In recent days, there has been an increase in friction on the northern border, in which Hezbollah carried out various attacks against Israeli targets – an attack on the ‘Tal Shamim’ balloon site three days ago, a heavy missile attack on the air control at the summit of Mount Meron the day before yesterday, A suicide UAV fired at Matula yesterday, which led to a serious injury to a soldier, and launching drones at Nahariya in the early morning hours today. At the same time, sporadic rockets and mortar shells were fired at various settlements along the border.
At first, Israel adopted a dynamic of escalation, with attacks on launch sites or other values-based targets deep inside Lebanon. But this (Friday) morning, Israel carried out a joint attack in the Sidon region, dozens of kilometers from the Israeli border, in which drones and fighter jets participated. The fighters attacked various targets, including a stone factory that Hezbollah used for military purposes, killing a few Syrian operatives. At the same time, the UAVs attacked several private vehicles while driving, including the assassination of Hussein Hatcher Mahdi, a senior Hezbollah operative. According to some reports, Mehdi was a major figure in the organization’s air system, and thus was directly involved in the attack on Tal Shamim earlier this week, and in the launches on Metula and Nahariya today and yesterday. The Israeli attack, then, was sharp, precise, and carefully selected.
After seven months of exchange of blows, the battle against Hezbollah remains of a similar nature. At the moment, it seems clear that both sides are not interested in a full war, and are somewhat deterred by each other; but attacks such as these indicate where the intelligence, practical and technological advantage lies.
