that there was no exchange of fire across the Blue Line at the time of the incident", with no records of any exchange of fire across the border for the 40 minutes before the tank firing.[156] The IDF responded to the report by claiming that Hezbollah attacked them, prompting them to retaliate with tank fire.[156]
On 16 October, Amnesty International reported that the IDF fired white phosphorus shells into Dhayra, hospitalizing nine civilians and setting fire to civilian objects.[157] Aya Majzoub, Amnesty International's Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, described the attack as a violation of international law that needed to be investigated as a war crime, and that it "seriously endangered the lives of civilians, many of whom were hospitalized and displaced, and whose homes and cars caught fire".[158]
Lebanese state media reported that Dhayra and other areas along the western section of the border came under "continuous" bombardment overnight.[159] In the early morning it was reported that multiple people were suffering from symptoms of suffocation after the IDF allegedly fired white phosphorus shells on the village.[160] Three people were injured after an anti-tank missile from Lebanon landed in the Israeli town of Metula.[161] Hezbollah announced that five of its members were killed on the same day but it was unclear if any had involvement in the border infiltration.[162]
On 19 October, the Lebanese Armed Forces said that one person was killed and another injured after a group of seven Iranian journalists were targeted with machine guns by Israel, although Iranian state media denied the claim and said that all its journalists were "alive and healthy".[163] UNIFIL peacekeepers said that one person was killed after civilians were caught in a cross-fire at the border in which the Lebanese Army requested assistance by UNIFIL to deescalate the situation. It was requested to Israel to suspend fire "to facilitate the rescue operation".[164][163]
Israel started evacuating the settlements located close to the border with Lebanon in October 2023 with more than 60 thousand evacuated by April 2024.[165][166]
In the early afternoon of 21 October, several rockets were fired from Lebanon toward the Shebaa Farms; there were no injuries. The IDF conducted a drone strike on the team of militants that launched the rockets.[167] A short while later, anti-tank guided missiles were fired from Lebanon toward Margaliot and Hanita; two foreign workers were injured. The IDF conducted airstrikes against the missile teams.[168] In the evening, another anti-tank guided missile was fired from Lebanon toward Bar'am. One IDF soldier was seriously injured and two others suffered minor injuries. The IDF responded with several airstrikes in southern Lebanon, some of which targeted other missile teams preparing attacks.[169]
The IDF conducted airstrikes against two Syrian military positions on 24 October in southwestern Syria, marking the first time the IDF publicly targeted the Syrian military since the Israel-Gaza war began.[22]
Hezbollah attacked 19 IDF military sites with missiles and artillery shells[170] and fired one-way attack drones at an IDF position for the first time since the conflict began.[171]
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In his widely awaited first speech since the start of the war in Gaza on 3 November, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said the presence of US warships in the Mediterranean "doesn't scare us".[172][173]
On 5 November, Hezbollah shot down an Israeli Elbit Hermes 450 drone over Nabatieh,[174] with wreckage falling over houses in the towns of Zabdin and Harouf.[175] One Israeli civilian was killed when anti-tank missiles hit the Yiftah kibbutz.[176]
Four people were reportedly injured after an Israeli bombing that hit two ambulances.[177] Later, an Israeli airstrike hit two civilian cars in Lebanon between the towns of Aynata and Aitaroun, killing one women, three of her granddaughters between the ages of 10 and 14, and severely injured her daughter.[178] In response, Hezbollah fired at Kiryat Shmona,[179] killing an Israeli civilian.[180]
The Al-Qassam Brigades took responsibility for firing 16 rockets from Lebanon targeting areas south of Haifa.[181] Meanwhile, Israel reported at least 30 rockets being fired in which the IDF fired back at the sources. Hezbollah and Al-Qassam brigades also conducted four cross-border attacks into northern Israel.[170] Hezbollah deputy general Naim Qassem said that the group could be forced into wider conflict over Israeli attacks in Gaza.[182]
On 10 November, Hezbollah launched anti-tank missiles into an IDF post in Manara which injured three soldiers. The IDF attacked the sources of fire in response.[183] Hezbollah conducted three drone attacks into northern Israel targeting IDF positions and civilians.[184] One drone was intercepted while two others landed on Israeli territory.[185] Seven Hezbollah members were killed during the clashes. The IDF shelled Meiss Ej Jabal Hospital, injuring a doctor. Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health condemned the attack, saying that "Israeli authorities were fully responsible for this unjustifiable act, which would have led to catastrophic results", and called for an investigation.[186]
The Amal Movement, an ally of Hezbollah, announced that a fighter was killed in a missile attack in the village of Rab El Thalathine which also wounded two other members on 11 November.[187] These were the first casualties from the group since it joined the fighting.[188]
On 12 November, Hezbollah anti-tank missile and mortar attacks killed an employee of the Israel Electric Corporation who was conducting repair work and injured 21 other Israelis, including seven IDF members and six of the fatality's colleagues.[189][190] Hezbollah also struck an IDF bulldozer in a separate attack. The IDF said it had launched a drone strike at a militant cell that tried to launch antitank missiles near Metula.[191] Further clashes also killed one Hezbollah member.[145]
Following a Hezbollah strike on 13 November, the IDF responded with heavy shelling across southern Lebanon which reportedly killed two people, according to a first-responder organisation affiliated to the Hezbollah-allied Amal Movement.[192] Unidentified fighters fired anti-tank guided missiles that injured two Israelis near Netu'a.[193] An Israeli rocket struck near journalists in Yaroun, Lebanon, no casualties were reported.[194] Hezbollah condemned the attack, which happened while the journalists were on a public tour in the town.[195]
On 16 November, Hezbollah conducted eight anti-tank missiles targeting Israeli forces and military infrastructure.[196] In the afternoon, Hezbollah attacked numerous towns near the border and targeted military gatherings in Shtula and Hadab Yaron.[197][198] The IDF responded heavily in southern Lebanon and Israeli warplanes raided Hezbollah targets.[199] Hezbollah announced that two of its members were killed.[200]
Four days later, the IDF base of Biranit suffered heavy damage from a Hezbollah barrage using Burkan rockets.[201] IDF fighter jets struck numerous Hezbollah military targets, and soldiers struck a militant cell near Metula.[202] The historically significant St. George church was heavily damaged in Yaroun after it was shelled by the IDF.[203] The house of Amal Movement MP Kabalan Kabalan was also hit with rocket fire.[204] Hezbollah claimed an attack on the IDF's 91st Division barracks at Baranit.[145]
On 21 November, an IDF airstrike in Kafr Kila killed an elderly woman and injured her granddaughter.[205] Another team of journalists were targeted in an IDF strike near Tayr Harfa which killed three people, including two Al Mayadeen journalists, a reporter and a photojournalist, and a guide.[206] On the same day, four members of the Al-Qassam Brigades were killed after an IDF strike on a car near Chaaitiyeh.[207] A Hezbollah member was also killed in a separate attack in Khiam.[208]
Hezbollah told Al Jazeera that it will "respect" the temporary ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.[209]
After the temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on 24 November 2023, Hezbollah stopped its military operations briefly which also prompted the IDF to stop the shelling on targets in southern Lebanon.[210] Many displaced civilians returned to their homes amid the calm.[211] However, during the ceasefire, Hezbollah claimed 23 other attacks into northern Israel.[212]
