Insights
To effectively combat Hezbollah in Lebanon, it is crucial to not only target the organization itself but also to act against the civilian infrastructure that supports and enables Hezbollah. This includes specifically focusing on identifying and neutralizing Hezbollah operatives who are accountable for and associated with these civilian organizations.
The Lebanese arena:
War data:
In Israel, the government evacuated 43 communities located up to five kilometers from the Lebanese border. A total of about 61,000 citizens. To them were added several thousand more who decided to evacuate independently.
It should be noted that some of the Israeli communities have not been fully evacuated and there is a civilian presence there (agriculture and industry).
The Israeli government has extended the evacuation period until 31 August 2024.
Hezbollah has caused the death of 10 Israeli civilians and one agricultural worker with foreign citizenship so far. A total of 11 civilians and 20 IDF soldiers were killed.
During the past week, 58 attacks were carried out on the northern border, of which Hezbollah claimed responsibility for 47 attacks against Israel, utilizing high-trajectory fire (including Grad, Falaq, and Burkan rockets), anti-tank missiles, and suicide UAVs.
There has been no claim of responsibility for 9 incidents, of these, 4 UAV infiltration incidents and 5 rocket launches toward the Upper Galilee and Western Galilee.
The Lebanese resistance brigades claimed responsibility for launching anti-tank missiles and rockets at a military base in Western Galilee.
Hamas’ military-terrorist wing in Lebanon claimed responsibility for firing rockets at a base in the Western Galilee. About 10 rockets were launched.
Since the beginning of the war, 2,468 attacks have been carried out in the northern arena, the vast majority of which were carried out by Hezbollah.
Prominent launching and shooting incidents against Israel
(July 15) Hezbollah fired 20 Grad and Falk rockets at the city of Kiryat Shmona, three of which directly hit a factory, a shopping complex, and a residential building. Buildings, property, and equipment were severely damaged. According to Hezbollah, the attack was carried out in response to an IDF attack in southern Lebanon.
(July 16-17) Hezbollah carried out several attacks against civilian targets, allegedly in response to IDF attacks in Lebanon: firing about 40 Grad rockets at Kiryat Shmona and the Beit Hillel area, dozens of Grad rockets at Kibbutz Kabri in the Western Galilee, dozens of Grad rockets at the communities of Meron, Kfar Hoshen, and Bar Yochai, and about 15 Grad rockets at the communities of Sa’ar and Gesher HaZiv in the Western Galilee.
(July 18) Hezbollah claimed responsibility for launching suicide UAVs at a military base in the Hazor HaGalilit area and south of the village of Yaara in Western Galilee.
(July 19-20) Hezbollah launched dozens of Grad missiles toward the communities of Abirim, Neve Ziv, Manot, and Dafna. According to Hezbollah, these attacks came in reaction to IDF attacks in Lebanon. The launches were carried out against communities that Hezbollah has not attacked before, in light of Nasrallah’s vow that if IDF operations injured civilians, Hezbollah will broaden its target bank to civilian communities where it has not previously fired. According to Hezbollah, on July 20, Israel targeted a vehicle transporting Syrian refugees near Burj al-Muluk (west of Al-Haliam) and other villages in southern Lebanon and caused civilian casualties.
(July 20) Hezbollah launched suicide UAVs toward the Zaura area, wounding two soldiers.
(July 21) Hezbollah fired Grad rockets at the community of Dafna and suicide UAVs toward the community of Hanita. In Hanita, damage was caused to a kindergarten, and in Dafna, a school in the community was damaged.
Hezbollah casualties
Over the past week, Hezbollah released a statement reporting 7 of its military operatives killed.
As of October 8, 2023, a total of 376 Hezbollah operatives have been killed. Most of the operatives killed live south of the Litani River (253 operatives killed, constituting 67% of all the operatives killed). Many Hezbollah operatives and their families live in southern Lebanon near the border with Israel. They operate in southern Lebanon as part of Hezbollah’s geographic units (Nasser/Aziz) and Hezbollah’s designated units (Radwan unit), while assimilating into the civilian population (human shield tactics).
Reports from Lebanon indicate that a total of 52 members from various organizations, such as Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Amal movement, and Al-Jamaʻah al-islamiyah (Al fajar) have been killed since the onset of the war. This week a commander in Hamas / Al-Jamaʻah al-islamiyah was eliminated (details below).
