Lazar Berman
Times of Israel, Sept. 26, 2024
“Hezbollah probes for weaknesses in Israel’s defenses, and erodes Iron Dome interceptor stocks, by launching growing numbers of drones recently.”
The IDF has been hammering Hezbollah since the Lebanese terror group began firing over the border the day after Hamas’s October 7 invasion of southern Israel.
Hezbollah itself has named over 500 of its fighters killed in the year-long conflict. Israel has taken out the Shi’ite group’s top military figures, including its senior commander Fuad Shukr.
As Israel has ramped up its strikes on Hezbollah in recent days, it has hit the Iranian proxy even harder.
The explosion last week of thousands of Hezbollah’s communication devices put 1,500 fighters out of commission, a Hezbollah official told Reuters on Wednesday; Israel has not taken responsibility.
Last Friday, Israel eliminated many of the top commanders of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force. And it has been pounding Hezbollah rocket arsenals, though reports that Israel has taken out half of its capabilities are likely exaggerated.
Hezbollah’s response has been predictable, and not especially effective. It is firing hundreds of rockets at Israel a day, ramping up the range and number each day. But with Israel’s air defense capabilities and extensive shelter network, the attacks haven’t had a major effect on the Israeli public’s will to keep the fight going.
Israelis should not be fooled, however. Hezbollah remains a potent adversary that has yet to employ most of its arsenal, and if the fight reaches a ground invasion — as Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi is indicating it will — the IDF can expect to face an adversary far more dangerous than Hamas in Gaza.
Military transformations
Like Israel, Hezbollah saw the indecisive 2006 Second Lebanon War as a wake-up call for the need to transform its military capabilities quickly.
“Over these 18 years, Hezbollah wasn’t planting trees and building houses in Lebanon,” said Brig. Gen. (res.) Tzvika Haimovitz, former commander of Israel’s Air Defense Forces.
“Hezbollah built itself a semi-army. I know many militaries around the world, but I don’t know many that have the capabilities that the Hezbollah terror group has.”
One of Hezbollah’s main efforts has been the enhancement of its rocket and missile capabilities.
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