Hezbollah Military Operations Decline in Southern Lebanon

Smoke rises from a completely destroyed house in the border town of Kfar Kila in southern Lebanon due to an Israeli airstrike (AFP)
Smoke rises from a completely destroyed house in the border town of Kfar Kila in southern Lebanon due to an Israeli airstrike (AFP)
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Hezbollah Military Operations Decline in Southern Lebanon

Smoke rises from a completely destroyed house in the border town of Kfar Kila in southern Lebanon due to an Israeli airstrike (AFP)
Smoke rises from a completely destroyed house in the border town of Kfar Kila in southern Lebanon due to an Israeli airstrike (AFP)

Hezbollah’s operations against the Israeli army have slowed down compared to the intense activity two weeks ago.

This decrease was noticed despite Israel using significant military power that included over twenty airstrikes daily by fighter jets, ongoing artillery shelling, drone attacks, and the use of surveillance systems linked to drones.

This week, Hezbollah’s operations have ranged from five to eight, a notable drop from the previous period, which saw up to 20 military operations per day.

This reduction has also led to fewer human casualties in the last two weeks, with only one Hezbollah fighter reported killed in the past week.

Looking beyond the immediate situation, retired Col. and political-military researcher Khaled Hamada sees a regional connection.

Hamada believes there is a consistent link between the pace of operations in southern Lebanon and the broader regional context.

He notes that when Hezbollah engaged with Israel, “there was an active front in Gaza, and the group, supported by Iran, aimed to present itself as involved.”

“Hezbollah claimed genuine support for Gaza operations, despite inconsistencies between the pace of operations and the needed support for Gaza,” argued Hamada.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Hamada pointed out that Tehran was surprised by the tensions escalating across the Red Sea.

Iran expected the US to tolerate Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.

However, unexpected US responses led Tehran to escalate with strikes in Iraq, Syria, and Pakistan under unclear reasons, turning the conflict into a multi-faceted issue beyond border skirmishes.

Hamada suggests a measured approach in southern Lebanon to anticipate potential developments that Iran may struggle to match.

The reduced intensity of operations reflects the need for calm on Israel’s northern front to prevent the situation from going beyond what Iran can handle.

It is important to mention that Hezbollah doesn’t provide specific details about its targets in its consecutive statements.

For instance, on Thursday, the Iran-backed group announced five military operations against Israeli targets, another five on Wednesday, six on Tuesday, and eight on Monday.

This represents a clear reduction in the number of operations compared to a significant escalation ten days ago when Israeli military facilities were bombed in response to the assassination of Saleh al-Arouri, a senior leader of Hamas and a founding commander of its military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades.



Israeli Forces Order New Evacuation at Besieged Northern Gaza Town

Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on Al-Wafaa hospital, according to the Palestinian civil defense, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, December 29, 2024. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on Al-Wafaa hospital, according to the Palestinian civil defense, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, December 29, 2024. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
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Israeli Forces Order New Evacuation at Besieged Northern Gaza Town

Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on Al-Wafaa hospital, according to the Palestinian civil defense, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, December 29, 2024. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on Al-Wafaa hospital, according to the Palestinian civil defense, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, December 29, 2024. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas

Israeli forces carrying out a weeks-long offensive in northern Gaza ordered any residents remaining in Beit Hanoun to quit the town on Sunday, pointing to Palestinian militant rocket fire from the area, residents said.
The instruction to residents to leave caused a new wave of displacement, although it was not immediately clear how many people were affected, the residents told Reuters.
Israel says its almost three-month-old campaign in northern Gaza is aimed at Hamas militants and preventing them from regrouping. Its instructions to civilians to evacuate are meant to keep them out of harm's way, the military says.
Palestinian and United Nations officials say no place is safe in Gaza and that evacuations worsen humanitarian conditions of the population.
Much of the area around the northern towns of Beit Hanoun, Jabalia and Beit Lahiya has been cleared of people and razed, fueling speculation that Israel intends to keep the area as a closed buffer zone after the fighting in Gaza ends.
The Israeli military announced its new push into the Beit Hanoun area on Saturday.
The Palestinian Civil Emergency Service said it had lost communication with people still trapped in the town, and it was unable to send teams into the area because of the raid.
On Friday, Israeli forces stormed the Kamal Adwan hospital in northern Gaza. The military said it was being used by militants, which Hamas denies.
The raid on the hospital, one of three medical facilities on the northern edge of Gaza, put the last major health facility in the area out of service, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a post on X.
Some patients were evacuated from Kamal Adwan to the Indonesian Hospital, which is not in service, and medics were prevented from joining them there, the Health Ministry said. Other patients and staff were taken to other medical facilities.
On Sunday, health officials said an Israeli tank shell hit the upper floor of the Al-Ahly Arab Baptist Hospital in Gaza City near the X-ray division.
Meanwhile, Palestinian health officials said Israeli military strikes across the enclave killed at least 16 people on Sunday. One of those strikes killed seven people and wounded others at Al-WAFA Hospital in Gaza City, the Palestinian civil emergency service said in a statement.
The Israeli military said it was looking into the report.
Israel's campaign against Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 45,300 Palestinians, according to health officials in the Hamas-run enclave. Most of the population of 2.3 million has been displaced and much of Gaza is in ruins.