On 8 October 2023, Hezbollah started firing guidedrockets andartillery shells at Israeli positions in theShebaa Farms, which it said was in solidarity with Palestinians following the 7 October Hamas-led attack on Israel and beginning ofIsraeli bombing of the Gaza Strip.[74][75] Israel retaliated by launchingdrone strikes and artillery shells at Hezbollah positions. Israel also carried out airstrikes throughout Lebanon and in Syria. In northern Israel, the ongoing conflict has forced approximately 96,000 individuals to leave their homes,[76][72] while in Lebanon, over 1.4 million individuals had been displaced by late October.[77][78] Hezbollah stated it would not stop attacks against Israel until it stops itsmilitary operations in Gaza;[79] Israel said its attacks would continue until its citizens could return safely to the north.
In September 2024, Israel intensified its operations with two waves ofelectronic device attacks targeting Hezbollah's communication systems, and later assassinated the group's leading figures, including Secretary-GeneralHassan Nasrallah,[80] and his successor,Hashem Safieddine.
On 1 October, the Israeli military began aninvasion of southern Lebanon,[81] although it had been conducting limited ground operations for some time. Israeli operations led to the significant dismantling of Hezbollah's military infrastructure in southern Lebanon and the destruction of a large portion of its missile stockpile.[82]
A 60-dayceasefire agreement was brokered and took effect on 27 November 2024.[83] The ceasefire required Hezbollah to move its fighters north of theLitani River, approximately 30 kilometres (19 miles) from the Israeli border, while Israel began withdrawing its forces from southern Lebanon. TheLebanese Army was tasked with deploying around 5,000 soldiers to monitor the situation and maintain peace in the region. The ceasefire is being monitored by a panel of five countries, led by theUnited States, though Israel retains the right to strike at immediate threats in Lebanon during this period.[82] The ceasefire was extended to 18 February 2025, at which time theIsrael Defense Forces (IDF) withdrew from most of southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah is a LebaneseShiite political party and paramilitary group, formed in 1982 by Muslim clerics with Iranian funding to fight theIsraeli invasion of Lebanon.[84] After the war, Israel continued to holdborderland buffer zone in southern Lebanon with the aid of proxy militants in theSouth Lebanon Army (SLA).[85]In 2000, Israel withdrew from South Lebanon to the UN-designated and internationally recognizedBlue Line border.[86] Hezbollah quickly took control of the area. It has justified its continued existence, occupation, and attacks on Israel by citing both allegations ofLebanese prisoners in Israel and continued Israeli control of theShebaa farms region, occupied by Israel from Syriain 1967 but considered by Hezbollah to be part of Lebanon.[87][88]
Since 2006, Hezbollah fortified southern Lebanon,[101] obstructed UNIFIL's access, built tunnels into Israel, and crossed the Blue Line.[102][103] Israel has also accused Hezbollah of using a local environmental organization as a front for its military activities near the Blue Line.[104][105] After retreating behind the Blue Line in 2000,[106][107] Israel reoccupied the whole ofGhajar in 2006, including the Lebanese part of the village.[108][109] Israel continues to occupy Ghajar and an adjacent area,[100][106] and has repeatedly breached Lebanese airspace, waters, and borders.[110][111][112] UNIFIL reports that Israel entered Lebanese airspace on more than 22,000 occasions between 2007 and 2021.[113][114]
On 6 April 2023, in response to the2023 Al-Aqsa clashes, dozens of rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israel, injuring three Israeli civilians.[115] TheIsrael Defense Forces said that it intercepted 25 rockets fired from Lebanon,[115] which it said were fired by Palestinian factionsHamas andPIJ withHezbollah's approval.[116]
On 15 July, the IDF fired warning shots and used riot dispersal munitions on 18 people, including journalists and parliamentarians that crossed the border from Lebanon and walked 80 meters into Israeli-occupied territory.[117]
On 8 October 2023, a day afterHamas launched its7 October 2023 attacks on Israel andIsrael began its bombing of Gaza,Hezbollah joined the conflict in "solidarity with the Palestinians",[118][119] initially firing on Israeli military outposts inShebaa Farms and theGolan Heights — both territoriesunder Israeli occupation.[118] Since then, Hezbollah and Israel have been involved in cross-border military exchanges that have displaced entire communities in Israel and Lebanon, with significant damage to buildings and land along the border. From 7 October 2023 to 20 September 2024, there were 10,200 cross border attacks, of which Israel launched 8,300.[120] Over 96,000 people in Israel[121] and over 111,000 in Lebanon have been displaced during this period.[122] Israel and Hezbollah have maintained their attacks at a level that causes harm without escalating into a full-scale war.[123]
Hezbollah has stated it will continue attacking Israel until Israel haltsits operations in Gaza,[79] where over 40,000 Palestinians have been killed.[124][125] Israel demanded that Hezbollah implementUNSC 1701 and withdraw its forces north of theLitani River.[99][126] Diplomatic efforts, led by U.S. envoyAmos Hochstein and France, have so far been unsuccessful in resolving the conflict.[127][128]
In November 2023, Israeli defense ministerYoav Gallant warned thatBeirut could meet the same fate as Gaza.[129] He made the same warning in January 2024.[130] In June 2024, Gallant visited theUnited States, seeking support for an escalation of the war with Hezbollah and a possible ground invasion inLebanon.[131]
IDF footage of strike on Hezbollah infrastructure in theShebaa Farms
In the morning of 8 October,Hezbollah fired rockets and shells at theShebaa Farms region in support ofHamas' attack onto Israel; in response, theIsrael Defense Forces (IDF) fired artillery shells and a drone into southern Lebanon.[132][133][134] Two Lebanese children were reportedly injured by broken glass.[74]
The next day, Israel exchanged a series of airstrikes on southern Lebanon near the towns ofMarwahin,Ayta ash Shab[135] and Dhayra in theBint Jbeil district.[136] This was after numerous Palestinian militants infiltrated the Israeli border,[137] which Hezbollah denied involvement with. ThePalestinian Islamic Jihad militia claimed responsibility for the armed infiltration. The IDF killed at least two perpetrators (likely Palestinians),[136] while a third returned to Lebanon.[138] A Hezbollah media source announced three of Hezbollah's members died in the IDF retaliation.[139] Hezbollah fired rockets and artillery in retaliation.[140] During the clashes, two Israeli soldiers and Lt. ColAlim Abdallah, Deputy Commander of the IDF's 300th Brigade, were killed and another three were wounded.[34]
On 11 October, Hezbollah fired anti-tank missiles at an IDF position and claimed to have produced casualties. In response, the IDF shelled the area where the attack was launched.[141] The Lebanese-Italian hospital inTyre admitted three injured civilians.[142] The IDF ordered residents of northern Israel to seek shelter following reports of drones being launched from southern Lebanon.[143] APatriot missile was launched to intercept a suspicious projectile, after which the IDF found that the object in question was not a drone.[144] Warning sirens were activated across northern Israel after reports emerged that up to 20 infiltrators on paragliders had entered Israeli territory from Lebanon before the IDF dismissed the report as afalse alarm.[145]
Hezbollah deputy chief SheikhNaim Qassem said "when time comes for any action, we will carry it out," stating that Hezbollah was ready and would contribute to confrontations against Israel according to its own plan.[146] The IDF fired artillery, into southern Lebanon following an explosion that caused minor damage to a section of the Israel–Lebanon border wall near the kibbutz ofHanita.[147]
The IDF released footage of a drone attack which, according to them, killed three infiltrators from Lebanon nearMargaliot who were members of Hamas.[148] One of them was acknowledged by Hezbollah as one of their members. In the afternoon, Hezbollah fired 50 mortar shells and six anti-tank missiles towards five Israeli outposts in the Shebaa Farms.[149] Further IDF shelling killed two civilians in a Shebaa village; video and photographic evidence showed usage ofphosphorus bombs.[150]
On 15 October, Hezbollah launched five anti-tank missiles towards northern Israel killing one civilian and injuring three others inShtula.[151][152]UNIFIL said that their headquarters inNaqoura in southern Lebanon was hit by rocket fire with no casualties reported.[153] Lieutenant Amitai Granot, commander of the 75th Battalion of the IDF'sGolan Brigade and son ofRabbi Tamir Granot, was killed in a missile attack on an IDF post bordering Lebanon.[30][31]
On 13 October, while a group ofReuters,AFP andAl Jazeera journalists were transmitting a live video feed of an IDF outpost inAalma ech Chaab, two tank rounds fired directly hit the group. The first killed Reuters photojournalistIssam Abdallah. The second strike was much more powerful and ignited the Al Jazeera vehicle, a whiteToyota, which Al Jazeera journalists Carmen Joukhadar and Elie Brakhya, as well as their AFP colleague Dylan Collins were standing next to.[154] Reuters photographer Christina Assi was also critically injured.[155][156] TheLebanese Army has said the IDF fired the missile that killed Abdallah. Another Reuters reporter at the scene said Abdallah was killed by projectiles fired from the direction of Israel.[157] His last post onInstagram, posted a week before he was killed, was a photograph ofShireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian journalist forAl Jazeera Arabic who had been killed by Israel in 2022.[158][159]
On 16 October,Amnesty International reported that the IDF firedwhite phosphorus shells into Dhayra, hospitalizing nine civilians and setting fire to civilian objects.[160] Aya Majzoub, Amnesty International's Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, described the attack as a violation of international law that needed to be investigated as a war crime, and that it "seriously endangered the lives of civilians, many of whom were hospitalized and displaced, and whose homes and cars caught fire".[161]
Lebanese state media reported that Dhayra and other areas along the western section of the border came under "continuous" bombardment overnight.[162] In the early morning it was reported that multiple people were suffering from symptoms of suffocation after the IDF allegedly fired white phosphorus shells on the village.[163] Three people were injured after an anti-tank missile from Lebanon landed in the Israeli town ofMetula.[164] Hezbollah announced that five of its members were killed on the same day but it was unclear if any had involvement in the border infiltration.[165]
On 19 October, theLebanese Armed Forces said that one person was killed and another injured after a group of seven Iranian journalists were targeted with machine guns by Israel, although Iranian state media denied the claim and said that all its journalists were "alive and healthy".[166] UNIFIL peacekeepers said that one person was killed after civilians were caught in a cross-fire at the border in which the Lebanese Army requested assistance by UNIFIL to deescalate the situation. It was requested to Israel to suspend fire "to facilitate the rescue operation".[167][166]
Israel started evacuating the settlements located close to the border with Lebanon in October 2023 with more than 60 thousand evacuated by April 2024.[168][169]
In the early afternoon of 21 October, several rockets were fired from Lebanon toward the Shebaa Farms; there were no injuries. The IDF conducted a drone strike on the team of militants that launched the rockets.[170] A short while later, anti-tank guided missiles were fired from Lebanon toward Margaliot andHanita; two foreign workers were injured. The IDF conducted airstrikes against the missile teams.[171] In the evening, another anti-tank guided missile was fired from Lebanon towardBar'am. One IDF soldier was seriously injured and two others suffered minor injuries. The IDF responded with several airstrikes in southern Lebanon, some of which targeted other missile teams preparing attacks.[172]
The IDF conducted airstrikes against two Syrian military positions on 24 October in southwestern Syria, marking the first time the IDF publicly targeted the Syrian military since the Israel-Gaza war began.[27]
Hezbollah attacked 19 IDF military sites with missiles and artillery shells[173] and fired one-way attack drones at an IDF position for the first time since the conflict began.[174]
