In Metula, northern Israel, a new mural has appeared. In large red numbers, it says “7.10” in memory of the Hamas attack on October 7. The mural is a bit jarring as it now appears on the historic main road of the town, among pretty homes and restaurants.
The mural demonstrates the history of the community. However, that history moves from the beauty of early Israel to the horrors of October 7. It shows rockets targeting an Israeli home from all directions. Then it shows destruction and ruin, and soldiers taking shelter.
Metula is on Israel’s northern border, the northernmost community. Throughout the war, it was exposed directly to Hezbollah attacks. Many homes were damaged. More than 2,000 residents here were evacuated. Only a few remained. The IDF moved into the town. Today things have changed again. Now people are returning. On Sukkot, there were tourists and visitors. Several restaurants and small hotels appeared open.
A drive through the community and its pretty historic main street, which dates from the late 19th century, takes a visitor to the border. There is a fence.
Beyond the fence is another fence. There is a bunker that is reached from a concrete entranceway at the rear. Inside the bunker, one can see into Lebanon. Peering through the fence, one can see a large blue can, the size of an oil drum, perched on top of a pole. The blue can says “UN.” Apparently, this is some marker that UNIFIL installed.
'We are coming,' was Hezbollah's threatening presence over Metula
A bunker is reached through a concrete entranceway at the rear. Inside the bunker, one can see into Lebanon. Peering through the fence, one can see a large blue can, the size of an oil drum, perched on top of a pole. The blue can says “UN.” Apparently, this is some marker that UNIFIL installed.
Before 2023, you could see the UN on the other side. Their white vehicles were sometimes visible. In addition, you could see Hezbollah flags. Hezbollah had also installed a large Palestinian flag on a hill on the other side. A giant billboard showed the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The message was clear. Hezbollah was saying, “We are here, and we are coming.” Hezbollah could look over Metula and wait for their chance.
On October 7, Hezbollah did not attack Israel. However, it did choose to join the war on October 8, 2023, with some shelling of the border. In the days the followed, Israel and Hezbollah traded fire, but the major Hezbollah invasion did not occur. Nevertheless, Israel was so worried it would be unable to prevent a large Hezbollah invasion that it evacuated the border communities such as Metula, Kiryat Shmona, and many other places. Tens of thousands of Israelis were displaced, joining some 100,000 people displaced across the country, on the northern border and Gaza border.
For a long time it was unclear if Israel would be able to bring peace and protection to Metula. Drones would fly over the border from Lebanon, striking various sites. Rockets rained down. Houses were damaged. When Israel finally began to seriously strike back in September 2024, Hezbollah suffered major losses. A ceasefire followed in November 2024. Later, the conflict grew again in March 2026 in the wake of Israel and US strikes on Iran. This time, the IDF moved further into Lebanon and cleared Hezbollah from villages, destroying many of the villages in the process.
Symbols of Israel's victory visible from Metula
From Metula today, the Hezbollah flags are gone. The Palestinian flag and Al-Aqsa billboard are gone. This is a symbol of the victory here. Hezbollah can no longer sit on the border and provoke Israel. The privilege it had since 2006 is not longer. For years, it felt it could do what it wanted. It believed Israel was deterred. Iran also felt it had deterred Israel. The fear in Israel over the years was that Hezbollah would launch a major invasion. It also had some 200,000 rockets, and this was seen as such a large number that it would be hard to stop them all.
The IDF’s innovations and Israel's intelligence operations, including the pager attack, weakened Hezbollah. Hezbollah is not defeated or gone from Lebanon. However, it is no longer on the border. Its forts and also its underground facilities have been found and destroyed. There must be more work to be done. Over two nights in the northern Galilee near Metula, I could hear explosions that appeared to come from Lebanon. Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure still exists in Lebanon. Lebanon has not disarmed the group.
It remains to be seen what comes next in northern Israel with Hezbollah. However, what is clear is that communities such as Metula have a chance to recover. Visitors are coming back, slowly. People are back on the hiking trails. Restaurants are open.
This is the beginning of an attempted return to more peace and quiet. The removal of the Hezbollah flags and banners on the other side of the border is a symbol of getting rid of a threat that loomed over the north for years. That threat often thrived amid the UN vehicles that failed to document the Hezbollah presence.
Whether the UN presence will be replaced with a new force is unclear. Whether the Lebanese army can ever disarm Hezbollah or successfully secure this area is unclear. It has also abandoned southern Lebanon for decades. Now the area near the Israeli border is primarily cleared of Lebanese. Some Lebanese homes appear in the distance from Metula. However, no one seems visible on the other side of the border. What is visible are the IDF Humvees and bulldozers, and the feeling that Israel has firm control now.