Israeli tensions with Hezbollah are rising a year after there was a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, which was supposed to end the conflict with the terrorist group.
Hezbollah started a conflict with Israel in October 2023 after Hamas attacked Israel. In September 2024, the IDF began a series of escalating strikes on Hezbollah’s leadership and arms depots. Eventually, this included a small ground incursion into Lebanon. Hezbollah suffered many losses.
Since the ceasefire began on November 27, 2024, much has happened. Lebanon chose a new prime minister and president, who both vowed to disarm Hezbollah. But they have not been willing to actually confront the group.
They also haven’t directly challenged Hezbollah, but rather, they speak in general terms about having the Lebanese state control arms.
They did use the army to collect some weapons from Palestinian groups in various refugee camps. This was only made possible by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas supporting the handover. As such, Hezbollah is still in Israel’s crosshairs.
An example of how Hezbollah is increasingly in Israel’s sight lines is clear from the almost daily precision airstrikes against it.
Lt.-Col. Nadav Shoshani, the IDF international spokesperson, wrote on X/Twitter on Thursday: “One year ago today, a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon went into effect. Under that agreement, Hezbollah was supposed to fully disarm and dismantle its terror and military infrastructure. They did neither.
“Instead, Hezbollah has spent the year rebuilding and rearming with the backing of the Iranian regime. As long as Hezbollah poses a threat to Israel, we will continue to do whatever is necessary to defend ourselves.”
Regional Arab-language media outlets are focused on the possible increase in tensions between Israel and Hezbollah. Over the past year, there have been 669 Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon, and 360 Hezbollah fighters have been killed, UAE-based news site Al-Ain News reported.
“As it enters its second year, the already faltering ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon appears more fragile than ever,” the report said.
Al-Ain quoted Defense Minister Israel Katz, who at a session of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Wednesday said: “We have not seen a better security situation on the northern border in 20 years.”
Al-Ain also reported: “the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, UNIFIL, recorded more than 10,000 Israeli air and land violations inside Lebanese territory during the first year of the ceasefire.”
The UN claimed that “since the cessation of hostilities agreement last year, UNIFIL has recorded more than 7,500 air violations and about 2,500 land violations north of the Blue Line,” the report said.
US also wants to see Hezbollah disarmed
BEIRUT IS being pressured by Israel to disarm Hezbollah. The US also wants to see Hezbollah disarmed. It is not clear how this will be accomplished or what the definition of “disarming” actually is. Is it just Hezbollah’s heavy weapons or the AK-47s also?
Lebanon has condemned Israel’s continued strikes, suggesting that it is harder for Beirut to disarm the group under fire.
Lebanon is supposed to remove Hezbollah from areas south of the Litani, and the Lebanese Army and other state security branches are supposed to “remain the only armed forces in the country,” Al-Ain reported. “But a year later, none of these goals has been achieved, as Israel still occupies five border positions inside Lebanon and launches daily raids, including on the suburbs of the capital, Beirut, and even the Bekaa region.”
The report also quoted Israel’s Alma Institute for Research about the strikes on Hezbollah. This is where it got the data. According to this re-reporting of the data, “47% of the Israeli attacks were south of the Litani River, 38.4% north of the Litani, 13% in the Bekaa Valley, and 1.6% in Beirut.”
Meanwhile, Iran is increasing its backing of Hezbollah, at least in terms of rhetoric. Beirut-based newspaper Al Akhbar, which is pro-Hezbollah, reported: “Ali Akbar Velayati, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, affirmed that Tehran will not abandon its support for Hezbollah, stressing that the ‘ferocity’ of the Israeli enemy ‘has shown everyone the disastrous consequences of disarming the resistance’ for Lebanon.”
“Hezbollah has repeatedly been a support and savior for the Lebanese people, and has put an end to the transgressions of the Zionist occupation. [The] positions and statements of Lebanese officials indicate that the Lebanese government has realized the true importance of Hezbollah’s presence, and has also realized the falsehood of Netanyahu’s claims,” Al Akhbar quoted Velayati as saying.
Lebanese MP Ali Ammar, who is a member of the Hezbollah bloc in parliament, said: “The resistance’s [Hezbollah] weapons will remain as long as there is an Israeli enemy occupying land and violating holy sites and sanctities, and these weapons will remain as long as this enemy has not surrendered to international resolutions and charters and to the latest agreement related to the war on Lebanon.”