A UNIFIL patrol unit was hit by IDF gunfire in the vicinity of Aitaroun where there were no casualties. UNIFIL condemned the incident and called on parties to be reminded "of their obligations to protect peacekeepers and avoid putting the men and women who are working to restore stability at risk."[213]
On 1 December, Hezbollah claimed five attacks on the Israel–Lebanon border.[214] The IDF shelled Hula, killing two civilians,[215] and the village of Jebbayn, killing an additional person.[216] The IDF also struck a Hezbollah site and a Hezbollah cell preparing to carry out an attack near Malkia. Hezbollah announced the death of one of their members, presumably from one of the IDF strikes.[217] The next day, Hezbollah fired several rockets at Israeli army posts along the border. Israel responded with airstrikes and artillery shelling against Hezbollah sites.[218] Hezbollah stated that one of its fighters were killed.[219]
On 3 December, Hezbollah fired one anti-tank guided missile targeting an IDF base in Beit Hillel, injuring 11 Israelis and Global Affairs Canada announced that a Canadian citizen was killed in Lebanon.[220][221] On 4 December, Hamas announced the creation of a new unit in Lebanon named the "Al-Aqsa Flood Vanguards" and called on "the youth and men of our people to join the vanguard resistance fighters and take part in shaping the future and liberating Jerusalem and the al-Aqsa Mosque."[24] This created a negative reaction by many Lebanese politicians as they said that it would be a threat to Lebanon's sovereignty.[24]
One Lebanese soldier was killed and three others were injured by an Israeli attack on a Lebanese Army base in Odaisseh.[222] The IDF later apologized for the incident, saying that it would investigate.[223] A farm worker from Syria, was killed in an Israeli artillery attack on a poultry farm near Arnoun that also injured two of his relatives.[222] Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant met with mayors and local council heads in Nahariya, northern Israel to discuss the threat of Hezbollah to northern residents. Gallant said that if diplomacy fails, Israel will use its military to force Hezbollah north of the Litani River.[224]
On 11 December, the mayor of the southern Lebanese village of Taybeh was killed in an Israeli airstrike.[225] Two other Hezbollah fighters were killed by Israeli airstrikes and artillery shelling in Aitaroun, and three civilians were injured. Other airstrikes were carried out by the IAF, destroying five houses and damaging 17 others.[163] Four batches of missiles fired from Lebanon towards northern Israel were intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system, while the Islamic Resistance claimed it attacked several Israeli sites. According to Israeli media, three soldiers were injured.[163] Hezbollah and other militias attacked nine Israeli towns and military positions.[226] Israeli war cabinet minister and former defense minister Benny Gantz discussed security in northern Israel in a phone call with US secretary of state Antony Blinken. Gantz said he conveyed that Hezbollah's heightened aggression and attacks mean that Israel must "remove" the threat from northern Israel. Gantz's statement singled out the Lebanese state, not just Hezbollah, and called for international pressure on Lebanon to stop attacks on its southern border.[163]
The Syrian Social Nationalist Party in Lebanon announced the death of one member of their military wing, the Eagles of the Whirlwind, on 15 December.[4] The IDF said that one in five rockets launched by Hezbollah had landed in Lebanese territory and published an infographic showing failed rocket launches into Israel.[227] On 16 December, a soldier from the IDF's 129th Battalion was killed by a Hezbollah drone strike near Margaliot, which also caused a fire in a building. Two other soldiers were injured. Another drone was shot down by the IDF, which also responded to the infiltrations by shelling targets. The IAF later hit several Hezbollah targets inside Lebanon, including rocket launch sites and military infrastructure.[31] On 22 December, two IDF soldiers of the 188th Armored Brigade were killed by a Hezbollah rocket attack in the Shtula area.[228]
On the morning of 23 December, IDF aircraft bombed a house in Kfar Kila and intense artillery fire also took place on the outskirts of Deir Mimas[229] The IDF conducted a raid near a UNIFL center along the Khardali River.[230] An Al-Manar cameraman was injured in the eye after an IDF attack on a road in the al-Khardali area where correspondents of MTV and the state-owned National News Agency were also passing.[231] Hezbollah announced that two of their members were killed on that day.[231] On 24 December, senior IRGC general Razi Mousavi was killed by an Israeli airstrike in Damascus.[232] On 26 December, a Hezbollah anti-tank missile hit St. Mary's Greek Orthodox Church in Iqrit, northern Israel.[233] A civilian suffered serious injuries, and when IDF responders arrived at the scene, another missile was fired, injuring nine soldiers.[234] On 30 December, Israeli airstrikes targeted an Iranian arms shipment in the Syrian border city of Abu Kamal, killing 25 militiamen.[235]
On 2 January, Israel conducted an airstrike in the Dahieh neighborhood of Beirut, resulting in the assassination of Saleh al-Arouri, the deputy chairman of the Hamas political bureau, and the death of six other members.[236] Al-Arouri was also responsible for the expansion of Hamas' activities in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including attacks on Israelis.[237][238] The assassination occurred one day before Hezbollah commemorated the fourth anniversary of the assassination of senior Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani.[239] On 6 January, Hezbollah launched approximately 40 rockets into northern Israel, describing it as an "initial response" to al-Arouri's killing.[240] According to Israel, the rockets targeted a strategic airbase near Mount Meron, causing significant damage to it.[241]
On 8 January, Israel assassinated Wissam al-Tawil, the deputy commander of Hezbollah's Redwan Force, whom it accused of carrying out the attack on Meron airbase two days earlier.[242] In response to al-Tawil's killing, Hezbollah launched a drone attack on Israel's Northern Command headquarters in Safed on the following day, situated approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the border.[243] Ali Hussein Barji, the commander of Hezbollah's aerial forces in southern Lebanon who was reportedly responsible for the attack, was killed by an airstrike, according to Israel, alongside three other Hezbollah members, in Khirbet Selm shortly before al-Tawil's funeral began.[244][245] However, Hezbollah denied that Barji was killed.[246]
On 11 January, two Hezbollah-linked search-and-rescue personnel were killed and an unspecified number of civilians were wounded during an Israeli air raid on the town of Hanine.[247]
The IDF said that they killed four militants that infiltrated the Israeli border through Shebaa while an IDF unit was patrolling nearby on 14 January. Five IDF soldiers were wounded.[248] A group calling itself the "Islamic Glory Brigades" later claimed responsibility for the attack and announced that 3 of their members were killed and 2 were able to escape.[249] The same day, two Israeli civilians; a man and his 70-year-old mother, were killed by Hezbollah anti-tank missiles in Kfar Yuval.[250]
On 20 January, Brigadier General Sadegh Omidzadeh, an intelligence officer with the IRGC's Quds Force in Syria, along with four other IRGC officers, were reportedly killed in an Israeli airstrike in Damascus.[251][252] According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an Israeli missile strike targeted a four-story building in the Mezzeh district. The attack resulted in the death of thirteen individuals,[253] including five Iranians, and the complete destruction of the building where leaders aligned with Iran were having a meeting.[254] The next day, in southern Lebanon, Sky News Arabic reported that Fadi Suleiman, a senior field commander of Hezbollah, survived an Israeli attack near a military checkpoint in Kafra. His bodyguard was killed in the same attack.[255]
Between 3 and 5 February, five Amal Movement fighters were killed. Two fighters were killed in airstrikes in Blida and three others were announced that were killed in Bayt Lif.[256][257]
On 8 February, the IDF conducted a drone strike on a car in Nabatieh. Israeli media said a regional Hezbollah commander named Abbas al-Dabs was assassinated in the attack.[258] A day before, two Hezbollah members, including al-Dabs, were named by Israeli intelligence as reportedly working alongside IRGC officers on building Iranian air defenses in Syria.[259]