November 2023
Hezbollah supporters attend aHassan Nasrallah speech in Beirut, 3 November 2023
In his widely awaited first speech since the start of the war in Gaza on 3 November, Hezbollah leaderHassan Nasrallah said the presence of US warships in the Mediterranean "doesn't scare us".[175][176]
On 5 November, Hezbollah shot down an IsraeliElbit Hermes 450 drone overNabatieh,[177] with wreckage falling over houses in the towns ofZabdin andHarouf.[178] One Israeli civilian was killed when anti-tank missiles hit theYiftah kibbutz.[179]
Four people were reportedly injured after an Israeli bombing that hit two ambulances.[180] Later, an Israeli airstrike hit two civilian cars in Lebanon between the towns ofAynata andAitaroun, killing one women, three of her granddaughters between the ages of 10 and 14, and severely injured her daughter.[181] In response, Hezbollah fired atKiryat Shmona,[182] killing an Israeli civilian.[183]
TheAl-Qassam Brigades took responsibility for firing 16 rockets from Lebanon targeting areas south ofHaifa.[184] Meanwhile, Israel reported at least 30 rockets being fired in which the IDF fired back at the sources. Hezbollah and Al-Qassam brigades also conducted four cross-border attacks into northern Israel.[173] Hezbollah deputy generalNaim Qassem said that the group could be forced into wider conflict over Israeli attacks in Gaza.[185]
On 10 November, Hezbollah launched anti-tank missiles into an IDF post inManara which injured three soldiers. The IDF attacked the sources of fire in response.[186] Hezbollah conducted three drone attacks into northern Israel targeting IDF positions and civilians.[187] One drone was intercepted while two others landed on Israeli territory.[188] Seven Hezbollah members were killed during the clashes. The IDF shelledMeiss Ej Jabal Hospital, injuring a doctor. Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health condemned the attack, saying that "Israeli authorities were fully responsible for this unjustifiable act, which would have led to catastrophic results", and called for an investigation.[189]
TheAmal Movement, an ally of Hezbollah, announced that a fighter was killed in a missile attack in the village ofRab El Thalathine which also wounded two other members on 11 November.[190] These were the first casualties from the group since it joined the fighting.[191]
On 12 November, Hezbollah anti-tank missile and mortar attacks killed an employee of theIsrael Electric Corporation who was conducting repair work and injured 21 other Israelis, including seven IDF members and six of the fatality's colleagues.[192][193] Hezbollah also struck an IDF bulldozer in a separate attack. The IDF said it had launched a drone strike at a militant cell that tried to launch antitank missiles near Metula.[194] Further clashes also killed one Hezbollah member.[149]
Following a Hezbollah strike on 13 November, the IDF responded with heavy shelling across southern Lebanon which reportedly killed two people, according to a first-responder organisation affiliated to the Hezbollah-allied Amal Movement.[195] Unidentified fighters fired anti-tank guided missiles that injured two Israelis nearNetu'a.[196] An Israeli rocket struck near journalists inYaroun, Lebanon, no casualties were reported.[197] Hezbollah condemned the attack, which happened while the journalists were on a public tour in the town.[198]
On 16 November, Hezbollah conducted eight anti-tank missiles targeting Israeli forces and military infrastructure.[199] In the afternoon, Hezbollah attacked numerous towns near the border and targeted military gatherings in Shtula and Hadab Yaron.[200][201] The IDF responded heavily in southern Lebanon and Israeli warplanes raided Hezbollah targets.[202] Hezbollah announced that two of its members were killed.[203]
Four days later, the IDF base ofBiranit suffered heavy damage from a Hezbollah barrage using Burkan rockets.[204] IDF fighter jets struck numerous Hezbollah military targets, and soldiers struck a militant cell near Metula.[205] The historically significant St. George church was heavily damaged in Yaroun after it was shelled by the IDF.[206] The house of Amal Movement MPKabalan Kabalan was also hit with rocket fire.[207] Hezbollah claimed an attack on the IDF's91st Division barracks at Baranit.[149]
On 21 November, an IDF airstrike inKafr Kila killed an elderly woman and injured her granddaughter.[208] Another team of journalists were targeted in an IDF strike nearTayr Harfa which killed three people, including twoAl Mayadeen journalists, a reporter and a photojournalist, and a guide.[209] On the same day, four members of the Al-Qassam Brigades were killed after an IDF strike on a car nearChaaitiyeh.[210] A Hezbollah member was also killed in a separate attack inKhiam.[211]
Hezbollah told Al Jazeera that it would "respect" thetemporary ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas reached on 24 November 2023.[212] Subsequently, Hezbollah decreased its military operations briefly which also prompted the IDF to decrease its shelling of targets in southern Lebanon.[213] Many displaced civilians reportedly returned to their homes amid the calm.[214] Still, Hezbollah claimed 23 other attacks into northern Israel until the breaking of the ceasefire on 30 November.[215]
On 25 November, a UNIFIL patrol unit was hit by IDF gunfire in the vicinity of Aitaroun where there were no casualties. UNIFIL condemned the incident and called on parties to be reminded "of their obligations to protect peacekeepers and avoid putting the men and women who are working to restore stability at risk."[216]
December 2023
On 1 December, Hezbollah claimed five attacks on the Israel–Lebanon border.[217] The IDF shelledHula, killing two civilians,[218] and the village ofJebbayn, killing an additional person.[219] The IDF also struck a Hezbollah site and a Hezbollah cell preparing to carry out an attack near Malkia. Hezbollah announced the death of one of their members, presumably from one of the IDF strikes.[220] The next day, Hezbollah fired several rockets at Israeli army posts along the border. Israel responded with airstrikes and artillery shelling against Hezbollah sites.[221] Hezbollah stated that one of its fighters were killed.[222]
On 3 December, Hezbollah fired one anti-tank guided missile targeting an IDF base inBeit Hillel, injuring 11 Israelis andGlobal Affairs Canada announced that a Canadian citizen was killed in Lebanon.[223][224] On 4 December, Hamas announced the creation of a new unit in Lebanon named the "Al-Aqsa Flood Vanguards" and called on "the youth and men of our people to join the vanguard resistance fighters and take part in shaping the future and liberating Jerusalem and the al-Aqsa Mosque."[26] This created a negative reaction by many Lebanese politicians as they said that it would be a threat to Lebanon's sovereignty.[26]
One Lebanese soldier was killed and three others were injured by an Israeli attack on a Lebanese Army base inOdaisseh.[225] The IDF later apologized for the incident, saying that it would investigate.[226] A farm worker from Syria, was killed in an Israeli artillery attack on a poultry farm nearArnoun that also injured two of his relatives.[225] Israelidefense minister Yoav Gallant met with mayors and local council heads inNahariya, northern Israel to discuss the threat of Hezbollah to northern residents. Gallant said that if diplomacy fails, Israel will use its military to force Hezbollah north of theLitani River.[227]
On 11 December, the mayor of the southern Lebanese village ofTaybeh was killed in an Israeli airstrike.[228] Two other Hezbollah fighters were killed by Israeli airstrikes and artillery shelling in Aitaroun, and three civilians were injured. Other airstrikes were carried out by the IAF, destroying five houses and damaging 17 others.[166] Four batches of missiles fired from Lebanon towards northern Israel were intercepted by theIron Dome defense system, while the Islamic Resistance claimed it attacked several Israeli sites. According to Israeli media, three soldiers were injured.[166] Hezbollah and other militias attacked nine Israeli towns and military positions.[229] Israeli war cabinet minister and former defense ministerBenny Gantz discussed security in northern Israel in a phone call with US secretary of stateAntony Blinken. Gantz said he conveyed that Hezbollah's heightened aggression and attacks mean that Israel must "remove" the threat from northern Israel. Gantz's statement singled out the Lebanese state, not just Hezbollah, and called for international pressure on Lebanon to stop attacks on its southern border.[166]
TheSyrian Social Nationalist Party in Lebanon announced the death of one member of their military wing, theEagles of the Whirlwind, on 15 December.[4] The IDF said that one in five rockets launched by Hezbollah had landed in Lebanese territory and published an infographic showing failed rocket launches into Israel.[230] On 16 December, a soldier from the IDF's 129th Battalion was killed by a Hezbollah drone strike near Margaliot, which also caused a fire in a building. Two other soldiers were injured. Another drone was shot down by the IDF, which also responded to the infiltrations by shelling targets. The IAF later hit several Hezbollah targets inside Lebanon, including rocket launch sites and military infrastructure.[35] On 22 December, two IDF soldiers of the188th Armored Brigade were killed by a Hezbollah rocket attack in the Shtula area.[231]
On the morning of 23 December, IDF aircraft bombed a house in Kfar Kila and intense artillery fire also took place on the outskirts ofDeir Mimas[232] The IDF conducted a raid near a UNIFL center along theKhardali River.[233] AnAl-Manar cameraman was injured in the eye after an IDF attack on a road in the al-Khardali area where correspondents ofMTV and the state-ownedNational News Agency were also passing.[234] Hezbollah announced that two of their members were killed on that day.[234] On 24 December, seniorIRGC generalRazi Mousavi was killed by an Israeli airstrike inDamascus.[235] On 26 December, a Hezbollah anti-tank missile hit St. Mary's Greek Orthodox Church inIqrit, northern Israel.[236] A civilian suffered serious injuries, and when IDF responders arrived at the scene, another missile was fired, injuring nine soldiers.[237] On 30 December, Israeli airstrikes targeted an Iranian arms shipment in the Syrian border city ofAbu Kamal, killing 25 militiamen.[238]
January 2024
On 2 January, Israel conducted an airstrike in theDahieh neighborhood ofBeirut, resulting in theassassination of Saleh al-Arouri, the deputy chairman of the Hamas political bureau, and the death of six other members.[239] Al-Arouri was also responsible for the expansion of Hamas' activities in theIsraeli-occupiedWest Bank, including attacks on Israelis.[240][241] The assassination occurred one day before Hezbollah commemorated the fourth anniversary of theassassination of senior Iranian military commanderQasem Soleimani.[242] On 6 January, Hezbollah launched approximately 40 rockets into northern Israel, describing it as an "initial response" to al-Arouri's killing.[243] According to Israel, the rockets targeted aAir traffic Control Base nearMount Meron, causing significant damage to it.[244]
On 8 January, Israel assassinatedWissam al-Tawil, the deputy commander of Hezbollah'sRedwan Force, whom it accused of carrying out the attack on Meron airbase two days earlier.[245] In response to al-Tawil's killing, Hezbollah launched a drone attack on Israel'sNorthern Command headquarters inSafed on the following day, situated approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the border.[246]Ali Hussein Barji, the commander of Hezbollah's aerial forces in southern Lebanon who was reportedly responsible for the attack, was killed by an airstrike, according to Israel, alongside three other Hezbollah members, inKhirbet Selm shortly before al-Tawil's funeral began.[247][248] However, Hezbollah denied that Barji was killed.[249]
On 11 January, two Hezbollah-linked search-and-rescue personnel were killed and an unspecified number of civilians were wounded during an Israeli air raid on the town ofHanine.[250]
The IDF said that they killed four militants that infiltrated the Israeli border through Shebaa while an IDF unit was patrolling nearby on 14 January. Five IDF soldiers were wounded.[251] A group calling itself the "Islamic Glory Brigades" later claimed responsibility for the attack and announced that 3 of their members were killed and 2 were able to escape.[252] The same day, two Israeli civilians; a man and his 70-year-old mother, were killed by Hezbollah anti-tank missiles inKfar Yuval.[253]
