Saying it intends to force more Israelis from their homes, Hezbollah fired at least 180 missiles into Israel on Oct. 8, including more than 100 in a midday barrage that targeted the port city of Haifa.
The rocket barrage on Haifa left one person reported wounded, hit by falling shrapnel. Damage was reported to homes.
Meanwhile, Israel said it had taken out yet another Hezbollah heir apparent. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Tuesday that Hashem Safieddine, who had been expected to replace his cousin Hassan Nasrallah, was killed after speculation about his death last week in an airstrike.
“We have degraded Hezbollah’s capabilities,” Netanyahu said. “We have taken out thousands of terrorists, including Nasrallah himself and Nasrallah’s replacement, and the replacement of his replacement.”
With its leadership ranks decimated by military and intelligence attacks in recent weeks, the Iran-backed terror group suddenly appeared more open to negotiations with Israel.
Israel may or may not be interested in negotiating with them.
Addressing the people of Lebanon directly in a televised address on Tuesday, the Israeli prime minister told them they stood at a “crossroads” and urged them to rid themselves of Hezbollah.
If they did, Netanyahu said, Lebanon could return to the prosperity and tolerance it knew a half-century ago and enjoy peace with Israel.
“Israel withdrew from Lebanon 25 years ago,” he said. “But the country that actually conquered Lebanon is not Israel. It’s Iran. Iran, which finances and arms Hezbollah to serve Iran’s interest.’
He cited Hezbollah’s disregard for the Lebanese people, putting them at risk to serve Iranian interests and thus bringing war upon their land.
Hezbollah has fired more than 8,000 rockets at Israel since Oct. 8, 2023, he said.
“Israel has decided to put an end to this,” Netanyahu said
“Israel also has a right to win, and Israel will win.
“You, the Lebanese people, stand at a significant crossroads. It is your choice. You can now take back your country. You can return it to a path of peace and prosperity. If you don’t, Hezbollah will continue to try to fight Israel from densely populated areas at your expense. It doesn’t care if Lebanon is dragged into a wider war.”
The Lebanese can have a better future for their children and grandchildren, he said, if they ditch Hezbollah and make peace with Israel.
“Don’t let these terrorists destroy your future any more than they’ve already done,” he said. “Stand up and take your country back. You have an opportunity that hasn’t existed in decades.”
A Hezbollah deputy leader, one of the last surviving members of its top echelon, denied its military capabilities were diminished and said it was itching for clashes with Israeli troops in Lebanon.
“Our capabilities are fine and our fighters are deployed along the front lines,” said Sheikh Naim Qassem, speaking in a televised address from an undisclosed location. Leaders killed had been replaced, he said. “We have no vacant posts.”
But Qassem, meanwhile, also started discussing the possibility of negotiations. He said they supported efforts by Lebanon’s speaker, Nabih Berri, toward beginning ceasefire talks.
“After the issue of a ceasefire takes shape, and once diplomacy can achieve it, all of the other details can be discussed and decisions can be made,” he said. “If the enemy [Israel] continues its war, then the battlefield will decide.”
While Hezbollah repeatedly over the past year tied any ceasefire talks to Israel’s halting of its war in Gaza, Qassem’s speech seemed to mark a departure from that.
Hezbollah Tunnel
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF), meanwhile, said it had found for the first time a Hezbollah tunnel projecting into Israel’s territory. That tunnel, which the IDF said it had known about for some time, came only 10 meters onto Israeli soil and did not yet have an exit point.But it was under Hezbollah’s complete operational control until it was seized and then dismantled by the army, the IDF said. They found weapons, explosives, and anti-tank missiles inside.
The IDF spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said the tunnel crossed from Marwahin in Lebanon toward the Israeli border community of Zar'it.
Qassem said Israeli forces have not been able to advance since launching their ground incursion into Lebanon last week. The IDF, which just committed a fourth division to its fight in south Lebanon, said it is confining its operations to a narrow border strip to secure the ability of northern residents to return home.
Qassem said, though, that rather than residents returning, even more Israelis would be displaced. Hezbollah has, in recent weeks, increased its rocket attacks on Haifa, a large city further south than the Israeli towns previously evacuated.
Hagari said the IDF on Monday “struck and destroyed dozens of underground command centers” for Hezbollah’s southern front, eliminating six senior commanders and more than 50 terrorists. They were from units set to invade Israel and stage Oct. 7-style attacks, murdering and abducting Israeli civilians, he said.