Eliminations of senior Hezbollah figures
Since October 8, 2023, 38 senior Hezbollah operatives were eliminated. 36.8% of them, a total of 14, belonged to the geographic units (southern front) with an emphasis on the Nasser unit, including the unit’s commander – Haj Abu Taleb, and Aziz unit commander Ahmad Naama Nasser. Approximately 31.6% of the Radwan unit, which amounts to 12 individuals, including the unit’s acting leader, Wassam al-Tawil were eliminated as well. The primary focus of the Radwan unit and geographical units was on removing sector leaders (similar to brigade commanders) and commanders in specialized arrays (such as rockets/anti-tanks, etc.). In addition, 3 high-ranking operatives from Hezbollah’s air unit, 3 individuals from Hezbollah’s air defense system, a senior agent in Hezbollah’s weapons transfer operation from Syria to Lebanon, and a key operative in Hezbollah’s combat engineering unit were eliminated. Out of the total number of people killed, 4 individuals, which is equivalent to 11.4%, were experts in the areas of research/development/manufacture of weapons, and combat support technologies.
Elimination attempts are critical and necessary. Regardless of the eliminations, Hezbollah has operational and command continuity. This endeavor cannot be the primary focus, but rather a concurrent and supplementary effort to the main focus, which is to cause significant harm to Hezbollah’s tactical firing systems and its military infrastructure on the southern front, as well as extensive damage to Hezbollah’s strategic fire systems and infrastructure in depth.
Prominent airstrikes in Lebanon
(July 18) Mohammad Hamad Jabarah, a prominent member of Hamas-Lebanon/Jamaa al-Islamiyya, was killed while driving in his pickup truck in the village of Ghaza located in the southern Bekaa Valley. Upon inquiry, it was discovered that Jabara is the commander in the Khaled Ali unit inside Hamas-Lebanon. He is commonly referred to by the nickname “Sami” and was born in the year 1973. The Khaled Ali unit, together with the Al-Shamali unit (headed by Walam Abu Shanab, also known as “Bilal”), serve as the primary operational divisions of Hamas-Lebanon, overseeing a significant number of terrorist operatives, perhaps ranging from hundreds to even several thousand.
The units engage in the recruitment of operatives, provide training and specialized instruction (such as sniping, anti-tank tactics, and UAV operation), engage in the development and production of weaponry (including rockets, attack UAVs, and miniature submarines), organize operational squads, and prepare terrorist plots against Israel.
In October 2021, we published an in-depth report that provided a detailed analysis of the infrastructure and operational activities of Hamas in Lebanon. The article provides comprehensive information about the aforementioned units and their leaders, among other topics.
(July 18) Hassan Ali Muhanna, a Hezbollah engineering unit operative born in 1984, was killed in the town of Jabal al-Batem. Mahana’s vehicle was struck in the first attack; he was able to exit the vehicle, but a second missile struck him outside his vehicle.
Near the site of Mahana’s elimination is a closed Hezbollah military zone. We designated it as military zone number 8. In southern Lebanon, there are dozens of such areas used by Hezbollah for training, storing weapons, launching sites, and more. We have 29 such locations located in southern Lebanon.
(July 18) A targeted aerial attack successfully eliminated Ali Ja’far Ma’atuk, a high-ranking commander inside the Radwan force, also recognized as Habib Ma’touk. Ma’atuk was born in 1978 originating from the village of Tsir, located in the western part of southern Lebanon. The elimination of Ma’atuk took place as a deliberate attack targeting two specific locations owned by the Radwan unit, situated south of the Litani River. The Radwan unit and its operators persist in their presence and activities south of the Litani River. Based on accounts, it appears that Ma’atuk was the initial target since we assessed him to be the more dominant of the two. The facility in question functioned as the central command center for the Radwan unit in Safad al-Batih. The second objective was situated near the village of Jamejah, adjacent to the route that leads to Majdal Salam. One other high-ranking Radwan operative, Muhammad Hassan Mustafa, was also killed in the airstrikes. Ma’atuk took over from Ali Ahmad Hussein (also known as Abbas Jaafar), who served as the commander of the Hajir sector in the Radwan unit and was killed on April 8th, as reported by many sources. Hajir is a region located next to Israel, stretching from the town of Adaisseh to the village of Blida. It serves as a prominent area of operation for Hezbollah and acts as a strategic base for the Radwan unit’s future actions against Israel.
