With Hezbollah refusing to demilitarize southern Lebanon in violation of the ceasefire agreement, the Israeli military on Thursday struck the terrorist group’s weapons depots.
With Hezbollah continuing to hoard weapons in civilian areas, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) gave a prior evacuation warning before hitting southern Lebanon neighbourhoods.
“The IDF says it has completed a wave of airstrikes against Hezbollah weapon depots in southern Lebanon,” The Times of Israel reported Thursday afternoon. “The strikes were carried out after the military issued evacuation warnings for residents of the southern Lebanon villages of Jbaa, Mahrouna, Mjadel, and Baraachit.”
“A short while ago, the IDF struck several weapons storage facilities belonging to Hezbollah in southern Lebanon,” the IDF said in a statement. “These weapons storage facilities were located in the heart of the civilian population. This is yet another example of Hezbollah’s cynical use of Lebanese civilians as human shields, and continued operations from within civilian areas.”
The airstrike came in response to Hezbollah’s renewed terrorist buildup on Israel’s border, which the IDF largely dismantled during the ground offensive in southern Lebanon that took place between October 1 and November 27, 2024. The Lebanese government had committed to disarming Hezbollah by the end of this year under the terms of the truce agreement.
“Since the agreement went into effect [November 27, 2024], the IDF has conducted daily operations in response to Hezbollah’s violations and its ongoing reconstruction efforts,” Israel-based Alma Education and Research Center, a national security think tank, said in a recent analysis.
“During the ceasefire over the past year, the IDF carried out 669 airstrikes throughout Lebanon,” the think tank added. “The fact that the IDF has struck consistently over the past year indicates that Hezbollah continues to conduct continuous reconstruction efforts and maintain operational presence on the ground.”
With the Iran-backed terror group deliberately putting Lebanese civilians in harm’s way, Israel undertook painstaking measures to minimize casualties, such as “advanced warnings to the population, the use of precise munitions, aerial surveillance, and additional intelligence,” the IDF disclosed.
The IDF has eliminated at least 40 Hamas terrorists holed up in terror tunnels on the Israeli side of the line since the Gaza ceasefire came into effect nearly eight weeks ago, the IDF announced on Thursday.
“As part of the troops’ activity since the ceasefire agreement came into effect, the troops are securing the area and dismantling terror infrastructure above and below ground,” the IDF revealed in a press release on Thursday. “So far, the IDF and ISA have eliminated more than 40 terrorists in the area of the underground terror infrastructure in eastern Rafah.”
Terrorists taken out by the IDF include two Hamas commanders and one deputy commander, the details released by the IDF show. Abdullah Hamad, son of Qatar-based Ghazi Hamad, was also among the slain terrorists. Abdullah “operated as a security guard within the battalion commander’s inner circle,” the military disclosed.
Previous official Israeli estimates suggested that around 200 Hamas terrorists were lurking in the underground tunnel network in the IDF-controlled ceasefire line. These terrorists have used their holed-up positions to stage attacks on Israeli troops.
Hamas, on Thursday, finally returned the body of Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak, murdered by the terrorists on October 7, 2023. Sudthisak, a 43-year-old farm worker and breadwinner for his family back home, was murdered by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terror group, and his body was taken to Gaza as a bargaining chip.
Gaza-based terrorist groups continue to hold the remains of Ran Gvili — the last remaining hostage, who was abducted during the October 7 massacre.
Gvili, a volunteer for the Israeli border patrol, risked his life to save others in the face of the sudden and massive terror onslaught from Gaza. “Gvili, a 24-year-old Yasam [border police] volunteer from Meitar, fought with extraordinary courage on October 7. When the massacre began, he left the house, put on his uniform and headed out to fight,” the Israel Hayom newspaper recalled. “During the battle near Alumim he rescued about 100 people who had fled the Nova music festival and killed 14 members of the Hamas terrorist organization before he was abducted.”
The i24NEWS TV channel reports:
Israeli officials confirmed on Thursday that the remains of Sudthisak Rinthalak, a Thai citizen killed during the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led assault, have been positively identified following their transfer to Israel.The announcement came after representatives from the IDF and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs notified his family of the confirmation.Rinthalak, 42, had been employed in agricultural work in an Israeli community when he was murdered near Kibbutz Be’eri during the attack. His body was taken into Gaza by the assailants.
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