Intensified Israeli operations have thrust the Ali al-Taher Heights back to the forefront of tensions in southern Lebanon, days after the town of Mansouri came under Israeli attack.
Repeated artillery fire and strikes have targeted the heights and surrounding areas amid Israeli claims of underground military facilities in the area.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Sunday that his army was carrying out a “highly important operation” in Lebanon, specifically citing the targeting of operatives at Ali al-Taher.
Some assessments link the intensity of Israeli operations to the area’s strategic importance and the possibility that Israel may seek to expand its control there. Others view the developments within the broader issue of Hezbollah’s weapons, while the US position remains a key factor in determining the scope and timing of any wider Israeli action.
Heavy shelling
Ali al-Taher came under intense Israeli artillery fire overnight Sunday into Monday, continuing until dawn. Local reports said that more than 70 shells struck the area. The attacks continued Monday morning with drone strikes, while shelling hit the area between Zawtar and Mayfadoun.
Netanyahu adviser Dmitry Gendelman maintained that “Israel would remain in the security zone and act independently to dismantle Hezbollah’s military infrastructure.
Gendelman said Ali al-Taher contained a Hezbollah command center, and claimed the destruction of a tunnel complex beneath Beaufort Castle, along with operations targeting the group’s infrastructure, personnel and weapons.
Israeli claims of having seized the hill come amid conflicting accounts over the nature of its presence there and underground facilities in the area. Reports have suggested that operatives remain inside a facility and that efforts are underway to encircle them and cut supply routes.
Missed opportunity
Retired Brig. Gen. Yaarob Sakher said Lebanon missed a “golden opportunity” at Ali al-Taher, arguing that Hezbollah could have handed the area over to the Lebanese Army as an additional pilot zone.
“There was a golden opportunity for Lebanon at Ali al-Taher,” Sakher told Asharq Al-Awsat. “Hezbollah could have handed it over to the Lebanese Army, which would enter and take control, but the party refused.”
In his assessment, the refusal gave Israel an opportunity to harden its position. He added that Hezbollah is unlikely to surrender the area because of its military significance.
“We do not know everything that is there, but Ali al-Taher appears to contain what could be described as a major operations room, alongside an extensive tunnel network believed to connect with other areas,” he explained.
Sakher added that circulating information points to the possible presence of weapons and ammunition depots and senior personnel, noting that Hezbollah’s determination to hold the area suggests it carries considerable importance.
Beyond Ali al-Taher
Retired Brig. Gen. Khaled Hamadeh, by contrast, cautioned against reducing the escalation to the fate of the heights, viewing the intensified bombardment as part of a broader Israeli course of action.
“The issue goes beyond Ali al-Taher, and we are heading toward further escalation,” Hamadeh told Asharq Al-Awsat, linking the developments to Israeli operations in other southern areas, including Mansouri and Zawtar.
In his view, Israel “will not allow any security or military surprise in areas it considers sensitive,” and the operations are intended to send a message beyond any single position on the ground.
“The fundamental issue is not Ali al-Taher or any particular military position, but Hezbollah’s weapons,” he stressed.
Israel is acting on the premise that the framework agreement with Lebanon requires the weapons to be addressed and that the current situation will leave the door open to further strikes, he remarked.
“The main problem lies in the lack of political will to disarm Hezbollah,” he added.
