Israel announced on Tuesday that it had launched a ground offensive targeting Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, days after its leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an airstrike on a bunker in Beirut.
Here’s a breakdown of what is known so far about Israel’s ground operation.
when did the offensive start
Late Monday, Israel’s military launched “limited, local and targeted raids” against Hezbollah in border areas in southern Lebanon.
Its ground forces are supported by fighter aircraft and artillery fire.
The military announced the formal launch of the ground offensive just hours after the United States said Israeli forces were conducting limited operations in Lebanon.
The army did not say how many troops were involved in the infiltration, but said its 98th Division – comprising paratroopers and commando units – was taking part.
The division was previously deployed to the Gaza Strip, where Israeli forces continue to fight Palestinian militants led by Hamas.
On Monday evening, the army declared three areas along the northern border with Lebanon “closed military zones”, giving the first sign of a possible ground attack.
What are Israel’s goals?
The army said it was acting on “precise intelligence” targeting Hezbollah positions and infrastructure in southern Lebanon.
“These targets are located in villages near the border and pose an immediate threat to Israeli communities in northern Israel,” it said.
The ground attack comes after Israeli air strikes in recent weeks killed several top Hezbollah commanders, including Nasrallah on Friday.
“The elimination of Nasrallah is an important step, but it is not the final one,” Defense Minister Yoav Galant warned on Monday, hours before the offensive was announced.
Gallant told troops in the North, “We will use all means that may be required – your armies, other armies, by air, by sea and on land.”
What are Israel’s goals?
Since October 8, Hezbollah has been firing rockets from across the border, displacing more than 60,000 residents in northern Israel.
Hezbollah said it was acting in solidarity with its Islamist ally Hamas in Gaza after the unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, which resulted in the deaths of 1,205 people on the Israeli side, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli data. Was.
Cross-border clashes have intensified in recent weeks.
While Israel was engaged in fierce fighting with Hamas in Gaza, Gallant announced on 18 September that the “center of gravity” of the war was now swinging north.
“Now is the time to ensure that displaced people from the north will be able to return to their homes,” he said.
Other officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have repeatedly vowed to return displaced people to their homes.
“We will continue to attack Hezbollah… Anyone who has missiles in his living room and rockets in his house will not have a home,” Netanyahu said in a statement last month.
How has Hezbollah responded?
Since the ground offensive began, Hezbollah has fired several rockets into Israel, with explosions heard in the commercial city of Tel Aviv on Tuesday.
A statement said it had “launched Fadi 4 rockets at the Gillot base of military intelligence unit 8200 and the Mossad headquarters located on the outskirts of Tel Aviv”.
Hezbollah said it targeted Israeli military activities in Metula in northern Israel “with artillery shells” and later with rockets at “a gathering of enemy troops” in the same area.
Israeli soldiers were also targeted in Avivim, northern Israel, the group said.
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