On 20 January,Brigadier GeneralSadegh Omidzadeh, an intelligence officer with the IRGC'sQuds Force in Syria, along with four other IRGC officers, were reportedly killed in anIsraeli airstrike in Damascus.[254][255] According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an Israeli missile strike targeted a four-story building in theMezzeh district. The attack resulted in the death of thirteen individuals,[256] including five Iranians, and the complete destruction of the building where leaders aligned with Iran were having a meeting.[257] The next day, in southern Lebanon, Sky News Arabic reported that Fadi Suleiman, a senior field commander of Hezbollah, survived an Israeli attack near a military checkpoint inKafra. His bodyguard was killed in the same attack.[258]
February 2024
Between 3 and 5 February, five Amal Movement fighters were killed. Two fighters were killed in airstrikes inBlida and three others were announced that were killed inBayt Lif.[259][260]
On 8 February, the IDF conducted a drone strike on a car in Nabatieh. Israeli media said a regional Hezbollah commander named Abbas al-Dabs was assassinated in the attack.[261] A day before, two Hezbollah members, including al-Dabs, were named by Israeli intelligence as reportedly working alongside IRGC officers on building Iranian air defenses in Syria.[262]
On 10 February, an Israeli drone struck a car near Sidon, killing at least two people and wounding two others. An Israeli security source said the target of the strike was Hamas official Basel Saleh, who was "injured to an unknown extent." Saleh was responsible for enlisting new Hamas recruits in Gaza and the West Bank.[263] On 12 February, another assassination attempt took place targeting Hezbollah official Mohammed Abd al-Rasoul Alawiya in his car in Bint Jbeil.[264]
On 14 February, in the deadliest day of fighting,[265] a barrage of eleven rockets fired from Lebanon struck Safed and an army base in northern Israel, killing an Israeli soldier and injuring eight others. Israel responded with widespread airstrikes against targets belonging to Hezbollah infrastructure in Jabal al-Braij, Kfar Houneh, Kafr Dunin, Aadchit and Souaneh, killing a total of ten people.[266] In Nabatieh, an attack on a residential building killed seven members of a family, including a child. Another attack in the town of al-Suwana killed a woman and her two children.[267] The IDF said that it killed a senior commander of the eliteRedwan Force unit along with a deputy and another fighter in Nabatieh which was confirmed by Hezbollah the next day.[268][269] A total of seven Hezbollah members were announced dead from the attacks.[270]
In response to the launch of a UAV toward the Lower Galilee from Lebanese territory on 19 February, Israeli jets targeted Hezbollah militants in Marwahin, two weapons storage facilities near the city of Sidon, and Hezbollah infrastructure in the Meiss El Jabal and al-Adisa areas of Lebanon.[271]
On 21 February, an Israeli airstrike on a residential area of Damascus near a fortified compound used by Syrian security forces killed two civilians.[272] On the same day, an Israeli airstrike on the village of Majdal Zoun killed two more civilians, a mother and her child.[273] In addition, Israeli forces struck a Hezbollah observation post in Ramyeh and shelled an area near Aitaroun with artillery to "remove threats." Later on Israeli jets attacked an observation post in Khaim, a military post in Zibqin — from which a missile was fired at Shlomi — and other Hezbollah infrastructure.[274]
On 22 February, after a projectile from Lebanon hit a home in the border town of Yuval, an Israeli drone struck an apartment building in Kfar Remen, killing at least two Hezbollah fighters and wounding three others.[275] The next day, on 23 February, an Israeli strike on a Hezbollah-linked clinic in Blida killed two civilian paramedics and one Hezbollah fighter and injured an unknown number of people.[276]
On 24 February, sirens sounded in Arab el Aramsha, Hanita, Shebaa Farms, and Kiryat Shmona in northern Israel and the Golan Heights due to rocket fire. In response, the IDF struck numerous sites across the areas of Rab El Thalathine, Ayta ash Shab, and Blida. Later an Israeli drone identified a Hezbollah cell entering a military compound in southern Lebanon, leading to an Israeli airstrike on the compound. After the attack, secondary explosions took place, implying the presence of weapons in the building. In addition, fighter jets attacked a Redwan unit operational headquarters near the village of Baraachit, as well as launch posts in the area of Jabal Blat, while Israeli artillery struck to neutralize a threat in the area ofRachaya Al Foukhar.[277]
On 26 February, after Hezbollah shot down aHermes 450 drone with a surface-to-air missile, Israel launched its first attacks into eastern Lebanon since the conflict began, targeting Hezbollah air defense sites and killing two Hezbollah members nearBaalbek.[278][279] Hezbollah said it fired 60 Katyusha rockets at an IDF headquarters in response to the attack.[280] The IDF eliminated a commander in Hezbollah's Nasser Unit who was responsible for multiple attacks into Israel while driving in his car in Majadel.[281]
March 2024
On 4 March, a Hezbollah anti-tank missile strike on Margaliot resulted in seven injuries as well as the death of an Indian national.[282] The next day, an Israeli airstrike on Hula, in retaliation for the previous day's strike on Margaliot, killed three Lebanese citizens, a married couple and their child.[283] Amongst the three killed, Hezbollah announced two as their members.[284][285]
On 9 March, five people, including three Hezbollah members, were killed and at least nine others were wounded in an IDF strike on a house inKhirbet Selm.[286] In retaliation, the next day Hezbollah fired 37 Katyusha rockets at theMount Meron in northern Israel; no injuries were reported.[287][288]
On 12 March, Israeli airstrikes on the town ofal-Nabi Shayth in theBeqaa Valley resulted in six injuries and the death of two Hezbollah members.[289]
IDF soldiers training as part of the newly formedMountain Brigade in northern Israel
On 13 March, an Israeli airstrike on a road near Lebanon'sRashidieh refugee camp for Palestinians killed a civilian and Hadi Ali Mustafa, the leader of Hamas forces in Lebanon, and injured two others.[290][291] A week later, two Syrian teenagers (aged 16 and 17) were handed over to Lebanese authorities for allegedly spying for Israel. It was reported that they confessed to have been given an equivalent of US$11 each by a local mosque servant to unknowingly plant a tracking device in Mustafa's car.[292]
On 27 March, the IDF reported that its airstrike on a paramedic center affiliated with the group inHebbariye killed seven people, whom were reportedly militants. The report was denied by Hezbollah, which said that the casualties were actually rescuers.[293] The victims were later identified as volunteers, and Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health condemned the strike. In response to the attack, Hezbollah launched around thirty rockets towards northern Israel, killing a factory worker in Kiryat Shmona and lightly wounding another.[294][295] After sunset, Israeli airstrikes were reported inTayr Harfa and Naqoura, which each killed five and four people respectively. The strikes killed three paramedics; two from the Islamic Health Society and another from the Amal Movement-affiliated Islamic Risala Scout Association. A local commander of the Amal Movement was also killed, along with at least two Hezbollah members.[296]
On 29 March, an Israeli airstrike targetingAleppo International Airport killed 38 Syrian soldiers, seven Hezbollah fighters and seven militiamen,[65] in what became the deadliest Israeli strike on Syria in the past three years.[297] Another airstrike in Bazouriyeh, Lebanon killed Ali Abed Akhsan Naim, the deputy commander of Hezbollah's rocket and missiles unit who the IDF said was responsible for planning attacks against Israeli civilians.[298]
On 30 March, Reuters reported that an Israeli strike had injured three UN observers and a translator who were monitoring hostilities along the Blue Line.[299] An investigation by the Lebanese Army determined that the explosion was caused by a landmine, which Israel said was planted by Hezbollah.[300] The IDF struck a centre of the Lebanese Ambulance Association at the end of March killing seven paramedics.[301]
On 1 April, an Israeli airstrike targeted an Iranian consulate annex building adjacent to the Iranian embassy in Damascus, Syria. It killed eight people, including a senior Quds Force commander of the IRGC, Brigadier GeneralMohammad Reza Zahedi.[302] The others fatalities included five members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and two Iranian advisors.[303] On 8 April, Israeli officials confirmed that Hezbollah fighters shot down a Hermes 900 drone, the first of its type lost during the conflict.[304] On 13 April, theIslamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), a branch of theIranian military, in collaboration with thePopular Mobilization Forces inIraq, Hezbollah, and theHouthis inYemen, launchedattacks against Israel withdrones,cruise missiles, andballistic missiles.[305]
On 16 April, an Israeli airstrike on two cars near the town ofAin Ebel, in southern Lebanon, killed two Hezbollah members, including regional commander Ismail Baz, and one civilian.[121] The next day, fourteen Israeli soldiers and four civilians were wounded by drones attack in northern Israel. One IDF officer died of his wounds later that week.[306][307] On 23 April, an Israeli drone strike deep into Lebanon killed an engineer working for Hezbollah's air defense forces as he was traveling in a vehicle. The strike hit the Abu al-Aswad area near the coastal city of Tyre, some 35 kilometers (22 miles) from the border. The fighter's vehicle was completely burnt out. The IDF said it had killed "two significant terrorists in Hezbollah's aerial unit", the second being a senior member of the eliteRedwan Force, Muhammad Attiya.[308] In response to the attacks, Hezbollah made its deepest incursion into Israeli territory at the time by launching drone attacks into the city ofAcre targeting two IDF bases.[309]
On 5 May, an Israel airstrike on a house in the Lebanese village of Meiss Ej Jabal killed four civilians. In retaliation, Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets at the Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona.[310]
On 6 May, two reservist Israeli soldiers of the98th Paratroopers Division's 655th Battalion were killed by a Hezbollah drone attack nearMetula, northern Israel, bringing the IDF death toll to 18.[311] Hezbollah also launched 30 rockets at the Golan Heights, damaging houses inKidmat Tzvi.[312] The IDF struck 15 Radwan targets inal-Lwaiza, southern Lebanon,[313] and a Hezbollah compound in Sefri, near Baalbek. Lebanese media said that the strike destroyed a factory and injured three people.[314][315]
On 8 May, Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon killed two Hezbollah and three PIJ members.[316] The next day an Israeli airstrike on a car near the village ofBafliyeh killed four Hezbollah members.[317]
On 10 May, Israeli airstrikes on two villages in theMarjeyoun District killed a Hezbollah member inAedsheet and a PIJ member in Blida, respectively. On the same day, another Israeli airstrike on the town of Tayr Harfa killed two civilians who were carrying out repairs on a local cell tower.[318]
On 14 May, an Israeli airstrike on a house in the village of Meiss Ej Jabal killed a member of Hezbollah and injured one other person. Following this, a Hezbollah anti-tank missile strike killed an Israeli civilian and wounded five IDF personnel in the kibbutz ofAdamit.[319] At night, an Israeli drone strike on a car in Tyre killed two people including Hussein Makki, a Hezbollah field commander.[320] In response to the commander's killing, Hezbollah fired 60 rockets atMount Meron air traffic control base causing minor damage. They also fired at least one heavy rocket towards the Biranit army base.[321] One IDF soldier was killed and another five were wounded.[322]
On 15 May, a rocket launched by the Lebanese branch of Hamas fell short of the intended Israeli target, instead landing on the Lebanese side of the border, killing a Syrian immigrant and wounding four others. A Hezbollah drone crashed in theLower Galilee for the first time since the start of the conflict. Hezbollah said it launched several drones targeting a surveillance system at an army base nearGolani Junction, west ofTiberias.[323][324] The IDF confirmed that two drones were fired at the Tal Shamayim base, with one being intercepted and the other damaging theSky Dew aerostat.[325][326] Later that day, an Israeli airstrike on a car near Tyre killed one Hezbollah member and wounded two other people.[327] The next day, two other Hezbollah members were in another airstrike on another car near in the same area.[328] In retaliation, Hezbollah launched a drone strike on Israeli positions in Metula, wounding three IDF soldiers.