Hezbollah – General:
(July 15) Nasrallah’s speech
Hassan Nasrallah, speaking in southern Dahia, announced that next Wednesday would be a united day to mark Ashura Day and that Hezbollah would not hold marches in the cities of Bint Jbeil, Khayyam, Nabatiyeh, Tyre, and the southern front cities, given the security conditions in southern Lebanon. “We left it to the brothers in the other cities in the south to organize marches as they saw fit,” he said.
Nasrallah spoke about the confrontation in the Machi neighborhood a few days earlier, in which Hezbollah operative Samir Qabbani was killed. It was claimed that the background to the confrontation was a disagreement between an Amal movement operative and Hezbollah. Nasrallah claimed that Hezbollah and the “brothers in the Amal movement” were in contact throughout the incident, and they agreed that the Lebanese army and its intelligence would investigate the incident. Hezbollah and Amal issued a joint statement after the incident in which they clarified the circumstances of the incident, according to which there was a personal problem that developed into the shooting.
(July 16) Nasrallah’s speech during the tenth night of the Ashuraa
Nasrallah attempted to convey messages of unity both within Lebanon and throughout the Shiite axis. He noted the solidarity of the support fronts, especially in Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen. This is even though the United States has tried to create sectarian strife in these countries. This is one of the blessings of war, to unite Muslims in the face of the danger posed by Israel. Nasrallah noted that some try to revive sectarian issues, especially on social networks, where he says there is information that can mislead and harm the resistance and the Lebanese state.
Nasrallah stressed that “the Battle of Flood Al-Aqsa is one of the longest and greatest battles of the Zionist entity in the region and its importance is that it is a battle of peoples and resistance movements,” and stressed that “we are fighting a battle whose horizon is clear even in the invisible dimension.” “What has been happening in our region since 1948 is great corruption and arrogance, this superiority over all peoples, governments, and armies in the region, and the enemy entity, with the support of the West, is acting with humiliation against all Arabs.”
Nasrallah concluded his speech by saying: “To those who try to frighten us with death from America, Israel, the West and part of the interior, we are a people that are neither afraid of war nor afraid of them because the maximum that war can bring is death, that is, martyrdom.”
(July 17) Nasrallah’s speech at the end of the Ashura event in the southern suburb of Beirut
Nasrallah continued to claim, as in his other speeches, that on October 8, 2023, the Lebanese front was opened as a support front for the Gaza Strip, which will not stop fighting until the war in Gaza stops. They were joined by other fronts of support in Yemen and Iraq, including Syria and Iran.
Nasrallah noted that the Houthis succeeded in blockading the port of Eilat, which declared bankruptcy after shipping prices rose by 200% and 300%, which has severe effects on Israel. As a result, Nasrallah notes that Israel is experiencing its worst days since its founding, and senior Israeli officials speak for the first time about the destruction of the “Third Temple.” Nasrallah then calls for solidarity and continued support for Gaza and the resistance, and that the war will shape the fate of Palestine and the entire region.
Nasrallah referred to the publication about Israel’s shortage of tanks and threatened that if the Israeli tanks reached Lebanon and the south, Israel would not only suffer from a shortage of tanks but there would be no tanks left.
Nasrallah threatened Israel that if the attacks on civilians in Lebanon continue, Hezbollah will attack new communities that it has not attacked so far. This is in light of the recent days in which Hezbollah claimed that civilians had been injured in IDF attacks in Lebanon and responded with massive rocket fire at communities that are not evacuated (more than 5 km from the border).
“All the rumors about a ready agreement regarding the situation on the Lebanese front are not true, and the future of the situation in the south will be decided in light of the outcome of the battle in which the resistance and support fronts will win.” Noting, that if the firing stops, the party responsible for negotiations and answers will be the state of Lebanon.
(July 17) A Hezbollah main event in honor of Ashura Day in southern Beirut was attended by tens of thousands of people who came from all over Lebanon.
Villages in southern Lebanon also marked Ashura Day with marches and ceremonies. See the video from a ceremony marking Ashura Day in ‘Ayita a-Shaab.
Hamas, Lebanon
(July 20) Hamas-Lebanon and Al-Jama’ah al-Islamiyya held a large rally in the city of Sidon condemning Israel’s activity in the Gaza Strip. On the unit tag visible on the child’s arm in the center of the picture – the emblem of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, , the military wing of Hamas.
Lebanon – General:
(July 18) Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati declared a National Day of Mourning to commemorate the Beirut port explosion disaster. The day will be August 4, 2024, the anniversary of the Beirut port explosion.
