Hezbollah trying to establish footholds within gaps in southern Lebanon's Yellow Line, IDF reveals

IDF Northern Command sources said Hezbollah has been targeting areas the military never formally entered, with Israel countering the activity through airstrikes, artillery, and combat engineering uni

Hezbollah terrorists are attempting to establish a presence within the boundaries of the Yellow Line in southern Lebanon, IDF Northern Command sources revealed on Tuesday.

According to the sources, there are sections within the Yellow Line that, for various reasons, the IDF never formally entered, often because they were surrounded by IDF-secured areas or posed no immediate threat.

Because the IDF never entered these areas, Hezbollah is trying more actively to establish a presence there and views them as easier targets, the sources explained.

The sources said the IDF has been aware of the threat and working to counter it for at least five weeks, despite only now making the information public. The timing may be linked to the battle at the Ali al-Taher Ridge having largely concluded, allowing the IDF to redirect additional manpower and resources toward securing areas considered more vulnerable.

Although Hezbollah may be targeting dozens of enclaves within the Yellow Line, one example cited by the sources was the village of Al-Mansouri, in the Majdal Zoun municipality. The sources also said these skirmishes have not involved IDF ground troops, with the IDF countering Hezbollah's encroachment through IAF strikes, artillery fire, and combat engineering units.

Netanyahu warns Hezbollah over retaliations

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Hezbollah on Monday that Israel would retaliate against any attacks.

"I say to our enemies: If you haven't learned the lesson by now, and you choose to attack us again, you will suffer even heavier blows," Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu also celebrated the destruction of Hezbollah infrastructure on the Beaufort Ridge and the Ali al-Taher Ridge as a "massive victory."

IDF releases new footage of Ali al-Taher Ridge's operation

The IDF released new footage and details on Friday from its latest operation in southern Lebanon, in which it secured and destroyed Hezbollah's underground infrastructure on the Ali al-Taher Ridge.

Among the items released by the military were a clip from the body camera of a Yahalom Unit soldier inside one of the underground tunnels, as well as drone footage from inside the tunnels, and a video of two terrorists being killed.

Hezbollah attempted to build a heroic myth around the fighting on the Ali al-Taher ridge, portraying it in the style of the “Battle of Karbala.” However, at the conclusion of a determined military operation by fighters from the IDF’s 36th Division, the Commando Brigade, and the Yahalom special engineering unit, Hezbollah was defeated, and Israel captured and destroyed the organization’s most important facility in southern Lebanon.

The IDF said on Friday morning that what remains of the Ali al-Taher ridge, beneath which Iran spent two decades building Hezbollah’s last and most significant line of defense in southern Lebanon, is “nothing more than a sandbox.” Hezbollah and Iran suffered a major blow overnight. The operation to capture the ridge lasted months, as dozens of terrorists, estimated to number around 50, were entrenched inside the tunnels.

Jerusalem Post Staff and Avi Ashkenazi contributed to this report.