What To Know About Israel's Ground Invasion In Southern Lebanon | rssama.com

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JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s crushed penetration successful Lebanon stretched into its 2nd week, arsenic nan Hezbollah militant group fired hundreds of rockets heavy into Israel — pinch nary extremity successful show to nan escalating conflict.

More than 1,400 group person been killed successful Lebanon — mostly successful airstrikes — and complete a cardinal displaced since nan fighting intensified successful mid-September. At slightest 15 Israeli soldiers and 2 civilians person been killed since nan crushed cognition began, and much than 60,000 group person been displaced from towns on nan separator for much than a year.

Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel connected Oct. 8, 2023, a time aft Hamas, nan Palestinian militant group, attacked confederate Israel, which sparked nan warfare successful Gaza. Israel and Hezbollah person exchanged occurrence almost each time since, coming adjacent to a full-fledged warfare connected respective occasions but stepping backmost from nan brink until this month.

Here’s what to cognize astir nan existent crushed incursion successful confederate Lebanon:

What is nan purpose of Israeli military’s crushed invasion?

Israeli soldiers thrust successful a Humvee convoy successful bluish Israel, adjacent nan separator pinch Lebanon connected Oct. 10, 2024.

The Israeli subject began what they called a “limited, localized and targeted crushed raids” successful confederate Lebanon connected Oct. 1. The aforesaid day, nan subject said that it had carried retired dozens of secretive cross-border operations to destruct Hezbollah infrastructure complete nan past year. The aim, Israel says, is to let its displaced residents to return home.

A subject charismatic said that thousands of Israeli troops are presently operating on nan astir 100-kilometer-long (62-mile) border, clearing nan area conscionable on nan separator to effort to region nan motorboat pads wherever Hezbollah fires rocket-propelled grenades and anti-tank missiles into Israeli towns, arsenic good arsenic infrastructure they opportunity would let for an Oct. 7-style penetration of Israel.

The official, who said connected information of anonymity to talk nan military’s strategy, said nan troops haven’t ventured heavy wrong Lebanon truthful far, and person conducted operations from distances of a fewer 100 meters (yards) up to 2 to 3 kilometers (1.5 to 2 miles) into Lebanese territory.

The Israeli subject has shared videos of what it says are underground tunnels chopped into stone utilized by Hezbollah. The tunnels are utilized to shop weapons and shape attacks. One passageway stretched from Lebanon into Israeli territory, according to nan military.

The extremity is not to destruct Hezbollah, and nan service is alert that this will not region nan threat of longer-range rockets and missiles, nan charismatic said.

Elijah Magnier, a Brussels-based subject and counterterrorism analyst, said Israeli forces haven’t seized immoderate crushed positions yet.

“They request to spell in, harass, trial and travel out,” Magnier said. In bid to clasp crushed positions, Israel would request tanks to travel successful and return precocious captious crushed overlooking territory, he said. He estimates it would require clearing immoderate 10 kilometers of Hezbollah presence, which is still a agelong measurement off.

It is not clear really agelong nan cognition will past aliases really agelong Israel will support a beingness successful these towns. The charismatic said nan dream is that this tin lead to a negotiated statement pushing Hezbollah distant from nan border. But nan plans could change. A erstwhile Israeli penetration of Lebanon successful 1982, initially intended to push backmost Palestinian militants, turned into an 18-year occupation.

What is Hezbollah’s strategy?

Hezbollah fighters statement up to attraction astatine nan ceremonial of nan Radwan Forces commandant Ibrahim Aqil and commandant Mahmoud Hamad, some killed successful an Israeli airstrike connected a residential building successful nan Dahiyeh suburb of Beirut, Lebanon.

Hezbollah officials, including assassinated leader Hassan Nasrallah, person conceded that nan Israeli subject has nan superior aerial unit and intelligence. But Hezbollah has nan advantage successful nonstop confrontations connected Lebanese turf.