The Syrian arena:
(July 15) An attack on Route 1, which connects Damascus to the border with Lebanon, against a vehicle carrying Muhammad Baraa Ahmad Rashdi al-Qaterji. Al-Qaterji is recognized as one of Syria’s most important businessmen affiliated with Bashar al-Assad’s regime. His businesses were apparently a significant infrastructure that supported the activity of the Shiite Axis and Hezbollah in Syria and Lebanon. More details are in the attached article.
(July 20) Attack on the Syrian Army’s Fuj’ 175 weapons depots located around Azra’a, in northern Daraa.
Syria – General:
(July 15) Elections were held for the Syrian parliament. In a-Sweida province there were several protests calling for a boycott of the elections and the overthrow of the regime.
It should be noted that in the Sweida province, there is great tension between the Druze and the regime (see our article on the subject).
According to a report from July 17, Marhaj al-Jermani, one of the commanders of the Druze militias (the “Mountain Brigade”) operating in Sweida, was assassinated by the Shiite/regime axis. Al- Jermani was a central figure who acted and spoke out against the Shiite Axis.
Shiite Axis – General
The latest attack on American sites in Iraq and Syria by Shiite militias, as publicly documented by US Central Command, occurred on February 20th. Multiple accounts indicate that the attacks on American bases ceased as a result of explicit directives from Iran to the Shiite militias, in light of undisclosed agreements between Iran and the United States.
Since then, according to several local indications, 10 attacks have been carried out against American bases for which no responsibility was claimed and for which the Americans did not announce. Although we believe that there were indeed airstrikes, the US Central Command did not confirm them in a public publication as it did before February 20.
(17-18) According to an American official, two airstrikes were reported against US forces at the US Air Force base Al-Assad in Iraq by Shiite militias using two UAVs. The UAVs were intercepted and there were no casualties.[1]
During the past week (July 15-22) the Islamic resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for 7 attacks against Israel. except for a UAV interception incident that originated from the east on July 19, no other indications were reported.
Yemen – Houthi-land:
During the past week, coalition forces managed to strike 9 UAVs and 2 surface-to-air missiles, which posed an immediate threat to freedom of movement in international waters.
In the early morning hours of July 19, a suicide UAV exploded in Tel Aviv, causing casualties. One dead and several injured. The Houthis claimed responsibility. The IDF Spokesperson confirmed and updated that it was a Samad 3 UAV. The UAV has been used by the Houthis for several years. Despite Houthi claims that it is a locally produced UAV, it is actually an Iranian KAS-04 UAV or a derivative thereof.
Other UAVs of this type, such as Samad 1 and 2 (sometimes also called Shahed X), are also used by the Houthis and Shiite militias in Iraq. From the information available regarding the Samad 3, it appears that it has a maximum range of 1700 km and can carry up to 40 kg of explosives (actually carrying about 15 kg of explosives). The distance of the UAV’s flight on July 19 is more than 2,500 kilometers while remaining in the air for about 16 hours.
The UAV left western Yemen, crossed the Red Sea, flew over Africa: Eritrea, Sudan, and Egypt, crossed the Suez Canal, Sinai, flew over the Mediterranean in a rotational trajectory, reached Israel from the west, and exploded in Tel Aviv.
The weight of explosives was reduced, and other modifications were made to the UAV to help increase its flight range. The main modification was the improvement and enlargement of the engine.
(July 20) In response to the Houthi attacks against Israel in recent months, in which hundreds of UAVs and missiles were launched at Israel, Israeli Air Force planes attacked Houthi targets in Yemen. In the operation known as “Long Hand,” Israeli Air Force planes attacked targets in the Yemeni port of Hodeida at more than 1,800 kilometers from Israel.
The port of Hodeida serves as a supply route for transferring Iranian weapons from Iran to the Houthi terrorist regime and is a significant source of economic activity for it. The port constitutes a legitimate military terrorist infrastructure. The port is used for the Houthis’ military buildup. 70% of the goods that enter from there reach the Houthis.
Several energy infrastructures were attacked, including fuel reserves. The port’s infrastructures, including its cranes, were also attacked.
This is one of the most remote attacks on targets ever carried out by the Israeli Air Force.
Since October 2023, there have been 189 Houthi attacks against Israel, the United States and other targets.
[1] https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/drones-target-iraqs-ain-al-asad-airbase-no-casualties-say-military-sources-2024-07-16/
One Response
It is very important to destroy every infrastructure of the Houthis in Jemen constantly.