On 21 May, an Israeli airstrike near Tyre killed a high-ranking officer in Hezbollah's coastal missile unit. That night, an Israeli airstrike on a car in the Beqaa Valley killed two members of the Islamic Group. Targeted assassinations continued the same week with an Israeli airstrike on a car in the village ofKfar Dajjal which killed a Hezbollah member and seriously wounded three children in a nearby school bus. In response, Lebanon issued a formal complaint to the United Nations Security Council.[329]
On 25 May, an Israeli airstrike on a truck near the Syrian town ofal-Qusayr killed two Hezbollah members.[330] Later that day, a car bombing in Damascus killed a Syrian Army officer with ties to Hezbollah.[331]
On 26 May, an Israeli airstrike on a house in Aitaroun killed two Hezbollah members. On the same day, another Hezbollah member was killed, as was another person, following an airstrike on a motorcycle in Naqoura. Later, an airstrike on another motorcycle in Ayta ash Shab killed two civilians. An airstrike on a third motorcycle, in Hula, killed two Hezbollah members and wounded two other people. Two civilians were killed in strikes on the village of Yaroun.[332]
On 1 June, an Israeli airstrike on a house inAadloun killed a civilian and wounded four others. Later that evening, two Israeli airstrikes on a house inAin Qana killed a Hezbollah member and wounded another person.[333] The next day, an Israeli airstrike on a motorcycle in Hula killed two civilians.[334]
On 3 June, a pair of Israeli airstrikes on Naqoura killed two Hezbollah members. Another airstrike, this time on a car near the village ofKauthariyet El Rez, killed another Hezbollah member.[335] In Syria, an Israeli airstrike on a copper plant nearAleppo killed 16 members of Iran-backed militias.[336] Hezbollah said that it fired drones at the IDF's headquarters in the Galilee.[337] It also claimed a drone attack in Metula.[338] The IDF confirmed that two drones crashed in northern Israel while a third was intercepted.[339] ActingMinister of Foreign Affairs of Iran made his first overseas visit as foreign minister toLebanon,[340] during which he confirmed that the Iranian government was engaged in negotiations with the United States hosted by Oman.[341] Forest fires in northern Israel were erupted the entire week which reportedly resulted in 2,500 acres of land burnt and the hospitalization of six Israeli soldiers and five civilians due to smoke inhalation.[342][343]
On 11 June, an Israeli strike on a command and control center inJwaya killed senior Hezbollah commanderTaleb Abdallah and three other militants. The next day, in response to Taleb's killing,[344] Hezbollah launched a barrage of about 90 rockets into Israel targeting an IDF factory, military headquarters in Ein Zeitim andAmi'ad, and an air surveillance station in Meron.[344] It later fired another 70 at the Mount Meron area, and then ten more at Zar'it, bringing the total number of launches to 170.[345] It increased to 215 by the late afternoon.[346]
On 13 June, Hezbollah fired 150 rockets and 30 UAVs at 15 targets in northern Israel and the Golan Heights.[347]
Amos Hochstein, a senior advisor to US PresidentJoe Biden, arrived in Israel on 17 June to attempt to de-escalate tensions between Israel and Lebanese militias.[348]
On 19 June, Nasrallah stated that a Hezbollah invasion of the Galilee "remains on the table"[349][350] and alleged that the government ofCyprus was allowing Israeli forces to operate within its country and thus made Cyprus a legitimate target for Hezbollah strikes. Cypriot presidentNikos Christodoulides denied that Cyprus was taking sides in the conflict.[351]
On 30 June, Israeli officials reported 18 IDF soldiers were wounded by a drone attack on the Golan Heights.[352]
The inability of Israelis to return to settlements and homes in the north of the country led toAntony Blinken stating that Israel had effectively "lost sovereignty in the northern quadrant of its country".[353][354]
On 3 July, senior Hezbollah field commander Mohammed Nasser was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Tyre,[355] and in response Hezbollah fired 100 rockets at IDF positions.[356] The following day, it fired 200 more rockets into Israel.[357][358] On 9 July, an Israeli airstrike on the Beirut–Damascus highway in Syria killed two Hezbollah members,[359][360] and Hezbollah fired 40 rockets at the Golan Heights.[361] A week later, at least two people were wounded in an Israeli drone attack in Lebanon,[362] and Hezbollah rocket strikes in Kiryat Shmona damaged residential buildings.[363] On 22 July, drones from Lebanon were intercepted by Israeli forces,[364] and a Hezbollah rocket strike injured two soldiers in northern Israel.[365] The following day and in response, Israel launched artillery strikes on southern Lebanon,[366] Hezbollah launched rocket strikes in northern Israel,[367] and Israeli warplanes and artillery struck southern Lebanon.[368]
The missile impact site on the soccer field of Majdal Shams, after the bodies of the deceased and wounded were removed
On 27 July, an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon killed four members of different militant groups.[369] Arocket strike hit theDruze town ofMajdal Shams in the northernGolan Heights, killing 12 children and injuring dozens more.[370][371] In retaliation, the IDF bombed villages and towns in south and east Lebanon the following day.[372][373] On 29 July, two were killed in an Israeli strike in Lebanon.[374] The next day, anIsraeli airstrike struck Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon, and one Israeli civilian was killed in a rocket strike from Lebanon to northern Israel.[375] Hezbollah said it fired at Israeli warplanes which entered Lebanese airspace.[376] The IDF said the airstrike targeted senior commander of HezbollahFuad Shukr for his involvement in theMajdal Shams attack,[377] and Hezbollah later confirmed his death.[378] Four civilians were also killed, while 80 people were injured.[379]
On 17 August, at least 11 including a woman and her two children were killed and four were wounded including two serious injuries inan Israeli strike on a metal warehouse in Nabatieh.[380][381] The IDF claimed that it struck a Hezbollah "weapons storage facility".[381] TheEmbassy of the Philippines, Beirut advised its 11,000 citizens in Lebanon to leave the country following the strike.[382] A Hezbollah drone strike injured two soldiers in an IDF site nearMisgav Am.[383] One was killed in an Israeli drone strike on a motorcycle in Tyre. The IDF confirmed the death of a commander of the eliteRedwan Force.[384]
Israeli airstrikes on 25 August
On 25 August, Israel beganstrikes in southern Lebanon against Hezbollah targets.[385][386] Israel framed its strikes as "preemptive."[387] Hezbollah said that it fired over 320 Katyusha rockets to IDF sites in northern Israel and the Golan Heights as the first phase of response to the assassination of Fuad Shukr. A woman was slightly injured due tosharpnel from the attack inAcre.[388][389] An Israeli drone strike in Qasimia in southern Lebanon wounded two people including one Hezbollah militant.[390][391] Israel airstrikes also struck Khiam, Zebqin,Yater, Shebaa, Nabatieh, Bir Kalb, Kfar Kila,Aalma ech Chaab, and Mays al-Jabal, killing a Hezbollah militant and aAmal Movement militant.[390][392][393] Another three people were wounded, namely a Hezbollah militant and a Syrian national.[390][394][395] AnIsraeli Navy officer was killed by a Hezbollah rocket attack on aDvora-class fast patrol boat off the coast ofNahariya, northern Israel and two others were injured.[396][397] An Israel drone strike struckZawtar El Charkiyeh.[398] Hezbollah confirmed the death of six militants.[399]
F-15I fighter used to attack targets in Lebanon on 27 September 2024
On 16 September, theSecurity Cabinet of Israel approved a new war aim of returning evacuated residents to the north of Israel, adding to the goals of destroying Hamas and liberating the hostages.[401]
On 17 September, at least 12 people were killed and more than 2,750 were wounded, including Hezbollah members and civilians, afterthe explosions of theirpagers in Lebanon and Syria, including inBeirut.[402] The attack resulted in 1,500 fighters being taken out of action, with many facing blindness or losing their hands.[403] Among those injured was the Iranian ambassador,Mojtaba Amani.[404][405] Several drones launched from Lebanon crossed the border.[406] Hezbollah confirmed the death of 12 militants on that day.[407] Also on 17 September, theShin Bet claimed that it thwarted a Hezbollah attempt for assassinate a former senior defence official with aClaymore mine.[408][409]
On 18 Septemberanother series of explosions involving wireless devices was reported across Lebanon, killing at least 30 people and injuring 750 others.[410][411][412] Hezbollah said that it carried out four strikes targeting IDF sites including inNeve Ziv andBeit Hillel with rockets and artillery. Lebanese media reported that Israeli strikes struck Al-Jbeen, Shama, Majdal Zoun, Kfar Kila, Kfar Shiuba, Houla, al-Taybeh, the forest in the vicinity of Kounine andBeit Yahoun, and the outskirts ofYater.[413] The IDF said that it struck Hezbollah sites in Chihine, Tayibe, Blida, Meiss El Jabal, Aitaroun and Kfarkela and a Hezbollah weapons depot inKhiam in these airstrikes.[414]
On 19 September, the IDF said that it started carrying out airstrikes against Hezbollah to destroy its capabilities in southern Lebanon while heavy bombing was reported inDeir Qanoun En Nahr.[415] The IDF also said that it killed two Lebanese militants attempting to infiltrate the border and plant an explosive at an IDF post.[416] Two Israeli soldiers were killed and nine others were injured in Hezbollah attacks in the vicinity of the Lebanese border.[417][418] Three rockets launched by Hezbollah toMetula caused fires and damaged electric infrastructure.[419] The IDF said that its jets struck more than a hundred Hezbollah rocket launchers and other Hezbollah sites in its heaviest air strikes since the Israel-Hezbollah conflict started in October 2023.[420][414] An Israeli strike in al-Haniyeh wounded four people.[421] The Lebanese National News Agency reported that Israeli airstrikes targeted Mahmoudieh, Ksar al-Aroush, and Birket Jabbour.[420]
On 20 September, an Israelistrike in theDahieh suburb of Beirut killedIbrahim Aqil, the acting commander of the eliteRedwan Force and other personnel including Ahmad Mahmoud Wahabi, a senior commander of Hezbollah while they were in a meeting. At least 45 people were killed including Aqil, Wahabi, another 14 high-ranking Hezbollah militants, three children, and seven women, while 68 people were injured. Heavy rocket fire was reported afterward in northern Israel. Hezbollah claimed that its Katyusha rockets struck the IDF base in Meron. Hezbollah also said that it targeted Israeli airbases, intelligence bases, and a tank.[422][423][424]
On 21 September, the IDF claimed to have "almost completely dismantled" Hezbollah's military chain of command.[425] The IDF claimed that it destroyed thousands of rocket launchers.[426] Four people were wounded in Israeli strikes.[427] The IAF also launched heavy artillery strikes in several areas in southern Lebanon.[428] The IDF said that it launched 400 strikes targeting Hezbollah rocket launchers and other infrastructure.[429]
On 22 September, Israeli PresidentIsaac Herzog denied any Israeli involvement in the pager explosions.[430] Hezbollah made two attacks on the IsraeliRamat David Airbase using Fadi 1 and Wadi 2 missiles, injuring one person;[431][432] an additional three people were also injured inKrayot andLower Galilee.[433] Three people were killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah confirmed the death of two of its militants.[434] Hezbollah claimed that it struck three Israeli targets.[435]
Hezbollah rockets explode near a highway in Israel on 24 September
On 23 September, the IDF conducted over1,600 strikes in Lebanon, killing at least 558 people and injuring more than 1,835 others including children, women and paramedics according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.[57][436][437] Hezbollah fired about 240[438] rockets into Israel, the West Bank, and Golan Heights, injuring five people. It first fired 35 rockets into northern Israel targeting IDF bases and warehouses, lightly injuring a man in the Lower Galilee.[439] It later fired around 80 rockets, targeting several locations includingAriel andKarnei Shomron in the occupied West Bank andHaifa.[440][441] The group targeted IDF bases andRafael Advanced Defense Systems facilities.[442]Ali Karaki, the commander of Hezbollah's Southern Front, was targeted in an Israeli airstrike in Dahieh.[443][444] Hezbollah said that he survived the attack.[445] A Hamas field commander was killed in an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon.[446]
By 25 September, an army of around 40,000 Iraqi, Syrian, and Houthi militants were concentrated around the Golan Heights, which theInstitute for the Study of War argued was to defend against an Israeli invasion of Lebanon.[447] The number of displaced Lebanese people reached an estimated 500,000.[448][449]
On 26 September, an Israeli strike on a three-story building inYounine killed at least 19 Syrians and a Lebanese person, mostly women or children, and injured eight others.[450][451]
On 27 September, Israelstruck Hezbollah's central headquarters in Beirut, targeting Hezbollah leaderHassan Nasrallah.[452] Al-Manar reported that four buildings collapsed in the attack. At least five other people died, including Ali Karaki, Hezbollah's commander of the southern front since 1982, and at least 100 were injured.[80][453][454][455]
On 29 September, an Israeli air strike on a home inDahr-al-Ain killed at least 11 people.[457][458] The Lebanese National News Agency reported that at least 17 members of a family were killed and several others were trapped under rubble in an Israeli air strike in Zboud.[459] An Israeli strike inAin El Delb killed 45 people and injured at least 75 others.[460][461] An Israeli strike in Bekaa killed 12 people and injured 20 others.[460]
On 30 September, Israel informed theUnited States that it intended to carry out a ground maneuver inLebanon aimed at clearingHezbollah's infrastructure along the border. That evening, theLebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and UNIFIL withdrew from theIsraeli-Lebanese border to the north to a distance of 5 kilometres (3.1 mi; 2.7 nmi) from the border, while the IDF designated the settlements of Metula,Misgav Am andKfar Giladi as closed military areas.[462] Israeli troops amassed on the border insouthern Lebanon, with Israel stating that they were preparing for a limited ground invasion.[463]
On 1 October, the Israeli military began aninvasion of southern Lebanon,[464][465][466] also known as the Third Lebanon War by some Israeli sources,[81] and announced that Israel had been carrying out small covert raids into Lebanon for months.[467] The IDF announced that it had launched "limited, localized and targeted raids" against targets with strategic importance to Hezbollah.[468] An Israeli strike on a house in Al-Dawoudiya killed at least 10 people and injured five others.[469]
