It Looked Like Israel And Hezbollah Had Gone To War, But Then They Pulled Back. Here's What To Know

Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah pulled backmost aft an speech of dense occurrence complete nan play that concisely raised fears of an all-out war.

But their decades-long conflict is acold from over, location tensions linked to nan war successful Gaza are still high, and it’s astir apt only a matter of clip earlier different escalation.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah did not norm retired different retaliatory onslaught complete nan killing of a apical commander successful an Israeli airstrike past month. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “this is not nan extremity of nan story.”

The near-daily strikes and counterstrikes on nan border, which began soon aft nan outbreak of nan Gaza war, resumed Monday. Israel struck a Lebanese separator colony and a car, and Hezbollah said it had targeted subject surveillance instrumentality successful bluish Israel pinch an exploding drone.

Here’s a look astatine what happened complete nan weekend:

Israel said astir 100 warplanes launched airstrikes targeting thousands of rocket launchers crossed confederate Lebanon to thwart an imminent Hezbollah attack. Hezbollah said it launched hundreds of rockets and drones aimed astatine subject bases and rocket defense positions successful bluish Israel and nan Israeli-annexed Golan Heights.

The Israeli strikes killed 3 militants successful Lebanon, and Israel’s subject said a worker was killed by either an interceptor of incoming occurrence aliases shrapnel from one. It was each complete by mid-morning Sunday, and nan remainder of nan time and nighttime passed without incident.

Hezbollah called nan onslaught an first consequence to nan targeted sidesplitting of one of its apical commanders, Fouad Shukur, successful an Israeli airstrike successful Beirut past month. Nasrallah said Hezbollah would “reserve nan correct to respond astatine a later time” if nan results of Sunday’s onslaught aimed astatine a subject intelligence guidelines adjacent Tel Aviv aren’t sufficient.

Israel’s subject said its intelligence guidelines adjacent Tel Aviv wasn’t hit. Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani, an Israeli subject spokesman, said an first appraisal showed “very small damage” successful Israel.

Sunday’s speech of occurrence did not group disconnected a long-feared war, and nan dense firepower and deficiency of civilian casualties mightiness let some sides to declare a benignant of triumph and measurement back. But tensions stay high.

Hezbollah began firing rockets and drones astatine Israel soon aft nan outbreak of the warfare successful Gaza, which was triggered by Hamas’ astonishment onslaught into Israel connected Oct. 7. Hezbollah and Hamas are allies, each backed by Iran. Israel has responded pinch airstrikes.

More than 500 group person been killed successful Lebanon by Israeli strikes since Oct. 8, astir of them fighters pinch Hezbollah and different equipped groups but besides much than 100 civilians. In bluish Israel, 23 soldiers and 26 civilians person been killed by strikes from Lebanon. Tens of thousands of group person been displaced connected some sides of nan tense border.

Israel has vowed to bring quiet to nan separator to let its citizens to return to their homes. It says it prefers to resoluteness nan rumor diplomatically done U.S. and different mediators but will usage unit if necessary. Hezbollah officials person said nan group does not activity a wider warfare but is prepared for one.

Israel and Hezbollah fought a monthlong warfare successful 2006 that near overmuch of confederate Beirut and confederate Lebanon successful ruins, and drove hundreds of thousands of group from their homes connected some sides.

Hezbollah has an estimated 150,000 rockets and is tin of hitting each parts of Israel. It has besides developed an progressively blase fleet of drones and has been experimenting pinch precision-guided missiles. A full-scale warfare could unit hundreds of thousands of Israelis to flee, paralyze nan Israeli system and unit nan army, which is still engaged successful Gaza, to conflict connected 2 fronts.

Israel has vowed a crushing consequence to immoderate awesome Hezbollah onslaught that would apt devastate Lebanon’s civilian infrastructure and economy, which has been mired successful situation for years. Beirut’s confederate suburbs, and towns and villages crossed confederate Lebanon, wherever Hezbollah’s main strongholds are located, would apt beryllium flattened.

An Israeli crushed penetration to guidelines retired Hezbollah could resistance connected for years. The militant group is acold much precocious and better-armed than Hamas successful Gaza, which is still putting up a conflict aft 10 months of aggravated Israeli bombardment and crushed maneuvers.

An all-out warfare betwixt Israel and Hezbollah could spiral into a region-wide conflict.

Iran-backed groups crossed nan region person many times attacked Israeli, U.S. and international targets since nan commencement of nan warfare successful Gaza and could ramp them up successful a bid to return unit disconnected Hezbollah.

The United States, meanwhile, has pledged ironclad support for Israel and moved a immense array of subject assets to nan Middle East successful caller weeks to effort and deter immoderate retaliatory onslaught by Iran aliases Hezbollah. The USS Abraham Lincoln precocious joined different craft bearer onslaught group successful nan region.

A U.S.-led conjugation helped sprout down hundreds of missiles and drones fired by Iran toward Israel successful April successful consequence to an evident Israeli onslaught successful Syria that killed 2 Iranian generals. Both sides downplayed an evident Israeli counterstrike connected Iran, and tensions gradually subsided.

The United States, Egypt and Qatar person spent months trying to agent an statement for a cease-fire successful Gaza and nan merchandise of scores of hostages held by Hamas. Those efforts person gained urgency successful caller weeks, arsenic diplomats position specified a woody arsenic nan champion dream for lowering location tensions.

An all-out warfare mightiness person derailed nan process, and Nasrallah said nan onslaught had been delayed successful portion to springiness nan negotiations a chance to succeed. Hezbollah has said it will halt its attacks on nan separator if location is simply a cease-fire successful Gaza.

It’s unclear whether Iran would halt aliases standard backmost its ain threatened retaliatory onslaught complete nan sidesplitting of Haniyeh, but Tehran astir apt does not want to beryllium seen arsenic nan spoiler of immoderate cease-fire deal.