On 10 February, an Israeli drone struck a car near Sidon, killing at least two people and wounding two others. An Israeli security source said the target of the strike was Hamas official Basel Saleh, who was "injured to an unknown extent." Saleh was responsible for enlisting new Hamas recruits in Gaza and the West Bank.[260] On 12 February, another assassination attempt took place targeting Hezbollah official Mohammed Abd al-Rasoul Alawiya in his car in Bint Jbeil.[261]
On 14 February, in the deadliest day of fighting,[262] a barrage of eleven rockets fired from Lebanon struck Safed and an army base in northern Israel, killing an Israeli soldier and injuring eight others. Israel responded with widespread airstrikes against targets belonging to Hezbollah infrastructure in Jabal al-Braij, Kfar Houneh, Kafr Dunin, Aadchit and Souaneh, killing a total of ten people.[263] In Nabatieh, an attack on a residential building killed seven members of a family, including a child. Another attack in the town of al-Suwana killed a woman and her two children.[264] The IDF said that it killed a senior commander of the elite Redwan Force unit along with a deputy and another fighter in Nabatieh which was confirmed by Hezbollah the next day.[265][266] A total of seven Hezbollah members were announced dead from the attacks.[267]
In response to the launch of a UAV toward the Lower Galilee from Lebanese territory on 19 February, Israeli jets targeted Hezbollah militants in Marwahin, two weapons storage facilities near the city of Sidon, and Hezbollah infrastructure in the Meiss El Jabal and al-Adisa areas of Lebanon.[268]
On 21 February, an Israeli airstrike on a residential area of Damascus near a fortified compound used by Syrian security forces killed two civilians.[269] On the same day, an Israeli airstrike on the village of Majdal Zoun killed two more civilians, a mother and her child.[270] In addition, Israeli forces struck a Hezbollah observation post in Ramyeh and shelled an area near Aitaroun with artillery to "remove threats." Later on Israeli jets attacked an observation post in Khaim, a military post in Zibqin — from which a missile was fired at Shlomi — and other Hezbollah infrastructure.[271]
On 22 February, after a projectile from Lebanon hit a home in the border town of Yuval, an Israeli drone struck an apartment building in Kfar Remen, killing at least two Hezbollah fighters and wounding three others.[272] The next day, on 23 February, an Israeli strike on a Hezbollah-linked clinic in Blida killed two civilian paramedics and one Hezbollah fighter and injured an unknown number of people.[273]
On 24 February, sirens sounded in Arab el Aramsha, Hanita, Shebaa Farms, and Kiryat Shmona in northern Israel and the Golan Heights due to rocket fire. In response, the IDF struck numerous sites across the areas of Rab El Thalathine, Ayta ash Shab, and Blida. Later an Israeli drone identified a Hezbollah cell entering a military compound in southern Lebanon, leading to an Israeli airstrike on the compound. After the attack, secondary explosions took place, implying the presence of weapons in the building. In addition, fighter jets attacked a Redwan unit operational headquarters near the village of Baraachit, as well as launch posts in the area of Jabal Blat, while Israeli artillery struck to neutralize a threat in the area of Rachaya Al Foukhar.[274]
On 26 February, after Hezbollah shot down a Hermes 450 drone with a surface-to-air missile, Israel launched its first attacks into eastern Lebanon since the conflict began, targeting Hezbollah air defense sites and killing two Hezbollah members near Baalbek.[275][276] Hezbollah said it fired 60 Katyusha rockets at an IDF headquarters in response to the attack.[277] The IDF eliminated a commander in Hezbollah's Nasser Unit who was responsible for multiple attacks into Israel while driving in his car in Majadel.[278]
On 4 March, a Hezbollah anti-tank missile strike on Margaliot resulted in seven injuries as well as the death of an Indian national.[279] The next day, an Israeli airstrike on Hula, in retaliation for the previous day's strike on Margaliot, killed three Lebanese citizens, a married couple and their child.[280] Amongst the three killed, Hezbollah announced two as their members.[281][282]
On 9 March, five people, including three Hezbollah members, were killed and at least nine others were wounded in an IDF strike on a house in Khirbet Selm.[283] In retaliation, the next day Hezbollah fired 37 Katyusha rockets at the town of Meron in northern Israel; no injuries were reported.[284][285]
On 12 March, Israeli airstrikes on the town of al-Nabi Shayth in the Beqaa Valley resulted in six injuries and the death of two Hezbollah members.[286]
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On 13 March, an Israeli airstrike on a road near Lebanon's Rashidieh refugee camp for Palestinians killed a civilian and Hadi Ali Mustafa, the leader of Hamas forces in Lebanon, and injured two others.[287][288] A week later, two Syrian teenagers (aged 16 and 17) were handed over to Lebanese authorities for allegedly spying for Israel. It was reported that they confessed to have been given an equivalent of US$11 each by a local mosque servant to unknowingly plant a tracking device in Mustafa's car.[289]
On 27 March, IDF claimed the Israeli airstrike on a paramedic center affiliated with the group in Hebbariye killed seven people, whom Israel claimed were militants. The claim was denied by Hezbollah, and that the casualties were actually rescuers.[290] The victims were later identified as volunteers, and Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health condemned the strike. In response to the attack, Hezbollah launched around thirty rockets towards northern Israel, killing a factory worker in Kiryat Shmona and lightly wounding another.[291][292] After sunset, Israeli airstrikes were reported in Tayr Harfa and Naqoura, which each killed five and four people respectively. The strikes killed three paramedics; two from the Islamic Health Society and another from the Amal Movement-affiliated Islamic Risala Scout Association. A local commander of the Amal Movement was also killed, along with at least two Hezbollah members.[293]
On 29 March, an Israeli airstrike targeting Aleppo International Airport killed 38 Syrian soldiers, seven Hezbollah fighters and seven militiamen,[58] in what became the deadliest Israeli strike on Syria in the past three years.[294] Another airstrike in Bazouriyeh, Lebanon killed Ali Abed Akhsan Naim, the deputy commander of Hezbollah's rocket and missiles unit who the IDF said was responsible for planning attacks against Israeli civilians.[295]
On 30 March, Reuters reported that an Israeli strike had injured three UN observers and a translator who were monitoring hostilities along the Blue Line.[296] An investigation by the Lebanese Army determined that the explosion was caused by a landmine, which Israel said was planted by Hezbollah.[297] The IDF struck a centre of the Lebanese Ambulance Association at the end of March killing seven paramedics.[298]
On 1 April, an Israeli airstrike targeted an Iranian consulate annex building adjacent to the Iranian embassy in Damascus, Syria. It killed eight people, including a senior Quds Force commander of the IRGC, Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi.[299] The others fatalities included five members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and two Iranian advisors.[300] On 8 April, Israeli officials confirmed that Hezbollah fighters shot down a Hermes 900 drone, the first of its type lost during the conflict.[301] On 13 April, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), a branch of the Iranian military, in collaboration with the Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq, Hezbollah, and the Houthis in Yemen, launched attacks against Israel with drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles.[302]
On 16 April, an Israeli airstrike on two cars near the town of Ain Ebel, in southern Lebanon, killed two Hezbollah members, including regional commander Ismail Baz, and one civilian.[117] The next day, fourteen Israeli soldiers and four civilians were wounded by drones attack in northern Israel. One IDF officer died of his wounds later that week.[303][304] On 23 April, an Israeli drone strike deep into Lebanon killed an engineer working for Hezbollah's air defense forces as he was traveling in a vehicle. The strike hit the Abu al-Aswad area near the coastal city of Tyre, some 35 kilometers (22 miles) from the border. The fighter's vehicle was completely burnt out. The IDF said it had killed "two significant terrorists in Hezbollah's aerial unit", the second being a senior member of the elite Redwan Force, Muhammad Attiya.[305] In response to the attacks, Hezbollah made its deepest incursion into Israeli territory yet by launching drone attacks into the city of Acre targeting two IDF bases.[306]