Israel kept the extent of its campaign vague.[473] On 29 October, IDF officers said that while some Lebanese villages still pose a threat to Israel, most military goals in Lebanon border area were fulfilled and conditions were created to cement Israel's achievements in ceasefire negotiations.[474]
On 26 November, hours after IDF troops reached theLitani River,[475]Prime Minister of IsraelBenjamin Netanyahu announced the transfer of asixty-day ceasefire deal to theSecurity Cabinet of Israel. Support for the deal in theIsraeli government was "unanimous".[476] The deal involved Hezbollah operatives withdrawing to the north of the Litani River, and Israel withdrawing from Lebanon at the end of the sixty days. The deal also stated that Israel would retain "complete military freedom of action" to attack Lebanon in the event of a violation of the agreement by Hezbollah or another entity in Lebanon.[476][477][478]Prime Minister of LebanonNajib Mikati issued strong support for the agreement and urged the international community to help implement the agreement immediately in order to "halt Israeli aggression".[476] On 27 November, thousands of displaced Lebanese began to return to areas ruined by Israeli strikes.[83]
On 3 December, Hezbollah fired two projectiles at theShebaa Farms in what it described as a "defensive and warning response", accusing Israel of committing repeated ceasefire violations. In response, the IDF conducted a wave of strikes in southern Lebanon, killing nine people. Two people, including a Lebanese security services corporal, were killed by Israeli strikes earlier that day.[479] On 9 December, four reservists of the35th Paratroopers Brigade were killed in an accident when unmarked munitions exploded in a tunnel in theLabbouneh area, which detonated Hezbollah weaponry, leading to the tunnel's collapse.[480] The IDF withdrew fromAl-Khiyam on 12 December in accordance with the ceasefire.[481]
On 26 January 2025, a day before the ceasefire's deadline, Israeli forces fired at Lebanese residents en route to communities near the border, killing 22 people and injuring 124.[482] After the ceasefire's initial deadline passed on 27 January, Israeli troops refused to withdraw from southern Lebanon, accusing the Lebanese government of not upholding the deal. The ceasefire was extended to 18 February.[483]
On 13 February, the IDF accused Iran'sQuds Force of smuggling cash onto civilian flights en route toBeirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport to fund Hezbollah.[484] In response, Lebanon blocked an Iranian passenger plane from entering its territory. The decision sparked protests from Hezbollah supporters, who blocked access to the airport, and on 15 February, attacked aUNIFIL convoy en route to the airport, injuring deputy force commanderChok Bahadur Dhakal.[485][486] On 17 February, an Israeli drone strike hit a car in Sidon, killing Mohammed Shaheen, Hamas's operations chief in Lebanon.[487] On the ceasefire's deadline on 18 February, the IDF withdrew from all of southern Lebanon, apart from five hilltops on the border—namely al-Aziyah, al-Awaida, el-Hamames, Jabal Bilat, and Labbouneh.[488][489]
On 22 March, six rockets were fired atMetula from southern Lebanon, with three crashing in Lebanon and the rest being intercepted. Hezbollah denied responsibility for the attack. The IDF responded with strikes on dozens of Hezbollah targets across southern Lebanon, including rocket launchers.[490] On 25 March, an Israeli drone strike on a vehicle inQaaqaait al-Jisr killed Hassan Kamal Halawi, who commanded Hezbollah's anti-tank missile unit in southern Lebanon.[491] On 28 March, two rockets were fired atKiryat Shmona, with one falling short in Lebanon and the other being intercepted.[492] In response, the IDF said that it struck several Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon, including command centers. A strike inKfar Tebnit killed three people and injured 18 others. An airstrike also hit a building inDahieh that the IDF accused of storing drones from Hezbollah's Unit 127, in the first attack inBeirut since the ceasefire went into effect.[493]
On 1 April, an Israeli airstrike on an apartment in Dahieh killed four people and injured seven others. Among the dead were senior Hezbollah official Hassan Bdeir, who the IDF accused of planning to attack Israeli civilians alongside Hamas, and his son, who was a Hezbollah member.[494]
On 5 June, the IDF said that it struck underground facilities in Dahieh that were used by Hezbollah's Unit 127 to produce thousands of drones with funding from Iran. The strikes marked the largest escalation of the conflict since the ceasefire.[495][496]
On 24 October, two people were killed and two others were injured in anIsraeliairstrike on a vehicle inToul,Lebanon.[497] The IDF said that it struck the head of logistics in Hezbollah's Southern Front Abbas Hassan Karaki whose presence in the south of Lebanon violated the ceasefire terms.[498]
Syrian rebels took advantage of the war, the heavy losses suffered by Hezbollah, and Hezbollah's absence in Syria to launch the2024 Syrian opposition offensive on 27 November 2024 to overrun Syria's government-held territories.[501] Hezbollah, which had previously sent forces, said they would not deploy troops, but later sent "supervising forces" to unsuccessfully attempt to repel the2024 Homs offensive, as Homs is a key transport route for Iran to supply Hezbollah.[502] In December 2024,the fall of Assad’s Baathist regime in Syria was another blow to its Lebanese ally, Hezbollah, which was already weakened because of Israeli military actions.[503]
Following major operations in 2024, numerous analysts and experts have characterized the outcome as a significant victory for Israel. The Institute for the Study of War reported that Israeli operations effectively degraded Hezbollah's capabilities, leading to a ceasefire agreement on November 26, 2024, which mandatedHezbollah's disarmament in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah failed to accomplish its goal of compelling Israel to cease operations in the Gaza Strip, resulting in a weakened position within the region. Similarly, experts from the Atlantic Council noted that Israel's military actions, including the elimination of Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, significantly diminished the group's operational effectiveness.[11][504]
Casualties and damage
Lebanon
This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(November 2024)
The olive trade in southern Lebanon, which is the main source of income for many, was halted as farmers stopped their harvests in fear of the active shelling.[505][506] According to Agriculture MinisterAbbas Hajj Hassan, 40,000 olive trees have been burned down by fires caused by IDF shelling.[507] The ministry has also said that 790 hectares of agricultural land have been damaged and 340 thousand farm animals have been lost.[508] In total, the IDF has caused US$3 billion of agriculture losses.[509] TheInstitute of International Finance predicted that Lebanon's GDP could decline by one percent by the end of 2023 and by 30 percent in 2024 in the event of further spillover of the war.[510] According to the Council for the South, Israeli strikes have destroyed 1,700 buildings and damaged 14,000 others and caused US$500 million worth of damage on water, electricity, telecoms and other infrastructure.[46]
On 4 December 2024, theLebanese Health Ministry reported that since 7 October 2023, Israeli attacks killed 4,047 people, including 316 children and 790 women, and injured 16,638 others.[511] Among the dead were at least 41 Lebanese Army soldiers[512] and more than 200 medics.[513] Several UNIFIL workers and peacekeepers were injured in numerous attacks by both Israel and Lebanese militias.[514] On 1 October 2025, the UN said that 103 civilians were killed by Israeli attacks since the ceasefire.[515] At the height of the conflict in October 2024, more than 1.2 million Lebanese were displaced, including between 200,000 and 300,000 who fled into Syria.[516]
Infrastructure
The conflict resulted in widespread destruction in Lebanon that was particularly seen in the south, east, andDahieh—the southern suburbs of the capital, Beirut. According to the World Bank, 99,209 houses were damaged during the conflict, of which 18% were destroyed.[517] By 31 October 2024, nearly 25% of the buildings in towns near the border were damaged or destroyed, with the most destruction occurring inKfar Kila andAyta ash-Shaab. Roughly 80% of the damage occurred after 2 October.[518] In the areas that the IDF had captured during its ground invasion into Lebanon, 42% of buildings were destroyed, according toNBC News.[519]
Amnesty International reported the damaging or destruction of over 10,000 buildings between October 2024 and January 2025, with 70% of the buildings inYaroun,Dhayra, andAl-Bustan being severely damaged or destroyed.[520]UN-Habitat reported that 27% of buildings inMarjayoun and 15% of buildings inBint Jbeil were damaged or destroyed,[521] while the mayor of Kfar Kila stated that 90% of the homes in the village were destroyed during the conflict, with the remaining 10% sustaining damage.[488] The scale of destruction in Dahieh was comparable to the2006 Lebanon war, with 353 buildings in the area being destroyed and more than 6,000 houses damaged. The Hezbollah-linked newspaperAl Akhbar reported that the cost of damages in Dahieh was $630 million.[522][517]
More than 60 schools have been destroyed since September 2024, according toSave the Children. The Lebanese Health Ministry said that Israeli strikes damaged 68 hospitals, 63 primary healthcare facilities, and 177 ambulances. TheWorld Health Organization reported that 47% of the attacks on health facilities resulted in fatalities. According to theUnited Nations Development Programme, Israeli attacks in the districts ofNabatieh, Bint Jbiel,Tyre,Baalbek, andBaabda damaged 48% of businesses, 36 health facilities, 40 water facilities, 18 telecommunication facilities, 36 public electricity facilities, and 83 educational institutions.[521]
Economy
According to theWorld Bank's Lebanon Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA) 2025 report, the conflict cost Lebanon a total of US$14 billion. Physical damages amounted to $6.8 billion, while decreased productivity, lost revenue, and operational costs amounted to $7.2 billion. With $4.6 billion in damages, the housing sector suffered the most losses, followed by the commerce, industry, and tourism sector with losses of $3.4 billion. The conflict caused Lebanon'sreal GDP to decline by 7.1% in 2024. The World Bank added that reconstruction costs amounted to $11 billion.[523][524]
Hezbollah
Since 8 October 2023, Hezbollah officially announced the names of 521 members killed during the conflict. AfterIsrael's escalation against Hezbollah in September 2024, Hezbollah mostly stopped announcing its casualties.[525] As of December 2024, the IDF estimates that around 3,800 Hezbollah fighters had been killed since 8 October 2023, including 2,672 during the invasion of Lebanon and 44 since the ceasefire.[526] It earlier estimated that at least 7,000 suffered injuries that made them unable to fight.[527]The Institute for National Security Studies ofTel Aviv University put losses at around 2,450.[528] According to a source familiar with Hezbollah's operations, the group possibly lost up to 4,000 members during the conflict—over 10 times its losses during the2006 Lebanon War.[529][63]
Hezbollah's senior leadership faced the heaviest casualties in its entire history during the conflict. According to the IDF, 13 members of Hezbollah's senior command were killed.[526] Its political council lost figures such asSecretary-GeneralHassan Nasrallah, who ruled the group for over three decades, and his deputy,Hashem Safieddine. Its armed wing lost key leaders such asFuad Shukr, Hezbollah's military commander;Ibrahim Aqil, Shukr's deputy; andAli Karaki, the commander of Hezbollah's Southern Front.[530][531] Hezbollah also saw heavy damage inflicted upon its equipment, missile arsenal and infrastructure in southern Lebanon, weakening its operational capacity. Heavy damage was inflicted upon military infrastructure such as bases,tunnels, weapon depots, and fortifications, and its arms supply has been disrupted by Israeli strikes on Syrian border crossings.[82][531][532] According to IDF, they confiscated over 155,000 weapons and pieces of military equipment belonging to Hezbollah, including around 12,000 explosive devices, drones, and other explosive weapons, more than 13,000 anti-tank missile launchers and rockets, and anti-aircraft missiles. In addition, over 121,000 communication devices, computers, electronic equipment and documents were also captured.[533]
In April 2025, in response to increasing calls for its disarmament, Hezbollah expressed willingness to engage in discussions about its weapons with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun. These discussions would be contingent upon Israel's withdrawal from five hilltop positions in southern Lebanon and the cessation of its military strikes. President Aoun, who assumed office in January 2025, aims to consolidate all arms under state control and plans to initiate talks with Hezbollah amid growing domestic and international pressure. The 2024 conflict with Israel significantly weakened Hezbollah, resulting in the loss of key leaders and a substantial portion of its arsenal. A U.S.-brokered ceasefire requires the Lebanese army to dismantle unauthorized military facilities, particularly south of the Litani River. While Hezbollah may consider transferring its heaviest weapons to the army, it insists that Israel must first meet its demands. Discussions are underway among various Lebanese political leaders and institutions, including Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and the Maronite Church. The U.S. has reiterated its call for Hezbollah’s disarmament, and several Lebanese ministers advocate for a disarmament timetable based on post-civil war precedents. Hezbollah maintains it no longer has an armed presence south of the Litani, though Israel disputes this, accusing the group of retaining military infrastructure. Hezbollah emphasized diplomacy but warned of other options if Israel does not comply.[534][535]
In July 2025, a news report claimed that Hezbollah lost 10,000 fighters during the war, and that its military capabilities have also deteriorated significantly.[536][better source needed]
Israel
Clockwise from top: Damage to buildings inKiryat Shmona and homes inKatzrin and forest fires due to rocket attacks from Lebanon
Forty-six Israeli civilians,[537] 28 soldiers and one security officer were killed in Hezbollah's attacks on Israel. An additional three soldiers were killed in non-combat incidents; one by malfunctioning ammunition and the other two in a tank accident. Forty-seven soldiers, including a civilian researcher posthumously recognized as a soldier, were killed during combat in southern Lebanon.[66][538] Hezbollah's attacks resulted in the evacuation of over 90,000 people—60,000 forced and 30,000 voluntary—from northern Israel.[539] As of July 2024, the Israeli government issued orders for the evacuation of 43 settlements located within 3 miles (4.8 km) of the border with Lebanon.[540] At least eight Israeli UAVs were shot down over Lebanon: fourHermes 450 and fourHermes 900 models.[541][542][543]
