The IDF carried out airstrikes on Hezbollah terror infrastructure in multiple areas of southern Lebanon on Monday, targeting launch sites, military camps, and weapons storage shafts.
The strikes hit Hezbollah military camps used to train terrorists for the planning and execution of attacks against IDF forces and Israeli civilians. At the sites, terrorists were undergoing firearms drills and additional training involving a range of weapons.
Weapons storage shafts at several Hezbollah military locations were also targeted. In recent months, Israeli intelligence identified unusual military activity by Hezbollah at these sites, prompting the strikes.
In addition, launch sites and military structures used to advance terror plots against Israel and IDF troops were struck. Israeli officials said Hezbollah’s activity at the targeted locations violates the understandings between Israel and Lebanon and poses a direct threat to Israel.
The military emphasized it will continue operating to remove any threat to the State of Israel.
The strikes came as Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem issued a defiant warning to Israel on Saturday, declaring that “aggression toward Lebanon cannot continue” and insisting the Iran-backed terror group has “the right to defend ourselves.”
“We will not surrender,” Qassem said. “We will not accept continued strikes in the country without doing anything. Everything has a limit.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has also signaled that Israel could be heading toward a wider campaign.
He recently told ministers that President Donald Trump has given Jerusalem the green light to launch a major operation against Hezbollah in Lebanon after Beirut missed the White House’s December 31 deadline to disarm the group.