On 5 May, an Israel airstrike on a house in the Lebanese village of Meiss Ej Jabal killed four civilians. In retaliation, Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets at the Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona.[307]
On 6 May, two reservist Israeli soldiers of the 98th Paratroopers Division's 655th Battalion were killed by a Hezbollah drone attack near Metula, northern Israel, bringing the IDF death toll to 18.[308] Hezbollah also launched 30 rockets at the Golan Heights, damaging houses in Kidmat Tzvi.[309] The IDF struck 15 Radwan targets in al-Lwaiza, southern Lebanon,[310] and a Hezbollah compound in Sefri, near Baalbek. Lebanese media said that the strike destroyed a factory and injured three people.[311][312]
On 8 May, Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon killed two Hezbollah and three PIJ members.[313] The next day an Israeli airstrike on a car near the village of Bafliyeh killed four Hezbollah members.[314]
On 10 May, Israeli airstrikes on two villages in the Marjeyoun District killed a Hezbollah member in Aedsheet and a PIJ member in Blida, respectively. On the same day, another Israeli airstrike on the town of Tayr Harfa killed two civilians who were carrying out repairs on a local cell tower.[315]
On 14 May, an Israeli airstrike on a house in the village of Meiss Ej Jabal killed a member of Hezbollah and injured one other person. Following this, a Hezbollah anti-tank missile strike killed an Israeli civilian and wounded five IDF personnel in the kibbutz of Adamit.[316] At night, an Israeli drone strike on a car in Tyre killed two people including Hussein Makki, a Hezbollah field commander.[317] In response to the commander's killing, Hezbollah fired 60 rockets at Mount Meron air traffic control base causing minor damage. They also fired at least one heavy rocket towards the Biranit army base.[318] One IDF soldier was killed and another five were wounded.[319]
On 15 May, a rocket launched by the Lebanese branch of Hamas fell short of the intended Israeli target, instead landing on the Lebanese side of the border, killing a Syrian immigrant and wounding four others. A Hezbollah drone crashed in the Lower Galilee for the first time since the start of the conflict. Hezbollah said it launched several drones targeting a surveillance system at an army base near Golani Junction, west of Tiberias.[320][321] The IDF confirmed that two drones were fired at the Tal Shamayim base, with one being intercepted and the other damaging the Sky Dew aerostat.[322][323] Later that day, an Israeli airstrike on a car near Tyre killed one Hezbollah member and wounded two other people.[324] The next day, two other Hezbollah members were in another airstrike on another car near in the same area.[325] In retaliation, Hezbollah launched a drone strike on Israeli positions in Metula, wounding three IDF soldiers.
On 21 May, an Israeli airstrike near Tyre killed a high-ranking officer in Hezbollah's coastal missile unit. That night, an Israeli airstrike on a car in the Beqaa Valley killed two members of the Islamic Group. Targeted assassinations continued the same week with an Israeli airstrike on a car in the village of Kfar Dajjal which killed a Hezbollah member and seriously wounded three children in a nearby school bus. In response, Lebanon issued a formal complaint to the United Nations Security Council.[326]
On 25 May, an Israeli airstrike on a truck near the Syrian town of al-Qusayr killed two Hezbollah members.[327] Later that day, a car bombing in Damascus killed a Syrian Army officer with ties to Hezbollah.[328]
On 26 May, an Israeli airstrike on a house in Aitaroun killed two Hezbollah members. On the same day, another Hezbollah member was killed, as was another person, following an airstrike on a motorcycle in Naqoura. Later, an airstrike on another motorcycle in Ayta ash Shab killed two civilians. An airstrike on a third motorcycle, in Hula, killed two Hezbollah members and wounded two other people. Two civilians were killed in strikes on the village of Yaroun.[329]
On 1 June, an Israeli airstrike on a house in Aadloun killed a civilian and wounded four others. Later that evening, two Israeli airstrikes on a house in Ain Qana killed a Hezbollah member and wounded another person.[330] The next day, an Israeli airstrike on a motorcycle in Hula killed two civilians.[331]
On 3 June, a pair of Israeli airstrikes on Naqoura killed two Hezbollah members. Another airstrike, this time on a car near the village of Kauthariyet El Rez, killed another Hezbollah member.[332] In Syria, an Israeli airstrike on a copper plant near Aleppo killed 16 members of Iran-backed militias.[333] Hezbollah said that it fired drones at the IDF's headquarters in the Galilee.[334] It also claimed a drone attack in Metula.[335] The IDF confirmed that two drones crashed in northern Israel while a third was intercepted.[336] Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iran made his first overseas visit as foreign minister to Lebanon,[337] during which he confirmed that the Iranian government was engaged in negotiations with the United States hosted by Oman.[338] Forest fires in northern Israel were erupted the entire week which reportedly resulted in 2,500 acres of land burnt and the hospitalization of six Israeli soldiers and five civilians due to smoke inhalation.[339][340]
On 11 June, an Israeli strike on a command and control center in Jwaya killed senior Hezbollah commander Taleb Abdallah and three other militants. The next day, in response to Taleb's killing,[341] Hezbollah launched a barrage of about 90 rockets into Israel targeting an IDF factory, military headquarters in Ein Zeitim and Ami'ad, and an air surveillance station in Meron.[341] It later fired another 70 at the Mount Meron area, and then ten more at Zar'it, bringing the total number of launches to 170.[342] It increased to 215 by the late afternoon.[343]
On 13 June, Hezbollah fired 150 rockets and 30 UAVs at 15 targets in northern Israel and the Golan Heights.[344]
Amos Hochstein, a senior advisor to US President Joe Biden, arrived in Israel on 17 June to attempt to de-escalate tensions between Israel and Lebanese militias.[345]
On 19 June, Nasrallah stated that a Hezbollah invasion of the Galilee "remains on the table"[346][347] and alleged that the government of Cyprus was allowing Israeli forces to operate within its country and thus made Cyprus a legitimate target for Hezbollah strikes. Cypriot president Nikos Christodoulides denied that Cyprus was taking sides in the conflict.[348]
On 30 June, Israeli officials reported 18 IDF soldiers were wounded by a drone attack on the Golan Heights.[349]
On 3 July, senior Hezbollah field commander Mohammed Nasser was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Tyre,[350] and in response Hezbollah fired 100 rockets at IDF positions.[351] The following day, it fired 200 more rockets into Israel.[352][353] On 9 July, an Israeli airstrike on the Beirut–Damascus highway in Syria killed two Hezbollah members,[354][355] and Hezbollah fired 40 rockets at the Golan Heights.[356] A week later, at least two people were wounded in an Israeli drone attack in Lebanon,[357] and Hezbollah rocket strikes in Kiryat Shmona damaged residential buildings.[358] On 22 July, drones from Lebanon were intercepted by Israeli forces,[359] and a Hezbollah rocket strike injured two soldiers in northern Israel.[360] The following day and in response, Israel launched artillery strikes on southern Lebanon,[361] Hezbollah launched rocket strikes in northern Israel,[362] and Israeli warplanes and artillery struck southern Lebanon.[363]
On 27 July, an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon killed four members of different militant groups.[364] A rocket strike hit the Druze town of Majdal Shams in the northern Golan Heights, killing 12 children and injuring dozens more.[365][366] In retaliation, the IDF bombed villages and towns in south and east Lebanon the following day.[367][368] On 29 July, two were killed in an Israeli strike in Lebanon.[369] The next day, an Israeli airstrike struck Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon, and one Israeli civilian was killed in a rocket strike from Lebanon to northern Israel.[370] Hezbollah said it fired at Israeli warplanes which entered Lebanese airspace.[371] The IDF said the airstrike targeted senior commander of Hezbollah Fuad Shukr for his involvement in the Majdal Shams attack,[372] and Hezbollah later confirmed his death.[373] Four civilians were also killed, while 80 people were injured.[374]