According to theIsraeli Army Radio, 2,874 buildings have been reported damaged by Hezbollah, including 841 in need of rebuilding. Property damage was estimated to be around₪1,000,000,000 (US$273,000,000). As of November 2024, over 60% of the buildings inMetula were destroyed by Hezbollah attacks since the start of the conflict.[544] Three-fourths of the buildings inManara,[545] 382 buildings inKiryat Shmona, and 55,000 acres of nature in northern Israel and the Golan Heights have been damaged or destroyed by Hezbollah's attacks, while major damage also took place inNahariya andShlomi.[546]
Economy
According toTel Aviv University economist Tomer Fadlon, there would be long-term and significant effects on northern Israel's economy if its population did not return. He further said that even if Israel achieved victory in Gaza, the north would possibly not see an economic recovery.[547] The conflict severely hurt thetourism industry in the north, which employs many people. Many factories in the region have not shut down but suffered labor shortages of up to 50%.[539] According to an estimate by theBank of Israel in November 2023, theIsraeli economy suffers the loss of 590 millionshekels ($158 million) every week due absence of work caused by the evacuation of 144,000 people after the Gaza war, 40% of them from the north.[547]
Once-robust communities such asSnir andKiryat Shmona were mostly emptied following the evacuation orders in northern Israel. Kiryat Shmona was planned to be used byfood technology businesses, but companies left following the city's evacuation in October 2023. Northern Israel has one-third of Israel's agricultural land, and the occupiedGolan Heights andGalilee accounted for 73% of Israel's annualegg production; however, after the outbreak of the conflict, few people remained in the north to tend chicken coops, resulting in a decline in domestic egg production.[548] In August 2024, theMinistry of Agriculture and Food Security approved a quota for the import of 45 million eggs due to the anticipated drop in local production over the conflict and other reasons.[549]
In September 2024, thousands ofwireless communication devices exploded throughout Lebanon and Syria in an attack attributed to Israel, killing dozens of people, including civilians and Hezbollah militants. Lama Fakih, a director of theHuman Rights Watch, said that the explosions would constitute anindiscriminate attack if the IDF had no way of accurately determining the location of the explosive devices since there would be no distinction between civilians and military targets.UN High Commissioner for Human RightsVolker Türk said that the attacks violated international human rights since the IDF did not have knowledge regarding the users of the devices or their location and surroundings during the explosions.[550]
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human rights, 232 Syrian refugees were killed by the IDF in Lebanon since the start of the Gaza war.[73]
According to theCouncil of Europe, the intentional targeting of journalists constitutes a war crime.[551] During the conflict,Reporters Without Borders (RSF) claimed that the Israeli army had deliberately targeted journalists.[552][553][554] An RSF investigation said that Israel had targeted journalists in two missile strikes on 13 October 2023 that killed Reuters reporterIssam Abdallah and injured four others. These two strikes, 30 seconds apart, hit a group of seven journalists in southern Lebanon who were reporting on the border fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. In a video, the journalists are seen wearing vests and helmets identifying them as "PRESS". The marking was also present on the roof of their car, which exploded after being hit by the second missile.[555] TheNetherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research, which tests and analyses munitions and weapons, assisted Reuters by examining the material collected at the site of the explosion and found that a piece of metal was the fin of a 120 mm tank round fired 1.34 km away from the border from asmoothbore tank gun.[154] A February 2024 report by theUnited Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) concluded that an Israeli tank killed Abdallah when it fired at "clearly identifiable journalists", and that this broke international law. The report "assessed that there was no exchange of fire across the Blue Line at the time of the incident", with no records of any exchange of fire across the border for the 40 minutes before the tank firing.[556] The IDF responded to the report by claiming that Hezbollah attacked them, prompting them to retaliate with tank fire.[556]
IDF's use of white phosphorus
On 31 October 2023, after an investigation,Amnesty International stated that an Israeli white phosphorus attack on 16 October was indiscriminate, unlawful, and "must be investigated as a war crime", due to its use on the populated Lebanese town of Dhayra, which injured at least nine civilians.[557][161] On 2 November, Amnesty International stated its investigations into four incidents on 10, 11, 16 and 17 October showed Israel had used white phosphorus munitions.[558] The claim was confirmed by theWashington Post, which identified two white phosphorus shell casings made in the U.S.[559]Human Rights Watch verified IDF's use of white phosphorus in at least 17 municipalities in Lebanon, including five municipalities where airburst munitions were used over residential areas.[560] It also called on the Lebanese government to file a declaration to enable investigations in theInternational Criminal Court.[560]
In southern Lebanon, Israel's white phosphorus bombs have destroyed over 4,500 hectares (45,000,000 m2) of forest with economic loses being valued at US$20 million.[561] The American University of Beirut estimated use of white phosphorus has led to more than 134 forest fires as of June 2024 burning 1,500 hectares (15,000,000 m2) of land.[342] As of 28 May 2024, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said that exposure to white phosphorus had injured at least 173 people.[560]
The targeting of hospitals, as well as religious sites, constitutes a war crime.[562] Lebanese health ministerFirass Abiad said that 163 rescuers and health workers were killed and 273 others were injured in Lebanon since the start of Israel-Hezbollah conflict.[563]Human Rights Watch stated that Israel's "repeated" attacks on medical workers and healthcare facilities were apparent war crimes.[564]
The IDF shelledMeiss Ej Jabal Hospital, injuring a doctor on 10 November 2023. The missiles did not explode but caused damage to the emergency department and several cars. Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health condemned the attack, saying that "Israeli authorities were fully responsible for this unjustifiable act, which would have led to catastrophic results", and called for an investigation.[189] Days before, four people were reportedly injured after an Israeli bombing that hit two ambulances. The LebaneseNational News Agency said that an Israeli drone strike hit two ambulances belonging to the Risala Scout Association, which is affiliated with the Amal Movement.[180]
On 26 December 2023, an anti-tank missile shot byHezbollah fighters from Lebanon damaged a shed in a church compound inIqrit, but not the church itself, wounding an elderly civilian.[565] As IDF troops and medical services were working to evacuate him, they were hit by further missiles, which resulted in nine soldiers being wounded, one of them seriously.[566][567]
On 11 January 2024, the IDF conducted strikes in the town ofHanine and targeted an emergency center affiliated with the Hezbollah-linkedIslamic Health Authority. The attack killed two workers from the rescue force and destroyed an ambulance.[568] Other attacks on Islamic Health Authority centers occurred inKafr Kila,Odaisseh andBlida killed seven paramedic and rescue workers and destroyed 17 ambulances.[569]
On 27 March 2024, an Israeli airstrike targeted a paramedic center affiliated with the Islamic Group inHebbariye, killing seven volunteer paramedics. The airstrike was condemned by the Lebanese Ministry of Health.[294] Later in the day, Israeli airstrikes inTayr Harfa killed two paramedics from the Islamic Health Society, while strikes in Naqoura killed one from the Amal Movement-affiliated Islamic Risala Scout Association.[296] On 7 May 2024, Human Rights Watch declared the 27 March incident as an unlawful attack on civilians and said that they did not find any evidence of military targets at the site that was targeted. Investigations also showed that the IDF used anMPR 500 missile to conduct the raid.[570]
On 27 May 2024, an Israeli airstrike near Salah Ghandour Hospital inBint Jbeil killed three civilians. WHO in Lebanon condemned the attack and called for the protection of hospitals and healthcare workers.[571] In October 2024, the head of Lebanon's Civil Defence in the south said Israel was specifically attacking health workers, stating, "We have had 40 ambulances which have been completely destroyed. On top of that 24 rescuing stations have been hit - just in this area."[572] Lebanese health officials stated on 5 October 2024 that fifty health officials had been killed in the prior 72 hours.[573] Lebanon's health ministerFiras Abiad stated the attacks were war crimes and part of Israel's systematic targeting of Lebanon's healthcare system.[574] A November 2024 investigation found Israel had struck in "lethal proximity" to nineteen different hospitals in Lebanon.[575]
Booby traps are mostly outlawed under theProtocol on Mines, Booby-Traps and Other Devices ("Amended Protocol II") of theConvention on Certain Conventional Weapons,[577] to which Israel is a party.[579] Article 7, paragraph 2 of Amended Protocol II prohibits the use of "booby-traps or other devices in the form of apparently harmless portable objects which are specifically designed and constructed to contain explosive material."[577][579][580] Therules of engagement of some countries, such as the United Kingdom, also ban explosive devices disguised as harmless items.[581] TheUnited States Department of Defense Law of War Manual gives watches, cameras, tobacco pipes, and headphones as examples of such items,[579] which are prohibited to "prevent the production of large quantities of dangerous objects that can be scattered around and are likely to be attractive to civilians, especially children".[577][582]
On 22 September 2024, Israeli PresidentIsaac Herzog denied any Israeli involvement in the explosions.[430]
Hezbollah war crimes
Killing of Israeli civilians
Theelimination of the State of Israel has been a primary goal for Hezbollah. Hezbollah has been accused of "only [regarding] the Jews living in Israel as Zionists, who should be killed".[583] Throughout the war Hezbollah announced the targeting of civilian homes.[584] On 12 November 2023, Hezbollah fired an anti-tank missile killing an employee of theIsrael Electric Corporation who was conducting repair work and injured 13 other Israelis, including six other employees of the Israeli Electric Corporation.[585][192][193]
Another attack by Hezbollah resulted in civilian casualties on 9 July 2024, when a rocket struck a couple's car just south of their hometown ofOrtal.[588] Additionally, a couple walking their dog inKiryat Shmona was killed by shrapnel from a Hezbollah rocket on 9 October 2024.[589]
On 26 December 2023, a Hezbollah anti-tank missile impacted near aChannel 13 News team while they were interviewing a farmer atDovev for an article following a prior Hezbollah assault that killed a 56-year-old employee of the Israel Electric Corporation, and injured five workers who were repairing electric lines.[590]
Throughout the conflict, Hezbollah fired thousands of inaccurate munitions at Israel and the Golan Heights, killing and injuring civilians and destroying houses. A December 2024 report byAmnesty International found the use of unguided missiles on civilian areas to likely constitute indiscriminate attacks. International humanitarian law states that parties in a conflict must not direct attacks at civilians and must distinguish civilians and civilian infrastructure from military targets.[591]
Accusations of Hezbollah using human shields
There have been claims that Hezbollah has intentionally drawn fire to Christian areas in southern Lebanon.[592] Christians in the town ofRmaich clashed with Hezbollah due to the organization's attempts to establish military infrastructure in the town. The residents also wrote a complaint letter.[592] On 26 March 2024, civilians in Rmaich confronted militants and rang their church bells after Hezbollah attempted to place rocket launchers in the town. Hezbollah denied trying to fire rockets from Rmaich.[593] On 30 November 2024, the IDF said that it killed armed Hezbollah operatives near a church in southern Lebanon. A video appearing to be in the town of Khiyam, showed a tunnel shaft used to store weapons at the church.[594]
The LebaneseKataeb Party criticized Hezbollah for allegedly storing weapons between houses stating that "Hiding weapons between houses does not support Gaza" after an IDF strike on Hezbollah infrastructure in Adloun. Rockets were still exploding about an hour after the strike was reported and the blasts lightly injured three citizens as shrapnel from the explosions flew to surrounding villages. These ammunition depots "open the door to Israeli attacks and turn the Lebanese into human shields", the Kataeb party said.[595]
According to IDF's Arabic spokesman,Avichay Adraee, Hezbollah-run yellow ambulances have been used to transport fighters and weapons. The Islamic Health Authority's website says it has "provided services for the activity of the Hezbollah fighters against the Zionist occupation."[596] According to UNIFIL, Hezbollah has used the environmental NGO "Green Without Borders" to provide direct cover for Hezbollah's military operations by "unlawful construction of military outposts along the Blue Line."[597] Hezbollah has also launched rockets from UNIFL positions. The IDF reported that 25 rockets were launched from UNIFL positions in October 2024 and said that it discovered hundreds of weapons, including firearms, grenades, and rocket launchers, stored in compounds located near UNIFIL posts in southern Lebanon.[598]
After the20 September 2024 Beirut attack which killed majorRadwan Force commanders in the densely populated Dahieh suburbs,Daniel Hagari said that the commanders were holding a meeting "gathered underground under a residential building in the heart of the Dahieh neighbourhood, hiding among Lebanese civilians, using them as human shields."[599]
On 23 September 2024, the IDF began posting pictures and videos of what it claimed was evidence of Hezbollah placing weapons in people's homes.[600][601] They also released video footage ofsecondary explosions after targeting buildings which it says are from Hezbollah munitions stored in residential areas.[602]
Reactions
SecretaryBlinken meets with Lebanese Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati in Amman, Jordan.
