Update(1908ET): Israel has named the new cross-border offensive "Operation Northern Arrows". Below is an early description by the IDF as posted to Telegram and other government channels [emphasis ZH]:
IDF troops have begun limited, localized and targeted raids against Hezbollah terror targets in the border area of southern Lebanon
In accordance with the decision of the political echelon, a few hours ago, the IDF began limited, localized, and targeted ground raids based on precise intelligence against Hezbollah terrorist targets and infrastructure in southern Lebanon. These targets are located in villages close to the border and pose an immediate threat to Israeli communities in northern Israel.
The IDF is operating according to a methodical plan set out by the General Staff and the Northern Command which IDF soldiers have trained and prepared for in recent months.
The Israeli Air Force and IDF Artillery are supporting the ground forces with precise strikes on military targets in the area.
Some Lebanese accounts have claimed that Hezbollah has already killed and wounded some invading Israeli soldiers, but these reports will remain hard to verify within the opening hours of the campaign and amid the fog of war.
Heavy strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs during the night hours (local):
"This is the moment," Retired Israeli Brig. Gen. Aviv Amiri has told CNN. The southern areas were reportedly subject to carpet bombing raids within the hours prior to the border breach. "We cannot create terms for Israelis to return to their homes without pushing Hezbollah out of South Lebanon, certainly at minimum eight miles, which would be anti-tank missile range," Amiri has said.
Israel's military has also issued new warnings telling Lebanese civilians in the southern suburbs of Beirut to evacuate, ahead of more imminent airstrikes on Hezbollah locations.
Israeli army tanks have entered Lebanon - Al Arabiya and Al Hadath
The Israeli Defence Forces are reportedly conducting a ground operation in #Lebanon - for the first time since 2006, when the second Lebanon war began.
Intense airstrikes are now once again hitting the Lebanese capital...
Israel has been busy over the weekend striking multiple fronts. Not only has it expanded airstrikes on Beirut in the wake of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah's Friday death, but it is attacking Yemen and Syria as well.
Starting late last week into Saturday, Yemen's Iran-linked Houthis announced the launch of several ballistic missiles toward Tel Aviv, which Israel's military said were intercepted. And on Friday, in an incident which went underreported (given headlines were focused heavily on Beirut events), three US warships in the Red Sea came under simultaneous rocket attacks from the Houthis.
On Sunday Israeli jets had the assistance of US military intelligence as they conducted a massive airstrike on Yemen's key port of Hodeidah. It happened in the early evening local time. Axios reports that "sensitive" Houthis facilities were on the target list.
Psalm 144:6.
ReplyDelete