 | This article needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(October 2024) |
| Battle of Kafr Kila | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the2024 Israeli invasion of Lebanon | |||||||
 Israel Hezbollah presence in Lebanon Areas ordered evacuated by Israel Seehere for a more detailed map. | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Israel |  Hezbollah | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Lt. Col.Moran Omar | Hacher Ali Tawil † | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 25+ soldiers wounded | 1 fighter captured[1][2] | ||||||
The2024Kafr Kila clashes began in thesouthern Lebanese village on 1 October 2024, amid theIsraeli invasion of Lebanon.
Before the battle. Kafr Kila was attacked by the IDF over 300 times during cross-border clashed with Hezbollah.[3] On 1 October 2024,Israel began an invasion of Lebanon as part of the2023–2024 Israel–Hezbollah war and theIsrael–Hezbollah conflict, results of thespillover of theGaza war. It began afterHezbollah faced a series of setbacks in September 2024 that degraded its capabilities[4][5] and eliminated most of its leadership;[6][7] beginning with thepager explosions,[8][9] followed by anIsraeli aerial bombing campaign targeting Hezbollah throughout Lebanon,[10] killing over 800 and injuring at least 5,000 in a week, and culminating in the 27 Septemberassassination of Hezbollah leaderHassan Nasrallah.[11][12]
On October 1, 2024, the IDF claimed that since the onset of the Israel–Hezbollah conflict in October 2023 and leading up to the October 2024 ground operation, it has destroyed 158 Hezbollah targets in Kfar Kila, including 28 lookout posts and an array of weapons.[13]
On October 2, the forces of Division 36 entered Lebanon and split up, Golani's forces began to move towards Marun al-Ras and the rest of the division joined the forces inside Kfar Kila. On the same day, Hezbollah claimed to have killed or injured all members of an Israeli infantry unit sheltering in a home outsideKafr Kila by detonating an explosive device in the house and targeting it using bullets and rocket-propelled grenades.[14]
On October 6, the IDF said that its airstrike killed Hezbollah commander Hacher Ali Tawil inKafr Kila who was responsible for an anti-tank missile attack inYuval which killed two Israeli civilians in January.[15][16] Hezbollah claimed that the IDF made a withdrawal from Kfar Kila.[17]
On 10 October, the Israeli Air Force, bombarded the Khula area, killing Ahmed Mustafa al-Haj Ali, who coordinated hundreds of rockets andATGM strikes onKiryat Shmona. In addition, Muhammad Ali Hamadan, the commander ofATGM division was also killed.[18]
On 13 October, the IDF said that 25 soldiers of theEtzioni Brigade were injured, including two critically, while fighting in southern Lebanon including inKafr Kila andOdaisseh.[19] Also on 13 October, a fighter Wadah Younes, was captured during an IDF search operation in the tunnels beneath the village.[20][21]
On 16 October, Israeli tanks fired at aUNIFIL watchtower in Kafr Kila. UNIFIL called the attack "deliberate fire on a UNIFIL position" and reported that the watchtower was damaged, along with two cameras. TheU.S. State Department therefore threatens to cut off Israel's military support and thereby allows more aid transport trucks to enter Gaza.[22]
On 18 February 2025, Israeli forces withdrew from Kafr Kila following the expiration of the extended deadline of theIsrael–Lebanon ceasefire agreement that came into effect on 27 November 2024. Lebanese residents returned to their homes, finding them largely destroyed by Israeli forces.[23]
The Lebanese group has said that after surveilling Israeli soldiers sheltering in a house outside the Lebanese village of Kfar Kila, its fighters detonated an explosive device in the building and then targeted it with bullets and rocket-propelled grenades. Hezbollah said all members of the unit were either killed or injured, without specifying the number of casualties.
The Israeli military says an air strike killed a Hezbollah commander in the southern Lebanese village of Kafr Kila, who it claimed was responsible for a deadly anti-tank missile attack on Israel in January. Hacher Ali Tawil was responsible for strike on the village of Yuval on January 14, which killed Barak Ayalon, 45, and his mother Miri Ayalon, 76.