Lebanon
On 6 November 2023, in response to the killing of four civilians in southern Lebanon, Prime MinisterNajib Mikati announced that his government would submit an urgent complaint to theUN Security Council against Israel saying that its "targeting of civilians in its aggression against Lebanon" was a "heinous crime".[603]
As tensions heightened on 8 October 2023 near the Lebanese border, former prime ministerFouad Siniora stressed that Lebanon should not be involved "in any hostilities with the Israeli enemy".[606]
Between 7–9 October 2023, many politicians of long-established Christian parties in Lebanon took a stance against Hezbollah's involvement as well.Pierre Bou Assi, a member of the Lebanese Forces'Strong Republic bloc highlighted the kidnapping of two IDF soldiers which led to the 2006 Lebanon war saying, "Hassan Nasrallah promised, in early July, that the summer would be quiet and thriving—but a few days later, Hezbollah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers and the July war broke out".[606] TheKataeb Party took a similar stance and condemned the use of Lebanese territory by non-state actors for launching attacks on Israel.[606][better source needed]
On 4 December 2023, Hamas announced the organization's official establishment in Lebanon. The Lebanon-based unit was named the "al-Aqsa Flood Vanguards unit".[607][608] The establishment of the Vanguards during the2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel faced severe criticism from various political figures and factions within Lebanon. Many argued that such an organization, with potential military implications, could infringe upon Lebanon's sovereignty and violate international resolutions, particularly theTaif Agreement. Critics, including members of the ChristianLebanese Forces Party and other political figures, voiced concerns about a potential recurrence of historical issues related to armed Palestinian factions operating from Lebanese territory.[608][26]
On 28 January 2024,Bechara Boutros al-Rahi,Maronite Patriarch and head of theMaronite Church, stated that residents of southern Lebanon refuse to be used as "sacrificial lambs" in what he described as a "culture of death", implicitly referencing Hezbollah's border activities. He described the hardships faced by the people, including psychological strain and disrupted education for children, and said they refuse to be hostages or human shields.[610]
On 24 March 2024, a video showed a nun at a Lebanese Christian school asking students to pray for Hezbollah men defending Lebanon. The video went viral, with some praising the video and others criticizing it.[611]
Palestinians inShatila refugee camp toldAl Jazeera that they would fight on the side of Hezbollah and theAxis of Resistance in a war against Israel, but worried for their families and civilians as they feared that Israel would deliberately target densely populated civilian areas.[612]
On 9 January 2024, theKata'ib Hezbollah spokesperson Jafar al-Husseini warned that theIslamic Resistance in Iraq would help Hezbollah fight Israel if war erupted between the two sides.[613] This statement was a few weeks after the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for a drone attack on aKarish rig which Lebanonclaims to hold sovereignty to.[614] On 23 June 2024, the spokesperson toKata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada Kadhem al-Fartousi said the brigade will join Hezbollah's side if Israel decides to launch a full-blown war in Lebanon.[615][616]
On 24 June 2024,Qais al-Khazali, the leader ofAsa'ib Ahl al-Haq, stated in a televised speech that if the US continued to support Israel in expanding the war to Lebanon and Hezbollah, the group would begin to attack US interests in Iraq and the Middle East.[617]
United States
US secretary of defenseLloyd Austin and Israeli defense ministerYoav Gallant in Tel Aviv, Israel, 18 December 2023
The U.S. Embassy in Beirut announced on 27 September 2024 that it was "not evacuating U.S. citizens at this time."[622] In response, U.S. RepresentativeRashida Tlaib stated, the State Department was "leaving Americans behind and failing to protect their own citizens".[623] American citizens in Lebanon stated they were being treated like "lesser US citizens".[624] Lebanese Americans filed a class-action lawsuit against the State Department in the hopes of expediting an evacuation.[625]
Other states
Demonstration against the bombing of Lebanon and Gaza in Copenhagen, Denmark, 24 September, 2024
On 8 November 2023, two men were arrested by Brazilian police inSão Paulo following a warning fromMossad that Hezbollah was planning an attack against the country'sJewish community. Searches were also conducted inBrasília andMinas Gerais in connection with the alleged plot.[632]
Economic
As a result of the fighting,Swiss International Air Lines andLufthansa suspended flights toBeirut, while Lebanon's flag carrierMiddle East Airlines relocated five of its 24 aircraft toIstanbul as a precaution. Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom advised against travelling to Lebanon, whilst the British embassy withdrew family members of its staff.[633]
Humanitarian response
The Lebanon Humanitarian Fund launched its reserve allocation that includes up to four million US dollars to support its partners to help aid those who have been displaced or still in conflict zones.[634]
Rearmament of Hezbollah
Event though the ceasefire agreement was signed by both parties, immediately after Hezbollah began its rearmament. According to Israeli and Arab intelligence sources, the organization is using the Beirut seaport and its old smuggling land routes form Syria, for bringing in long range missiles, antitank missiles, artillery and rockets. It is also reported that, Hezbollah is manufacturing weapons. The efforts take place mainly in the suburbs of Beirut and the Bekaa Valley.[635][636]
^Despite the ceasefire calling for Israel's full withdrawal, Israel only partially withdrew, maintaining an occupation force in parts of Southern Lebanon.[10]
^Fired by Netanyahu as defense minister on 5 November 2024
^With 521 Hezbollah deaths confirmed as of 18 November 2024,[1] including 67 in Syria,[2]Archived 14 January 2024 at theWayback Machine[3] a total of 449 were confirmed to have died in Lebanon
^(per Hezbollah, Hamas, PIJ and Lebanese Health Ministry)[40][41]
449+ Hezbollah members in Lebanon[c] (including 2 Saraya personnel)[13]
40 Palestinian militants 25 killed (8 Oct 2023–31 March 2024; on the border),[4] 7 killed (2 Jan 2024; in Beirut),[5] 7 killed (3 April–15 June 2024; on the border),[6][7][8][9][10] and a Hamas official assassinated on 9 August,[42] total of 40 reported killed
^Ephrat Livni (3 December 2024)."Why Israel and Hezbollah Are Still Firing Amid a Cease-Fire".The New York Times.A deal to end the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon went into effect last Wednesday, but already there have been multiple claims of cease-fire violations by either side. They have continued to fire on each other, though at a far less intense pace, raising questions about the durability of the truce.
^ab"Death toll rises in Israel's war on Lebanon".Al Jazeera. 4 December 2024.Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed 4,047 people and wounded 16,638 others, Lebanese Health Minister Firass Abiad said in a televised address.
^"Lebanon death toll from Israeli attacks nears 4,000".Al Jazeera. 28 November 2024.Another 78 people were killed across Lebanon on Tuesday and 266 were wounded, according to the country's health ministry. This brings the death toll since the start of the war on Gaza and before the ceasefire early Wednesday to 3,961 people, it said, adding that 16,520 people were injured. At least 248 children and 736 women have been killed, with Tuesday's death toll mostly coming as a result of Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon. At least 222 health workers have been killed since October last year, with 330 others wounded and 94 hospitals impacted by attacks.
^Robinson, Lou (24 August 2024)."Hezbollah: What weapons does it have? A visual guide".CNN.Archived from the original on 24 August 2024. Retrieved24 August 2024.Around 150 civilians have been killed in Israeli strikes, according to CNN's analysis of publicly available figures.
^abMarsi, Federica (24 September 2024)."Death toll in Israeli attacks on Lebanon rises: Health Ministry".Al Jazeera.Archived from the original on 24 September 2024. Retrieved24 September 2024.The death toll from Israeli attacks across Lebanon since Monday has risen to 558, including 50 children and 94 women, according to Lebanon's Health Minister Firass Abiad. He added that at least 1,835 people were wounded in Israeli air raids that hit Beirut and southern Lebanon.
^Uras, Umut; Siddiqui, Usaid (22 October 2024)."Latest casualty figures from Israeli attacks on Lebanon".Al Jazeera. Retrieved22 October 2024.These are the latest casualty figures issued by the Lebanese Health Ministry: At least 1,952 people have been killed since Israel escalated its attacks on Lebanon in mid-September. At least 2,546 people in Lebanon have been killed, including at least 140 children and 270 women, and 11,862 wounded since the start of Israeli-Hezbollah cross-border attacks in October last year.
^ab"Authorities name 816 soldiers, 68 police officers killed in Gaza war".The Times of Israel.Archived from the original on 8 October 2023. Retrieved28 July 2024.Twenty-nine soldiers, including a local security officer, have also been killed in attacks claimed by Lebanon's Hezbollah and allied terror groups on northern Israel since the fighting started. 51 soldiers were killed during ground operations in Lebanon... The military's list also includes... a soldier killed due to malfunctioning ammunition on the Lebanon border, two soldiers killed in a tank accident in northern Israel...