On 17 August, at least 11 including a woman and her two children were killed and four were wounded including two serious injuries in an Israeli strike on a metal warehouse in Nabatieh.[375][376] The IDF claimed that it struck a Hezbollah "weapons storage facility".[376] The Embassy of the Philippines, Beirut advised its 11,000 citizens in Lebanon to leave the country following the strike.[377] A Hezbollah drone strike injured two soldiers in an IDF site near Misgav Am.[378] One was killed in an Israeli drone strike on a motorcycle in Tyre. The IDF confirmed the death of a commander of the elite Redwan Force.[379]
On 25 August, Israel began strikes in southern Lebanon against Hezbollah targets.[380][381] Israel framed its strikes as "preemptive."[382] Hezbollah said that it fired over 320 Katyusha rockets to IDF sites in northern Israel and the Golan Heights as the first phase of response to the assassination of Fuad Shukr. A woman was slightly injured due to sharpnel from the attack in Acre.[383][384] An Israeli drone strike in Qasimia in southern Lebanon wounded two people including one Hezbollah militant.[385][386] Israel airstrikes also struck Khiam, Zebqin, Yater, Shebaa, Nabatieh, Bir Kalb, Kfar Kila, Aalma ech Chaab, and Mays al-Jabal, killing a Hezbollah militant and a Amal Movement militant.[385][387][388] Another three people were wounded, namely a Hezbollah militant and a Syrian national.[385][389][390] An Israeli Navy officer was killed by a Hezbollah rocket attack on a Dvora-class fast patrol boat off the coast of Nahariya, northern Israel and two others were injured.[391][392] An Israel drone strike struck Zawtar El Charkiyeh.[393] Hezbollah confirmed the death of six militants.[394]
On 16 September, the Security Cabinet of Israel approved a new war aim of returning evacuated residents to the north of Israel, adding to the goals of destroying Hamas and liberating the hostages.[395] On 17 September, the Shin Bet claimed that it thwarted a Hezbollah attempt for assassinate a former senior defence official with a Claymore mine.[396][397] Also on 17 September, at least 12 people were killed and more than 2,750 were wounded, including Hezbollah members and civilians, after the explosions of their pagers in Lebanon and Syria, including in Beirut.[398] It has been reported that the attack resulted in 1,500 fighters being taken out of action, with many facing blindness or losing their hands.[399] Among those injured was the Iranian ambassador, Mojtaba Amani.[400][401] Several drones launched from Lebanon crossed the border.[402] Hezbollah confirmed the death of 12 militants on that day.[403]
On 18 September another series of explosions involving wireless devices was reported across Lebanon, killing at least 30 people and injuring 750 others.[404][405][406] Hezbollah said that it carried out four strikes targeting IDF sites including in Neve Ziv and Beit Hillel with rockets and artillery. Lebanese media reported that Israeli strikes struck Al-Jbeen, Shama, Majdal Zoun, Kfar Kila, Kfar Shiuba, Houla, al-Taybeh, the forest in the vicinity of Kounine and Beit Yahoun, and the outskirts of Yater.[407] The IDF said that it struck Hezbollah sites in Chihine, Tayibe, Blida, Meiss El Jabal, Aitaroun and Kfarkela and a Hezbollah weapons depot in Khiam in these airstrikes.[408]
On 19 September, the IDF said that it started carrying out airstrikes against Hezbollah to destroy its capabilities in southern Lebanon while heavy bombing was reported in Deir Qanoun En Nahr.[409] The IDF also said that it killed two Lebanese militants attempting to infiltrate the border and plant an explosive at an IDF post.[410] Two Israeli soldiers were killed and nine others were injured in Hezbollah attacks in the vicinity of the Lebanese border.[411][412] Three rockets launched by Hezbollah to Metula caused fires and damaged electric infrastructure.[413] The IDF said that its jets struck more than a hundred Hezbollah rocket launchers and other Hezbollah sites in its heaviest air strikes since the Israel-Hezbollah conflict started in October 2023.[414][408] An Israeli strike in al-Haniyeh wounded four people.[415] The Lebanese National News Agency reported that Israeli airstrikes targeted Mahmoudieh, Ksar al-Aroush, and Birket Jabbour.[414]
On 20 September, an Israeli strike in the Dahieh suburb of Beirut killed Ibrahim Aqil, the acting commander of the elite Redwan Force and other personnel including Ahmad Mahmoud Wahabi, a senior commander of Hezbollah while they were in a meeting. At least 45 people were killed including Aqil, Wahabi, another 14 high-ranking Hezbollah militants, three children, and seven women, while 68 people were injured. Heavy rocket fire was reported afterward in northern Israel. Hezbollah claimed that its Katyusha rockets struck the IDF base in Meron. Hezbollah also said that it targeted Israeli airbases, intelligence bases, and a tank.[416][417][418]
On 21 September, the IDF claimed to have "almost completely dismantled" Hezbollah's military chain of command.[419] The IDF claimed that it destroyed thousands of rocket launchers.[420] Four people were wounded in Israeli strikes.[421] The IAF also launched heavy artillery strikes in several areas in southern Lebanon.[422] The IDF said that it launched 400 strikes targeting Hezbollah rocket launchers and other infrastructure.[423]
On 22 September, Israeli President Isaac Herzog denied any Israeli involvement in the pager explosions.[424] Hezbollah made two attacks on the Israeli Ramat David Airbase using Fadi 1 and Wadi 2 missiles, injuring one person;[425][426] an additional three people were also injured in Krayot and Lower Galilee.[427] Three people were killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah confirmed the death of two of its militants.[428] Hezbollah claimed that it struck three Israeli targets.[429]
On 23 September, the IDF conducted over 1,600 strikes in Lebanon, killing at least 558 people and injuring more than 1,835 others including children, women and paramedics according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.[51][430][431] Hezbollah fired about 240[432] rockets into Israel, the West Bank, and Golan Heights, injuring five people. It first fired 35 rockets into northern Israel targeting IDF bases and warehouses, lightly injuring a man in the Lower Galilee.[433] It later fired around 80 rockets, targeting several locations including Ariel and Karnei Shomron in the occupied West Bank and Haifa.[434][435] The group targeted IDF bases and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems facilities.[436] Ali Karaki, the commander of Hezbollah's Southern Front, was targeted in an Israeli airstrike in Dahieh.[437][438] Hezbollah said that he survived the attack.[439] A Hamas field commander was killed in an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon.[440]
By 25 September, an army of around 40,000 Iraqi, Syrian, and Houthi militants concentrated around the Golan Heights, which the Institute for the Study of War argued was part of a preparation for an Israeli invasion of Lebanon.[441] The number of displaced Lebanese people reached an estimated 500,000.[442][443]
On 26 September, an Israeli strike on a three-storey building in Younine killed at least 19 Syrians and a Lebanese person, mostly women or children, and injured eight others.[444][445]
On 27 September, the IDF said that it struck Hezbollah's central headquarters in Beirut targeting Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.[446] Al-Manar reported that four buildings collapsed in the attack. At least six people including Nasrallah died and at least 100 were injured.[78][447][448] Ali Karaki, Hezbollah’s commander of the southern front since 1982, was killed in the same Israeli airstrike alongside Nasrallah.[449]
On 28 September, the Lebanese National News Agency reported that IDF strikes struck civil defense centres and a medical clinic in Taybeh and Deir Siriane killing 11 medical staff and injuring 10 others.[450]
On 29 September, an Israeli air strike on a home in Dahr-al-Ain killed at least 11 people.[451][452] The Lebanese National News Agency reported that at least 17 members of a family were killed and several others were trapped under rubble in an Israeli air strike in Zboud.[453] An Israeli strike in Ain El Delb killed 45 people and injured at least 75 others.[454][455] An Israeli strike in Bekaa killed 12 people and injured 20 others.[454]
