Lebanon: Hezbollah Draws Closer To Full War With Israel With Intensified Missile Attacks, Israeli Retaliation
The Times of Israel: Since October 7, “Hezbollah has maintained its near-daily attacks on Israel.” Israel has increased its targeting of Hezbollah top operatives and weapons depots.
Iran-backed terrorists group Hezbollah has ramped up rocket attacks on Israel., media reports say. An Israeli soldier was wounded on Sunday after being hit by a Hezbollah rocket in the region of Galilee, northern Israel.
“Over the past few hours, numerous launches were identified crossing from Lebanon into the areas of Margaliot and Malkia in northern Israel,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a press release on Sunday. “The IDF struck the sources of the launches. As a result of the launches, an IDF soldier was lightly injured and evacuated to a hospital to receive medical treatment. His family has been notified.”
Lebanese media report an apparent Israeli strike on a vehicle in southern Lebanon's Kounine. pic.twitter.com/tSUYYRLQbt
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) March 31, 2024
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) responded by taking out Hezbollah rocket launch sites in southern Lebanon. “Hezbollah ups attacks on Israel,” the Jerusalem Post reported Sunday. “In response, the IDF attacked the sources of the rocket fire, including Hezbollah infrastructure in al-Khiam and Rab El Thalathine in southern Lebanon. Additionally, the IDF attacked the Hula area with artillery to remove a threat.”
The latest rocket barrage from Lebanon took place in the backdrop of increased Hezbollah aggression as the IDF conducts a large-scale military operation to eliminate Hamas in Gaza.
Since October 7, “Hezbollah has maintained its near-daily attacks on Israel,” The Times of Israel noted Saturday. Israel has been “compelled to establish a kind of “security zone” in the north, evacuating tens of thousands of residents from towns near the border, similar action has been taken in south Lebanon. Some 80,000 residents of northern Israel have been forced to leave their homes amid the hostilities.”
In recent months, Hezbollah has been using the territory of neighbouring Syria and Lebanon to carry out attacks on Israel. Israel on Friday conducted multiple ai strikes in Syria and Lebanon, killing several high-level Hezbollah terrorists and destroying an Iranian-supplied weapons depot.
🔴The IDF attacked military buildings and terrorist infrastructure of the Hezbollah terrorist organization in southern Lebanon pic.twitter.com/TyyOscHOfw
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) March 31, 2024
Hamas, PIJ leaders visit Iran in a bid to widen conflict
Hezbollah’s escalation coincides with the recent visits by the leaders of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) to Iran. Hamas and PIJ, both Iran-sponsored terrorists groups, fear an imminent Israeli offensive on their last-standing Gaza stronghold of Rafah.
Hezbollah’s actions in the north could be a bid to ease pressure on Iran-backed terrorists group in Gaza. Israel will score a major strategic victory if its captures Rafah, and thereby eliminating Gaza’s terrorist leadership, jihadist fighting forces and freeing the remaining hostages.
Since Israel launched counter-terrorism operation in the wake of the October 7 massacre, Hamas has been calling for Iran and its proxy terrorists outfits to open multiple fronts against Israel. Yemen-based Houthis have already heeded the call, targeting Israeli and Western cargo ships in the Rad Sea.
Earlier this week, Hamas’s Gaza-based ‘military’ chief, Muhammad Deif, released an audio message calling the Muslims of the world to wage a jihad against Israel. “To our people in Jordan and Lebanon, in Egypt, Algeria, and the Maghreb, in Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia,” Deif said from the safety of his bunker in southern Gaza.
“Start marching now, not tomorrow, toward Palestine, and do not let borders, regimes, and restrictions deprive you of the honor of waging jihad and taking part in the liberation of the Al-Aqsa Mosque [the Temple Mount],” Deif said while hiding behind Israeli hostages, including women and children.
The Jerusalem Post on Sunday reported the recent visits by Hamas and PIJ terror chiefs to Iran:
The head of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Ziyad al-Nakhalah, visited Iran over the weekend, where he promised “victory” in the war against Israel. His visit came days after the head of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, also flew to Tehran from Doha. The meetings come at an auspicious time.
This is the last week of Ramadan, and it also comes on the eve of the six-month anniversary of the October 7 massacre. The visit by these two terrorist bosses is important and it likely foreshadows a new phase of conflict. (…)
What we know from the public statements about the PIJ leader meetings in Iran is that he discussed the role of his terrorist group with the Iranian foreign minister. “Amir Abdollahian considered the unity of the resistance currents in Palestine and the Gaza Strip in the current battle as one of the valuable manifestations of the Palestinian nation,” a report at Tasnim News said. This referenced the accomplishments the Palestinians believe they have gained on the political, legal, and international fronts.
Iran believes it has accelerated the “unity” of various fronts after October 7. It wants to leverage October 7 to create more successes in other arenas, such as the West Bank. It also views October 7 as one shot in a larger war for the world order. The article in Tasniim mentioned the desire to “increase of multi-layered crises inside the Zionist regime.” It believes that after October 7 Israel is more “isolated than ever.”
IDF uncovers weapons cache at Shifa hospital’s maternity ward
As the Israeli raid on Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital enters into its second week, the IDF uncovered a large weapons cache at the maternity ward. Guns and ammunitions were stuffed inside bedding and pillows, the military sources disclosed on Sunday.
Several hight-level Hamas terrorists, including its supplies and logistics chief, Raad Thabet, were killing during the ongoing raid on terrorist-infested Shifa, Gaza’s largest hospital with a capacity of nearly 900 beds.
Some of the weapons discovered in the MATERNITY WARD of Al-Shifa hospital in #Gaza.
