Israel attacks Hezbollah facilities in Lebanon

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are attacking the facilities of the Iranian-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.

This was reported by the IDF press service.

The Israeli military is "destroying the terrorist potential and military infrastructure" of the group.

IDF also emphasizes that Hezbollah has turned South Lebanon into a war zone and has been arming citizensʼ houses, digging tunnels under them and using locals as human shields for decades.

"IDF is working to create security in the north that will allow residents to return to their homes and achieve all other war objectives," the military said.

The day before, Israelʼs Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said that the country is moving its main military efforts to the north, because a "new phase" of the war is beginning. Before that, the 98th Airborne Division of the IDF, which had been fighting in the Gaza Strip for months, was deployed in the north of Israel.

In the north, Israel borders Lebanon, where the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group operates. Hezbollah and Israel have been attacking each other since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.

• On September 17, hundreds of pagers belonging to Hezbollah members exploded in Lebanon. As a result, nine people died, and almost 3 000 were injured. Reuters, citing sources, writes that Israelʼs foreign intelligence service — Mossad — planted explosives in 5 000 pagers imported by the Lebanese Hezbollah group a few months before the explosions.
• On September 18, a repeated series of explosions thundered in Lebanon. Walkie-talkies used by members of the Lebanese Hezbollah group and car radios were detonated. 14 people died, another 450 were injured.
• Hezbollah is a Lebanese Shia Muslim military-political organization founded in 1982. Hezbollah is actively supported by Iran, it is recognized as a terrorist in more than 20 countries, in particular, in the USA, EU and Great Britain. Hezbollah has been against Israel since its inception.