The Israeli military in recent weeks has stepped up airstrikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon, with assessments indicating that the Iran-backed terror group may join Tehran in a new conflict against Israel.
Strikes carried out by the Israeli Air Force on Friday night targeted three Hezbollah command centers belonging to the terror group’s missile force in eastern Lebanon’s Beqaa Valley, killing eight terror operatives, including a top commander.
The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement that Hezbollah’s missile force had recently been working to improve its ability to launch rockets at Israel.
The strikes, according to military sources, were intended to degrade Hezbollah’s rocket and missile capabilities in case the group should try to resume hostilities.
With tensions between Washington and Tehran threatening to bring war back to the region, the military has identified preparations by Hezbollah — particularly by its rocket and missile forces — to strike Israel if the US military attacks Iran, the sources said.
In the event of a conflict between the US and Iran, Tehran can be expected to activate its proxy forces arrayed around the region against Israel, including Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis and militias in Iraq, according to the recent Israeli assessments. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps would also launch attacks.
Hezbollah is widely considered to be Iran’s most prized proxy, built up over decades as a strategic deterrent for Tehran situated on Israel’s northern border, and ties between the terror group and the Islamic Republic are thought to go deeper than the handsome funding Iran provides.
There are also signs that Tehran is now exerting greater control over its proxy. On Saturday, Saudi outlet Al-Arabiya reported that IRGC officers have effectively taken charge of Hezbollah in anticipation of a war with the US and Israel.
The IRGC officers, some of whom recently arrived in Lebanon from Iran, were tasked with rebuilding Hezbollah’s military capabilities, Al-Arabiya said, citing sources close to Hezbollah.
The Iranian officers have also been personally briefing Hezbollah operatives across Lebanon, said the unnamed sources cited by Al-Arabiya.
They added that IRGC officers were meeting with members of Hezbollah’s missile unit at a site in Lebanon’s Beqaa Valley that was bombed by Israel on Friday.
Friday night’s strike against the Hezbollah missile force operatives was among the deadliest since the start of the ceasefire.
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