On 30 September, Israel informed the United States that it intended to carry out a ground maneuver in Lebanon aimed at clearing Hezbollah's infrastructure along the border. That evening, the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and UNIFIL withdrew from the Israeli-Lebanese border to the north to a distance of 5 kilometres (3.1 mi; 2.7 nmi) from the border, while the IDF designated the settlements of Metula, Misgav Am and Kfar Giladi as closed military areas.[456] Israeli troops amassed on the border in southern Lebanon, with Israel stating that they were preparing for a limited ground invasion.[457]
On 1 October, the Israeli military began an invasion of southern Lebanon, also known as the Third Lebanon War by some Israeli sources,[79] and announced that Israel had been carrying out small covert raids into Lebanon for months.[458] Since then Israel has kept the extent of its campaign vague.[459] On 29 October, IDF officers said that while some Lebanese villages still pose a threat to Israel, most military goals in Lebanon border area were fulfilled and conditions were created to staple Israel's achievements in ceasefire negotiations.[460]
On 1 October, IDF troops officially crossed the border into Lebanon.[461][462][463] The IDF announced that it had launched "limited, localized and targeted raids" against targets with strategic importance to Hezbollah.[464] An Israeli strike on a house in Al-Dawoudiya killed at least 10 people and injured five others.[465] Hours after the initial Israeli raids began, Iran launched ballistic missiles against Israel,[466] citing "terrorist acts of the Zionist regime" such as the assassination of Hassan Nasrallah as justification for the attack.[467]
The olive trade in southern Lebanon, which is the main source of income for many, was halted as farmers stopped their harvests in fear of the active shelling.[468][469] According to Agriculture Minister Abbas Hajj Hassan, 40,000 olive trees have been burned down by fires caused by IDF shelling.[470] The ministry has also said that 790 hectares of agricultural land have been damaged and 340 thousand farm animals have been lost.[471] In total, the IDF has caused US$3 billion of agriculture losses.[472] The Institute of International Finance predicted that Lebanon's GDP could decline by one percent by the end of 2023 and by 30 percent in 2024 in the event of further spillover of the war.[473] According to the Council for the South, Israeli strikes have destroyed 1,700 buildings and damaged 14,000 others and caused US$500 million worth of damage on water, electricity, telecoms and other infrastructure.[41]
As of 2 May 2024, Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health reported that 1,359 people had been wounded.[474] As of 29 May 2024, according to OCHA, 88 Lebanese civilians have been killed including 39 women and children, three journalists and 19 militia-linked first responders.[475]
At least 320 militants have been killed in Lebanon, including 250 Hezbollah members, including at least 40 in Syria, 25 Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad members, one Amal Movement member, and one SSNP member. One Lebanese Army soldier was killed and three others were injured.[476] Seven UNIFL workers and peacekeepers were injured in numerous attacks by both Israel and Lebanese militias.[477]
Twenty-six Israeli civilians, 22 soldiers and one security officer were killed in Israel. An additional three soldiers were killed in non-combat incidents; one by malfunctioning ammunition and the other two in a tank accident. Nine soldiers were killed during combat in southern Lebanon.[59] Hezbollah's attacks resulted in the evacuation of over 90,000 people—60,000 forced and 30,000 voluntary—from northern Israel.[478] As of July 2024, the Israeli government issued orders for the evacuation of 43 settlements located within 3 miles (4.8 km) of the border with Lebanon.[479] Five Israeli UAVs were shot down over Lebanon: two Hermes 450 and three Hermes 900 models.[480][481]
As of February 2024, more than 500 homes in northern Israel have been reported damaged by Hezbollah according to reports received by the IDF.[482] Hundreds of other cases in towns like Arab Al-Aramsheh and Menara remain unassessed due to security issues for inspection.[483] As of November 2024, over 60% of the buildings in Metula were destroyed by Hezbollah attacks since the start of the conflict.[484]
According to Tel Aviv University economist Tomer Fadlon, there would be long-term and significant effects on northern Israel's economy if its population did not return. He further said that even if Israel achieved victory in Gaza, the north would possibly not see an economic recovery.[485] The conflict severely hurt the tourism industry in the north, which employs many people. Many factories in the region have not shut down but suffered labor shortages of up to 50%.[478] According to an estimate by the Bank of Israel in November 2023, the Israeli economy suffers the loss of 590 million shekels ($158 million) every week due absence of work caused by the evacuation of 144,000 people after the Israel–Hamas war, 40% of them from the north.[485]
Once-robust communities such as Snir and Kiryat Shmona were mostly emptied following the evacuation orders in northern Israel. Kiryat Shmona was planned to be used by food technology businesses, but companies left following the city's evacuation in October 2023. Northern Israel has one-third of Israel's agricultural land, and the occupied Golan Heights and Galilee accounted for 73% of Israel's annual egg production; however, after the outbreak of the conflict, few people remained in the north to tend chicken coops, resulting in a decline in domestic egg production.[486] In August 2024 the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security approved a quota for the import of 45 million eggs due to the anticipated drop in local production over the conflict and other reasons.[487]
In September 2024, thousands of wireless communication devices exploded throughout Lebanon and Syria in an attack attributed to Israel, killing dozens of people, including civilians and Hezbollah militants. Lama Fakih, a director of the Human Rights Watch, said that the explosions would constitute an indiscriminate attack if the IDF had no way of accurately determining the location of the explosive devices since there would be no distinction between civilians and military targets. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said that the attacks violated international human rights since the IDF did not have knowledge regarding the users of the devices or their location and surroundings during the explosions.[488]
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human rights, 232 Syrian refugees were killed by the IDF in Lebanon since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.[67]
According to the Council of Europe, the intentional targeting of journalists constitutes a war crime.[489] During the conflict, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) claimed that the Israeli army had deliberately targeted journalists.[490][491][492] An RSF investigation said that Israel had targeted journalists in two missile strikes on 13 October 2023 that killed Reuters reporter Issam Abdallah and injured four others. These two strikes, 30 seconds apart, hit a group of seven journalists in southern Lebanon who were reporting on the border fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. In a video, the journalists are seen wearing vests and helmets identifying them as "PRESS". The marking was also present on the roof of their car, which exploded after being hit by the second missile.[493] The Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research, which tests and analyses munitions and weapons, assisted Reuters by examining the material collected at the site of the explosion and found that a piece of metal was the fin of a 120 mm tank round fired 1.34 km away from the border from a smoothbore tank gun.[150]