^"Violence spikes in West Bank as Blinken aims to limit spread of conflict".NBC News. 7 January 2024.Archived from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved8 January 2024.Hezbollah began attacking Israel's northern border in October, targeting Israeli vehicles, command centers and settlements. The militant group alleged in an infographic on Saturday that it caused 2,000 Israeli casualties
^Motamedi, Maziar; Uras, Umut (25 October 2024)."Ceasefire is Lebanon's priority, says PM Mikati".Al Jazeera. Retrieved25 October 2024.Lebanon's caretaker PM Mikati says his government's priority is reaching "a ceasefire and deterring the Israeli aggression". In a meeting with Blinken, he said there are more than 1.4 million people who have been displaced from the areas that are being attacked by Israel.
^Sheikh Hassan Izz al-Din, Hezbollah media relations director, said, "[T]he Jews need to leave." Avi Jovisch,Beacon of Hatred: Inside Hizballah's Al-Manar Television (Washington, D.C.: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 2004), pp. 62–90. qtd. by Wistrich,A Lethal Obsession, p. 774
^"بالفيديو: استهداف منزل نائب في ميس الجبل" [Video: Targeting a deputy’s house in Mays al-Jabal].IMLebanon (in Arabic). 20 November 2023.Archived from the original on 20 November 2023. Retrieved20 November 2023.
^"حزب الله ينعى حسن علي حسين من بلدة حولا" [Hezbollah mourns Hassan Ali Hussein from the town of Hula].Elnashra News (in Arabic). 6 March 2024.Archived from the original on 5 March 2024. Retrieved6 March 2024.
^Maziar Motamedi; Usaid Siddiqui (19 August 2024)."UN official says 'even wars have rules' and 'civilians are not a target'".Al Jazeera.Archived from the original on 19 August 2024. Retrieved19 August 2024.seven paramedics were killed when the Israeli army struck a centre belonging to the Lebanese Ambulance Association at the end of March.
^Lyndal Rowlands; Zaheena Rasheed (25 August 2024)."Hezbollah says it fired more than 320 rockets at Israel".Al Jazeera. Retrieved25 August 2024.The Lebanese armed group said the "first phase" of its retaliatory attack against Israel has been concluded "with complete success". Israeli Army Radio is reporting that a woman has been slightly wounded by shrapnel in Acre in northern Israel
^"Israel Strikes Hezbollah in Lebanon and Says It Thwarted Major Attack".The New York Times. 25 August 2024.ISSN0362-4331. Retrieved25 August 2024.Lebanon's state-run news agency reported that Israel's strikes in southern Lebanon on Sunday were "the most violent" since the war in Gaza began in October. At least two people were injured, one of them critically, and the strikes caused "severe damage" to local infrastructure, including electricity and water networks, the agency said.
^Lyndal Rowlands; Alastair McCready; Zaheena Rasheed (18 September 2024)."Hezbollah mourns deaths of 12 fighters".Al Jazeera. Retrieved18 September 2024.It did not say if the fighters were killed in the pager explosions or attacks elsewhere.
^Federica Marsi; Usaid Siddiqui (17 September 2024)."Israel claims it thwarted Hezbollah plot to kill former defence official".Al Jazeera. Retrieved17 September 2024.Israel's domestic security agency claims it foiled a plot by the Lebanese armed group to kill a former senior defence official in the coming days.
^Urooba Jamal; Federica Marsi (18 September 2024)."At least 3 killed in new wave of explosions: Lebanon state media".Al Jazeera. Retrieved18 September 2024.Lebanon's National News Agency, citing the health ministry, says more than 100 people have been wounded in the latest wave of explosions.
^Marsi, Federica (19 September 2024)."Death toll in Lebanon blasts rises to 37".Al Jazeera. Retrieved19 September 2024.The following day, 25 people were killed and 708 injured, including 61 who remain in the intensive care unit.
^Usaid Siddiqui; Farah Najjar (19 September 2024)."Hezbollah reports multiple strikes on Israeli positions".Al Jazeera. Retrieved20 September 2024.The Lebanese-armed group says it carried out 17 attacks against Israeli targets in the Galilee, the occupied Golan Heights, and the occupied Kfarchouba Hills throughout the day. A Hezbollah missile and drone strike in northern Israel killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded nine others in separate attacks on Thursday in southern Lebanon, the military said.
^Stephen Quillen; Federica Marsi (20 September 2024)."Injuries, electricity damage after intense Israel, Hezbollah crossfire".Al Jazeera. Retrieved20 September 2024.Later in the night, Hezbollah launched three huge rockets towards the Israeli town of Metula. We saw pictures of huge fires and there are reports of damage to electricity infrastructure.
^Usaid Siddiqui; Farah Najjar (19 September 2024)."Several wounded in Israeli raid on southern Lebanon".Al Jazeera. Retrieved20 September 2024.The Lebanese Health Ministry says four people have been injured in an Israeli raid on the town of al-Haniyeh.
^Jamal, Urooba (21 September 2024)."What happened between Israel and Hezbollah on Friday?".Al Jazeera. Retrieved21 September 2024.Hezbollah has also named Ahmad Mahmoud Wahabi, a senior commander, among the casualties. Hezbollah said it carried out 16 attacks against targets in northern Israel, firing about 140 rockets as it targeted air defence and intelligence bases, as well as an Israeli tank. It claimed it struck the Meron IDF base in the occupied Golan Heights with "volleys of Katyusha rockets". No casualties have been reported.
^Urooba Jamal; Federica Marsi (21 September 2024)."Death toll in Beirut attack goes up".Al Jazeera. Retrieved21 September 2024.Lebanon's Health Minister says at least 31 people, including three children and seven women, were killed in the Israeli attack on southern Beirut yesterday. Another 68 people were wounded in the attack, he added. The three children among the 31 killed in Israel's attack on southern Beirut yesterday were aged four, six and 10, Lebanon's Health Minister said during a press conference.
^Marsi, Federica (21 September 2024)."Israel says 180 targets 'dismantled' in southern Lebanon".Al Jazeera. Retrieved21 September 2024.The Israeli army says it "dismantled approximately 180 targets and thousands of launcher barrels" in southern Lebanon in the past hours, amid reports of the heaviest crossfire since Israel and Hezbollah began confrontations on October 8 last year. Additionally, it said "approximately 90 projectile launches were identified crossing from Lebanon into Israeli territory."
^Siddiqui, Usaid (21 September 2024)."Four injured in Lebanon following Israeli attacks: Report".Al Jazeera. Retrieved21 September 2024.An Israeli air strike on Qatrani Heights left one person seriously wounded and in need of intensive care, National News Agency reports. More Israeli attacks targeted the western Bekaa Heights causing minor injuries to three others, who are currently receiving treatment at a hospital, it added.
^Siddiqui, Usaid (21 September 2024)."'Everything is ready,' says Israeli air force chief".Al Jazeera. Retrieved21 September 2024.Heavy artillery was also fired into several areas in southern Lebanon over the last few hours, the army said in a statement.
^Maziar Motamedi; Urooba Jamal (22 September 2024)."Lebanon's health ministry says three killed in Israeli attacks".Al Jazeera. Retrieved22 September 2024.Lebanon's Health Ministry says three people have been killed in Israeli strikes on the southern part of the country. Hezbollah has confirmed two of its fighters killed today.
^Lyndal Rowlands; Zaheena Rasheed (23 September 2024)."Hezbollah claims more attacks on Israeli positions".Al Jazeera. Retrieved23 September 2024.An artillery attack on an Israeli radar in the occupied Lebanese Shebaa Farms. A missile attack on an Israeli Merkava tank in an area called al-Marj in northern Israel which caused casualties. An artillery attack on Israeli soldiers in Jal al-Allam.
^Lyndal Rowlands; Alastair McCready; Stephen Quillen; Edna Mohamed; Usaid Siddiqui; Farah Najjar (27 September 2024)."Death toll revised in Israeli attack on Syrian workers".Al Jazeera. Retrieved27 September 2024.The state news agency initially reported that 23 people were killed. The Lebanese Health Ministry later announced 19 Syrians and one Lebanese died – one of the deadliest single strikes in Israel's intensified air campaign.
^Urooba Jamal; Federica Marsi (28 September 2024)."Eleven medical staff killed in Israeli attacks on south Lebanon".Al Jazeera. Retrieved28 September 2024.The country's state-run National News Agency reports that 11 doctors, nurses and paramedics were killed and 10 others were wounded in Israeli army attacks on civil defence centres and a medical clinic. These attacks were carried out on the towns of Taybeh and Deir Siriane, close to the Israeli border.
^"IDF kills another senior Hezbollah official in Beirut; fresh barrage targets Tiberias".The Times of Israel. 29 September 2024. Retrieved29 September 2024.Lebanon's state news agency reported that an Israeli airstrike in northeast Lebanon on Sunday morning killed 11 people, without specifying if any of those killed in the village of al-Ain were members of Hezbollah.
^Urooba Jamal; Maziar Motamedi; Edna Mohamed (29 September 2024)."Israeli attack kills 17 members of a family in Lebanon's Bekaa".Al Jazeera. Retrieved29 September 2024.Lebanon's National News Agency (NNA) is reporting that at least 17 members of one family were killed in an Israeli air strike that hit the town of Zboud in the country's northern Bekaa Valley. The search for survivors under the rubble is still ongoing, NNA said.
^abUrooba Jamal; Edna Mohamed; Usaid Siddiqui; Tamila Varshalomidze (30 September 2024)."At least 45 people killed in Israeli attack on southern Lebanon".Al Jazeera. Retrieved30 September 2024.Lebanon's Health Ministry says the death toll from an Israeli raid on the southern town of Ain al-Delb, east of Sidon, has risen to 45. At least 75 people have been wounded. Separately, the ministry said 12 people were killed and 20 wounded after an Israeli raid on Bekaa town on Sunday night.
^Mccready, Alastair (1 October 2024)."Israeli military bombs home in Lebanese town of al-Dawoudiya, killing 10".Al Jazeera. Retrieved1 October 2024.The Israeli military bombed a home in the southern Lebanese town of Daoudiya, killing at least 10 people and wounding five others, the Lebanese National News Agency reports.
^Neuman, Scott (27 November 2024)."The world welcomes the Israel–Hezbollah ceasefire, but worries remain".NPR. Retrieved27 November 2024.Israel has fulfilled its military objectives, primarily eliminating Hezbollah infrastructure, says Randa Slim, director of the Conflict Resolution and Track II Dialogues Program at the Middle East Institute. "On the border, it's pretty much destroyed," Slim says. "But on top of that, they have wiped out their military command council, as well as their political leadership, top senior political leadership. So these are severe blows to Hezbollah, which is going to take a long, long time to recover from."
^Bachega, Hugo (26 November 2024)."Israel ministers set to approve Hezbollah ceasefire deal – reports".BBC News. Retrieved27 November 2024.Hezbollah, too, has been devastated. Many of its leaders have been killed, including long-time chief Hassan Nasrallah, while its infrastructure has been heavily damaged.
^"The Joint Service Manual of the Law Of Armed Conflict"(PDF).Ministry of Defence. 2004. pp. 105–107. JSP383. Retrieved19 September 2024.6.7.3 Where combat between ground forces is neither taking place nor appears imminent, booby-traps may not be used at all in populated areas unless ... measures are taken to protect civilians from their effects, for example, the posting of warning [signs, the posting of] sentries, the issue of warnings or the provision of fences. 6.7.4 'It is prohibited to use booby-traps in the form of apparently harmless portable objects which are specifically designed and constructed to contain explosive material.'
^The Shifts in Hizbullah's Ideology: Religious Ideology, Political Ideology, and Political Program. Joseph Elie Alagha, Amsterdam University Press, 2006,ISBN978-90-5356-910-8, 380 pages, p. 188.
Hezbollah[1]
Israel
Benjamin Netanyahu
Israel Katz
Eyal Zamir
Ori Gordin
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