The Israeli army failed on Sunday in making an incursion in Lebanon’s southern border village of al-Khiam after nearly a week of fierce clashes with Hezbollah.
Hezbollah’s al-Manar television said the city was now “completely devoid of any Israeli soldier,” including its eastern section which was heavily targeted by Israel.
The Israeli army announced the killing of Hezbollah commander in the Khiam region Farouk Amin al-Assi and commander of the party’s Radwan Unit in Khiam Youssef Ahmed Noon.
A military spokesman said Assi was responsible for carrying out rocket and anti-tank missile attacks on the Galilee and Metula areas. Noon was responsible for rocket and anti-tank attacks on Israeli settlements in Galilee and soldiers operating in the area.
Lebanon’s state National News Agency said the Lebanese and International Red Cross attempted to evacuate two families, totally 20 members, including women and children, from Khiam.
Attempts to evacuate them earlier this week had failed due to the heavy fighting. After the clashes ended, the aid groups finally reached them, only to find out that they were killed in the fighting. Their bodies were found under the rubble.
The Lebanese Red Cross said it retrieved five bodies from Wata al-Khiam and will continue retrieving the rest on Monday.
It identified the victims as Rawan Ali al-Mohammed, 19, Nadine Shadi al-Mohammed, 5, Khaled Shadi al-Mohammed, 2, Adam Shadi al-Mohammed, 2 months, and Dima Walid al-Ibrahim, 28.
Fifteen Lebanese nationals and a Syrian remain under the rubble, it said.
Failed incursion
Brig. Gen. Hassan Jouni, former deputy chief of staff of operations in the Lebanese Armed Forces, said that it remains to be seen what Israel’s next step will be after its failure to capture Khiam.
It is evident that it does not want to become engaged in intense clashes and incur heavy losses, especially amid the fierce resistance by Hezbollah in defending the city, he told Asharq Al-Awsat.
He noted the military’s announcement that the first phase of the ground operation in Lebanon was almost over, and yet, the goal of the operation remains unclear, as are the next steps.
Summing up the first phase, Jouni said Israel sought to destroy frontline villages to make them exposed. “We don’t know if the phase will end with the Israeli army returning to the area,” he remarked.
He did note that the Israeli forces do enter southern villages and then leave them without establishing any bases there.
Moreover, Jouni noted Israel’s announcement that it was fortifying settlements near the border with Lebanon. “Does that mean that they will fortify the settlements rather than carry out an incursion in Lebanon?” he asked.
“The picture is not clear, but talk of the first phase is either aimed at confusing Hezbollah or leaving the situation open for the Israeli army,” he went on to say.
Hezbollah on Sunday did not make any announcement about ground fighting against Israeli forces.
The Israeli army did announce that marine commandos killed members of Hezbollah and destroyed a gathering area the party had used to plan operations in the South.
Hezbollah, meanwhile, continued to launch rockets at northern Israel, issuing a number of statements about its strikes that targeted military locations in the settlements of Metula, Shomera, Zarit, Even Menachem, Matsuva, Baram, Shlomi, Ros Hankira, Shamir and Qatsrin, as well as a military base north of Haifa.