On 31 October 2023, after an investigation, Amnesty International stated that an Israeli white phosphorus attack on 16 October was indiscriminate, unlawful, and "must be investigated as a war crime", due to its use on the populated Lebanese town of Dhayra, which injured at least nine civilians.[494][158] On 2 November, Amnesty International stated its investigations into four incidents on 10, 11, 16 and 17 October showed Israel had used white phosphorus munitions.[495] The claim was confirmed by the Washington Post, which identified two white phosphorus shell casings made in the U.S.[496] Human Rights Watch verified IDF's use of white phosphorus in at least 17 municipalities in Lebanon, including five municipalities where airburst munitions were used over residential areas.[497] It also called on the Lebanese government to file a declaration to enable investigations in the International Criminal Court.[497]
In southern Lebanon, Israel's white phosphorus bombs have destroyed over 4,500 hectares (45,000,000 m2) of forest with economic loses being valued at US$20 million.[498] The American University of Beirut estimated use of white phosphorus has led to more than 134 forest fires as of June 2024 burning 1,500 hectares (15,000,000 m2) of land.[339] As of 28 May 2024, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said that exposure to white phosphorus had injured at least 173 people.[497]
The targeting of hospitals, as well as religious sites, constitutes a war crime.[499] Lebanese health minister Firass Abiad said that 163 rescuers and health workers were killed and 273 others were injured in Lebanon since the start of Israel-Hezbollah conflict.[500] Human Rights Watch stated that Israel's "repeated" attacks on medical workers and healthcare facilities were apparent war crimes.[501]
The IDF shelled Meiss Ej Jabal Hospital, injuring a doctor on 10 November 2023. The missiles did not explode but caused damage to the emergency department and several cars. Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health condemned the attack, saying that "Israeli authorities were fully responsible for this unjustifiable act, which would have led to catastrophic results", and called for an investigation.[186] Days before, four people were reportedly injured after an Israeli bombing that hit two ambulances. The Lebanese National News Agency said that an Israeli drone strike hit two ambulances belonging to the Risala Scout Association, which is affiliated with the Amal Movement.[177]
On 26 December 2023, an anti-tank missile shot by Hezbollah fighters from Lebanon damaged a shed in a church compound in Iqrit, but not the church itself, wounding an elderly civilian.[502] As IDF troops and medical services were working to evacuate him, they were hit by further missiles, which resulted in nine soldiers being wounded, one of them seriously.[503][504]
On 11 January 2024, the IDF conducted strikes in the town of Hanine and targeted an emergency center affiliated with the Hezbollah-linked Islamic Health Authority. The attack killed two workers from the rescue force and destroyed an ambulance.[505] Other attacks on Islamic Health Authority centers occurred in Kafr Kila, Odaisseh and Blida killed 7 paramedic and rescue workers and destroyed 17 ambulances.[506]
On 27 March 2024, an Israeli airstrike targeted a paramedic center affiliated with the Islamic Group in Hebbariye, killing seven volunteer paramedics. The airstrike was condemned by the Lebanese Ministry of Health.[291] Later in the day, Israeli airstrikes in Tayr Harfa killed two paramedics from the Islamic Health Society, while strikes in Naqoura killed one from the Amal Movement-affiliated Islamic Risala Scout Association.[293] On 7 May 2024, Human Rights Watch declared the 27 March incident as an unlawful attack on civilians and said that they did not find any evidence of military targets at the site that was targeted. Investigations also showed that the IDF used an MPR 500 missile to conduct the raid.[507]
On 27 May 2024, an Israeli airstrike near Salah Ghandour Hospital in Bint Jbeil killed three civilians. WHO in Lebanon condemned the attack and called for the protection of hospitals and healthcare workers.[508] In October 2024, the head of Lebanon's Civil Defence in the south said Israel was specifically attacking health workers, stating, "We have had 40 ambulances which have been completely destroyed. On top of that 24 rescuing stations have been hit - just in this area."[509] Lebanese health officials stated on 5 October 2024 that fifty health officials had been killed in the prior 72 hours.[510] Lebanon's health minister Firas Abiad stated the attacks were war crimes and part of Israel's systematic targeting of Lebanon's healthcare system.[511] A November 2024 investigation found Israel had struck in "lethal proximity" to nineteen different hospitals in Lebanon.[512]
Experts warned the 2024 Lebanon pager explosions potentially violated international humanitarian law.[513] Josep Borrell, the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, questioned the legality of the pager attacks due to their high collateral damage among civilians, including the deaths of children. Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon, also raised concerns that the attacks were illegal. Belgian deputy prime minister Petra De Sutter went further, calling it a "terror attack."[514] Volker Turk, the UN human rights chief, stated, "International humanitarian law prohibits the use of booby-trap devices in the form of apparently harmless portable objects".[515]
Booby traps are mostly outlawed under the Protocol on Mines, Booby-Traps and Other Devices ("Amended Protocol II") of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons,[514] to which Israel is a party.[516] Article 7, paragraph 2 of Amended Protocol II prohibits the use of "booby-traps or other devices in the form of apparently harmless portable objects which are specifically designed and constructed to contain explosive material."[514][516][517] The rules of engagement of some countries, such as the United Kingdom, also ban explosive devices disguised as harmless items.[518] The United States Department of Defense Law of War Manual gives watches, cameras, tobacco pipes, and headphones as examples of such items,[516] which are prohibited to "prevent the production of large quantities of dangerous objects that can be scattered around and are likely to be attractive to civilians, especially children".[514][519]
On 22 September 2024, Israeli President Isaac Herzog denied any Israeli involvement in the explosions.[424]
The elimination of the State of Israel has been a primary goal for Hezbollah. Hezbollah has been accused of "only [regarding] the Jews living in Israel as Zionists, who should be killed".[520] Throughout the war Hezbollah announces the targeting of civilian homes.[521] On 12 November 2023, Hezbollah fired an anti-tank missile killing an employee of the Israel Electric Corporation who was conducting repair work and injured 13 other Israelis, including six other employees of the Israeli Electric Corporation.[522][189][190]
The most notable of Hezbollah's attacks on civilians was on 27 July 2024 in the Majdal Shams attack, when Hezbollah fired an Iranian-made Falaq-1 rocket at Majdal Shams, a Druze town in the Golan Heights. The rocket hit a football pitch killing 12 Druze children and injuring at least 42 others.[523][524][366]
Another attack by Hezbollah resulted in civilian casualties on 9 July 2024, when a rocket struck a couple's car just south of their hometown of Ortal.[525] Additionally, a couple walking their dog in Kiryat Shmona was killed by shrapnel from a Hezbollah rocket on 9 October 2024.[526]
On 26 December 2023, a Hezbollah anti-tank missile impacted near a Channel 13 News team while they were interviewing a farmer at Dovev for an article following a prior Hezbollah assault that killed a 56-year-old employee of the Israel Electric Corporation, and injured five workers who were repairing electric lines.[527]
There have been claims that Hezbollah has intentionally drawn fire to Christian areas in southern Lebanon.[528] Christians in the town of Rmaich clashed with Hezbollah due to the organization's attempts to establish military infrastructure in the town. The residents also wrote a complaint letter.[528] On 26 March 2024, civilians in Rmaich confronted militants and rang their church bells after Hezbollah attempted to place rocket launchers in the town. Hezbollah denied trying to fire rockets from Rmaich.[529]
The Lebanese Kataeb Party criticized Hezbollah for allegedly storing weapons between houses stating that "Hiding weapons between houses does not support Gaza" after an IDF strike on Hezbollah infrastructure in Adloun. Rockets were still exploding about an hour after the strike was reported and the blasts lightly injured three citizens as shrapnel from the explosions flew to surrounding villages. These ammunition depots "open the door to Israeli attacks and turn the Lebanese into human shields", the Kataeb party said.[530]
