Israel Deepens Lebanon Strikes as Hezbollah Rattles Saber

Latest Developments

Israel carried out its deepest strike yet in Lebanon since October 7, local media reported on November 11, as Hezbollah said it would escalate attacks. The morning drone attack in Zaharani, some 27 miles from the Israeli border, was reported by Israel’s Army Radio as well as some Lebanese media. The target was a truck Hezbollah apparently used to transport munitions or launch aerial attacks on Israel, and the strike followed a surge in missile launches by the Lebanese terrorist group against Israeli aircraft.

The IDF said only that it had attacked a “wide range” of Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. The IDF also responded to rocket fire from Syria — a relative rarity during the Gaza war that erupted on October 7 — with artillery shelling.

Separately, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah on November 11 delivered his second televised speech of the war, saying his group would keep the Lebanon-Israel front “active” but stopping short of pledging full use of its arsenal of more than 150,000 missiles and rockets.

For now, he said, Hezbollah had expanded its tactics by using Burkan (“Volcano”) rockets with warheads containing as much as 1,000 pounds of explosives, and kamikaze drones. Two Israeli soldiers were wounded by a kamikaze drone on November 10, the IDF said.

Expert Analysis

“Israel’s front with Lebanon is slowly heating up. For now, Hezbollah is signaling a measured escalation, with Israel responding in kind. But the situation could easily unravel. For example, should Hezbollah inflict mass casualties or, in a longer-range rocket attack, set off major explosions in a strategic Israeli area like the Haifa port’s industrial zone. Israel has said it is poised to unleash its full force in Lebanon and ‘make Beirut look like Gaza.’ Hezbollah is an Iranian puppet but it is also a Lebanese group that has to bear in mind the domestic costs of its aggression.” — Mark Dubowitz, FDD CEO

“Despite ongoing challenges on the northern front of Israel, it is notable that the Israeli military has maintained a defensive stance since the beginning of Hezbollah’s attacks on October 8. At this time, it suggests that Israel is not inclined to escalate tensions or initiate a campaign against Hezbollah in the northern region, instead choosing to respond in kind to the actions taken by Hezbollah.” — Joe Truzman, Research Analyst at FDD’s Long War Journal

Related Analysis

“Israel Strikes Syrian Terror Group That Targeted Eilat School with Drone,” FDD Flash Brief

“Widespread Attacks on Israeli Civilians Persist One Month On,” FDD Flash Brief

“The Hezbollah Two-Step,” by Jonathan Schanzer

“Nasrallah’s Big Speech,” by Jonathan Schanzer