Hezbollah Launches Major Attack on Israeli Army Following Commander’s Death
Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah group unleashed a significant barrage of rockets and drones targeting the Israeli army on Thursday, responding to an Israeli strike that killed one of its senior commanders.
This assault marks Hezbollah’s largest coordinated attack amid the near-daily cross-border skirmishes that have intensified since Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, which ignited the ongoing Gaza conflict.
Hezbollah fighters initiated the offensive with rockets and drones, striking six military barracks and sites, while simultaneously deploying squadrons of explosive-laden drones at three additional Israeli bases.
Among the targets was an Israeli base, which Hezbollah claimed housed an intelligence headquarters responsible for orchestrating assassinations. These aggressive maneuvers were declared by Hezbollah as part of their retaliation for the assassination of their commander, Taleb Abdallah, earlier in the week.
The Israeli military reported that approximately 40 projectiles were launched toward the Galilee and Golan Heights areas. While most were intercepted, some caused fires in the targeted regions. In one specific attack near the border village of Manara, two IDF soldiers were injured, one moderately and the other lightly.
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In response to Hezbollah’s escalated aggression, the Israeli government vowed to retaliate with substantial force. Government spokesperson David Mencer emphasized during a press briefing, “Israel will respond with force to all aggressions by Hezbollah. Whether through diplomatic efforts or otherwise, Israel will restore security on our northern border.”
Recent weeks have seen a marked increase in cross-border exchanges, with Hezbollah intensifying its use of drones to attack Israeli military positions and Israel conducting targeted strikes against the militants. At Abdallah’s funeral on Wednesday, top Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine promised that the group would “increase the intensity, strength, quantity, and quality of our attacks.”
The Israeli army confirmed it carried out the strike that “eliminated” Abdallah, describing him as one of Hezbollah’s most senior commanders in southern Lebanon. A Lebanese military source corroborated this, noting that Abdallah was the “most important” Hezbollah commander to have been killed since the conflict began.
The escalating violence has had a devastating toll. According to an AFP tally, at least 468 people in Lebanon have been killed, predominantly fighters, but also including 89 civilians. On the Israeli side, the conflict has resulted in the deaths of at least 15 soldiers and 11 civilians.
This surge in hostilities underscores the fragile and volatile situation along the Israel-Lebanon border, as both sides brace for potential further escalations. The international community watches with concern, urging for restraint and seeking ways to de-escalate the conflict to prevent a wider regional war.