Now, I’m no midwife, but are these really necessary to deliver babies? What do you think @WHO @DrTedros @ICRC @UNICEF @antonioguterres? pic.twitter.com/xegq5eMAkN
— Arsen Ostrovsky 🎗️ (@Ostrov_A) March 31, 2024
The Israeli TV channel i24NEWS reported:
Israel Defense Forces seized a large cache of weapons hidden at the maternity ward of the Shifa hospital in Gaza, where the Israeli military has been conducting a major raid for the past week.
The arsenal, hidden in beds, pillows and drop ceilings, included assault and sniper riffles, handguns, mortars and explosive devices.
Last week two top Hamas operatives were killed in a firefight at the maternity ward.
🚨BREAKING: IDF kills multiple terrorists in Shifa Hospital's maternity ward, where weapons were found inside pillow cases, beds, ceilings, and walls pic.twitter.com/hMUOuXtdia
— Eitan Fischberger (@EFischberger) March 31, 2024
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Comments
Who are we kidding? They’re already at war with Israel and have been for many decades.
Just as Hamas and Hezb’allah patron, Iran, has been at war with the U.S., Israel and the west, since the 1979 Islamic revolution. The west has had its collective heads in the sand, on this score, failing to respond appropriately, and, with decisive and overwhelming force.
Wars are not won by allowing enemy collaborators a free pass as “civilians”.
If the IDF can’t finish off Gaza, or if the political pressure is too much for Netanyahu to allow it to why exactly wouldn’t Hezbollah start another round of warfare?
This is why weaselly politician acts can’t be permitted when dealing with other nations. Other nations saw Netanyahu’s deadlines all come and go with none of the offensives Netanyahu said would happen.
Lebanon just happens to be one of those nations.
They also see the way the west is turning. If I was an Iranian thug I would be dancing for joy after Joe Rogan’s absolute condemnation of Jews.
Rogan has never condemned Jews. What is your problem with his show or him?
Hamas is in the business of getting terror state support from outside, and they’re in competition with other bad-ass groups, so they have to be the baddest-ass around.
It’s not particularly hatred of Jews. It might be intense indifference, it’s just the business model.
“It’s not particularly hatred of Jews.”
Goodness, Mr. Hardin, have you not read the Hamas charter?
“It’s not particularly hatred of Jews.”
Yeah, OK. Sure thing.
Tell it to Hassan al Banna.
https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/history/articles/the-nazi-roots-of-islamist-hate
Ludicrous.
“It’s business; nothing personal.” Consigliere Tom Hagen attempted to convince Michael Corleone of the veracity of that assertion, in Mario Puzo’s novel, “The Godfather.” Michael totally rejected it.
Please. Study the koran and 1,400 years of Islamofascist hatred of, belligerence towards, and, violence directed at Jews, Christians and other non-Muslims.
This is a theological/ideological battle being waged by Muslim supremacists and Islamofascists against people who possess the temerity to not embrace the supremacist, totalitarian, belligerent, hate-filled and pathology-laden ideology of “Submission” and its fascistic and evil tenets, so, yeah, it’s inherently and intensely “personal.”
hardin, the Hamas charter calls explicitly for the murder of JEWS.
Not Israelis.
Not Zionists.
Not “settlers”
JEWS.
And I bet you know this you creepy mamzer.
Just something to keep in mind.
Israel knows now that the US is no longer a guarantor or supporter of their survival. We have been blatant about that.
There exists something called the Samson Option. It is real, and y’all may want to look it up. Short form, Israel does have nukes and up to ICBM delivery means [although most I believe are shorter range]. There are arguments about how many Israel has, but the open source arguments range from 90-300. I suspect it is a lot closer to 90 than 300, but I have been out of the field for decades [I am feeling blood old].
Let us assume that these are a countervalue and not a counterforce deterrent. Israel is not going to allow itself to be destroyed, no matter how much it might please greater powers [including the US], without taking as many as their enemies as they can with them.
Let us ponder, purely theoretically, which enemies are the greatest threat to Israel and where Israel could target that would do the most to destroy them; with say just a dozen warheads. The more you think about it, the more damage you realize that they can do. Now let us say that they have that minimum number of 90.
The world is used to generations of wars in the Middle East that have no critical results elsewhere. We [including our government] are playing what could be a very dangerous game with no assurance that they will win.
Subotai Bahadur
What do people that support anti-Israelism see in the causes of Israel’s enemies. Especially the ones that claim the mantle of liberal and human values?
Are you seriously going to tell me you can’t tell how the disciples of DEI would hate Jews?
Exactly the same thing that makes them hate white people. Jews are the ultimate model minority which DEI will never forgive them for.
Ever heard of rhetorical question and nuance? Not to mention it’s not made in a vacuum.
2015 – Egyptian Army officials revealed on Monday that Cairo forces have found and destroyed over 500 tunnels that connect from Egypt to the Gaza Strip.
Images link to articles referencing Rafah, Egypt and Gaza since ordinary search results seem awfully slim.
https://www.qwant.com/?q=%22rafah+tunnels+egypt%22&t=images
Link via waybackmachine to a 2013 NYT article: Stinky terror tunnel.
https://shorturl.at/jv037
Egypt is shitting on Pales.
Everyone could see last Oct 7 that the war would eventually expand to become full-blown on other fronts (and not just the North). It is just a question of when. The combatants have been dancing around each other looking for a good opening to strike hard. It will happen soon.
Israel is not going to win a “reputation” game. It can, however, rebuild its reputation of being too dangerous to attack. That’s worth much more in the Middle East than trying to win friends and influence enemies with territorial concessions and appeasement. The US played the “reputation game in Iraq and Afghanistan, and we can all how that worked out; Beter has gone in and made them all understand that the USA is not a place to attack ever again.