According to IDF's Arabic spokesman, Avichay Adraee, Hezbollah-run yellow ambulances have been used to transport fighters and weapons. The Islamic Health Authority's website says it has "provided services for the activity of the Hezbollah fighters against the Zionist occupation."[531] According to UNIFIL, Hezbollah has used the environmental NGO "Green Without Borders" to provide direct cover for Hezbollah's military operations by "unlawful construction of military outposts along the Blue Line."[532] Hezbollah has also launched rockets form UNIFL positions. The IDF reported that 25 rockets were launched from UNIFL positions in October 2024 and said that it discovered hundreds of weapons, including firearms, grenades, and rocket launchers, stored in compounds located near UNIFIL posts in southern Lebanon.[533]
After the 20 September 2024 Beirut attack which killed major Redwan Force commanders in the densely populated Dahieh suburbs, Daniel Hagari said that the commanders were holding a meeting "gathered underground under a residential building in the heart of the Dahieh neighbourhood, hiding among Lebanese civilians, using them as human shields."[534]
On 23 September 2024, the IDF began posting pictures and videos of what it claimed was evidence of Hezbollah placing weapons in people’s homes.[535][536] They also released video footage of secondary explosions after targeting buildings which it says are from Hezbollah munitions stored in residential areas.[537]
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On 6 November 2023, in response to the killing of four civilians in southern Lebanon, Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced that his government would submit an urgent complaint to the UN Security Council against Israel saying that its "targeting of civilians in its aggression against Lebanon" was a "heinous crime".[538]
Samir Geagea, the leader of a main Christian political party, blamed Hezbollah for attacking Israel and said that it harmed Lebanon while having no impact on Israel's Gaza offensive.[539]
| Date | Shi'ite | Sunni | Christian |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 89% | 8% | 16% |
| 2023 (November) | 93% | 34% | 29% |
As tensions heightened on 8 October 2023 near the Lebanese border, former prime minister Fouad Siniora stressed that Lebanon should not be involved "in any hostilities with the Israeli enemy".[541]
Between 7–9 October 2023, many politicians of long-established Christian parties in Lebanon took a stance against Hezbollah's involvement as well. Pierre Bou Assi, a member of the Lebanese Forces' Strong Republic bloc highlighted the kidnapping of two IDF soldiers which led to the 2006 Lebanon war saying, "Hassan Nasrallah promised, in early July, that the summer would be quiet and thriving—but a few days later, Hezbollah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers and the July war broke out".[541] The Kataeb Party took a similar stance and condemned the use of Lebanese territory by non-state actors for launching attacks on Israel.[541][better source needed]
On 4 December 2023, Hamas announced the organization's official establishment in Lebanon. The Lebanon-based unit was named the “al-Aqsa Flood Vanguards unit”.[542][543] The establishment of the Vanguards during the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel faced severe criticism from various political figures and factions within Lebanon. Many argued that such an organization, with potential military implications, could infringe upon Lebanon's sovereignty and violate international resolutions, particularly the Taif Agreement. Critics, including members of the Christian Lebanese Forces Party and other political figures, voiced concerns about a potential recurrence of historical issues related to armed Palestinian factions operating from Lebanese territory.[543][24]
Screens at Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport were hacked allegedly by the Christian group Jnud al-Rab to display an anti-Hezbollah message. Jnud al-Rab denied any involvement.[544]
On 28 January 2024, Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, Maronite Patriarch and head of the Maronite Church, stated that residents of southern Lebanon refuse to be used as "sacrificial lambs" in what he described as a "culture of death", implicitly referencing Hezbollah's border activities. He described the hardships faced by the people, including psychological strain and disrupted education for children, and said they refuse to be hostages or human shields.[545]
On 24 March 2024, a video showed a nun at a Lebanese Christian school asking students to pray for Hezbollah men defending Lebanon. The video went viral, with some praising the video and others criticizing it.[546]
Palestinians in Shatila refugee camp told Al Jazeera that they would fight on the side of Hezbollah and the Axis of Resistance in a war against Israel, but worried for their families and civilians as they feared that Israel would deliberately target densely populated civilian areas.[547]
On 9 January 2024, the Kata'ib Hezbollah spokesperson Jafar al-Husseini warned that the Islamic Resistance in Iraq would help Hezbollah fight Israel if war erupted between the two sides.[548] This statement was a few weeks after the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for a drone attack on a Karish rig which Lebanon claims to hold sovereignty to.[549] On 23 June 2024, the spokesperson to Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada Kadhem al-Fartousi said the brigade will join Hezbollah's side if Israel decides to launch a full-blown war in Lebanon.[550][551]
On 24 June 2024, Qais al-Khazali, the leader of Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, stated in a televised speech that if the US continued to support Israel in expanding the war to Lebanon and Hezbollah, the group would begin to attack US interests in Iraq and the Middle East.[552]
On 4 November 2023, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken thanked prime minister Najib Mikati during a meeting in Amman "in preventing Lebanon from being pulled into a war that the Lebanese people do not want".[553] United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin expressed concern about Israel's role in ongoing tensions with Lebanon.[554]
On 30 September 2024, the Pentagon said it would be deploying a "few thousand" more troops to the Middle East.[555] On 1 October 2024, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant that the United States supports Israel's ground offensive against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.[9]
The U.S. Embassy in Beirut announced on 27 September 2024 that it was "not evacuating U.S. citizens at this time."[556] In response, U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib stated, the State Department was "leaving Americans behind and failing to protect their own citizens".[557] American citizens in Lebanon stated they were being treated like "lesser US citizens".[558] Lebanese Americans filed a class-action lawsuit against the State Department in the hopes of expediting an evacuation.[559]
French Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu announced that France would donate dozens of armoured vehicles to the Lebanese military to help it carry out patrol missions.[560]
Since June 2024, the foreign ministries of Canada,[561] Kuwait,[562] Germany, the Netherlands[563] and North Macedonia[564] issued statements urging their citizens to leave Lebanon due to fears of an escalation of the conflict. The Canadian Armed Forces said that it was planning to evacuate its 20,000 citizens from Lebanon in the event of an escalation, although it would require support from its allies.[565]
On 8 November 2023, two men were arrested by Brazilian police in São Paulo following a warning from Mossad that Hezbollah was planning an attack against the country's Jewish community. Searches were also conducted in Brasilia and Minas Gerais in connection with the alleged plot.[566]
As a result of the fighting, Swiss International Air Lines and Lufthansa suspended flights to Beirut, while Lebanon's flag carrier Middle East Airlines relocated five of its 24 aircraft to Istanbul as a precaution. Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom advised against travelling to Lebanon, whilst the British embassy withdrew family members of its staff.[567]
The Lebanon Humanitarian Fund launched its reserve allocation that includes up to four million US dollars to support its partners to help aid those who have been displaced or still in conflict zones.[568]
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