Hezbollah forces person amended instrumentality and training compared to Hamas, which Israel has been battling for much than a twelvemonth successful Gaza. Hezbollah forces gained acquisition successful wars successful Syria and Iraq. Lebanon’s terrain is besides much rugged and challenging than nan Palestinian enclave, which is mostly level and sandy.

Hezbollah’s strategy, led by its elite Radwan Forces, has been drafting successful and ambushing incoming Israeli troops, detonating explosive devices aliases firing rockets astatine them, and firing artillery and rockets astatine Israeli separator towns. Although Hezbollah has mislaid galore of its apical officials and commanders successful caller weeks, militants person continued to occurrence rockets deeper into Israel, including dense barrages connected nan metropolis of Haifa.

Former Lebanese Army General Hassan Jouni said that he assessed Israel is still conducting reconnaissance up of its main attack, but that it had already suffered dense losses successful nan smaller operations. Jouni said Hezbollah had dug galore tunnels successful nan southbound and were good equipped pinch weapons caches and ammunition.

“The onshore ever useful successful nan favour of those who ain it,” he said.

How does this comparison to nan 2006 warfare betwixt Israel and Hezbollah?

Israeli soldiers are surrounded by fume and particulate arsenic they occurrence crossed nan separator into confederate Lebanon from nan frontier successful Zaura, bluish Israel, connected July 12, 2006.

Israel and Hezbollah past went to warfare successful 2006, a 34-day conflict that ended pinch nan United Nations Resolution 1701, which was expected to push Hezbollah further northbound and support nan separator region exclusively nether nan power of nan Lebanese service and UN peacekeepers.

Israeli leaders opportunity they want Lebanon to instrumentality nan resolution. Hezbollah says Israel hasn’t held up its portion of nan pact and will extremity firing rockets erstwhile location is simply a ceasefire successful nan Gaza Strip.

Israel’s searing aerial run successful confederate Lebanon and Beirut successful caller weeks is akin to nan 2006 war, though this time, amended intelligence has enabled Israel to termination several of Hezbollah’s apical leadership.

“The Air Force is amended and is utilizing each kinds of methods to penetrate deeper into nan ground, for illustration dropping explosive aft explosive aft bomb,” said Yoel Guzansky, a elder interrogator astatine nan Institute for National Security Studies successful Tel Aviv. Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah successful September by dropping much than 80 bombs connected an flat analyzable built complete an underground compound successful speedy succession.

In nan 2006 war, Israel sent crushed troops into Lebanon aft 10 days of airstrikes earlier withdrawing them astir 4 weeks later. Troops attempted to scope nan Litani River, astir 30 kilometers (18.5 miles) northbound of nan border, but suffered dense losses earlier a ceasefire ended nan cognition and nan war.

Could location beryllium a negotiated solution?

Peacekeeping soldiers pinch nan United Nations guidelines successful beforehand of an Israeli vessel connected June 9, 2023, amid nan cross-border clashes pinch Lebanese citizens successful Kfarchouba and Shebaa Farm.

Hezbollah’s acting leader signaled Tuesday that nan group is unfastened to a cease-fire. Guzansky believes Israeli troops will enactment connected nan crushed successful confederate Lebanon until location is an internationally enforced negotiated solution that’s stronger than nan existent UN peacekeeping force. If Israeli troops retreat, he said, they consequence nan aforesaid business arsenic 2006, wherever Hezbollah simply rearmed and resumed operations.

But erstwhile Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who was Israel’s leader during nan 2006 war, said that warfare served arsenic a instruction that contiguous diplomacy, alternatively than subject force, is nan only measurement to support nan separator quiet.

“Why not effort and make a woody now alternatively than to conflict for half a year?” he asked successful an question and reply pinch The Associated Press. “You suffer really galore soldiers, termination really galore guiltless people? And past successful nan extremity we’ll make a woody which whitethorn person been made successful advance.”

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This article has been corrected to bespeak that Israeli troops did not scope nan Litani River during nan 2006 war.

Chehayeb reported from Beirut. Associated Press writers Sarah El-Deeb and Abby Sewell successful Beirut and Josef Federman and Julia Frankel successful Jerusalem contributed to this report.

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