‘IDF is focused on fighting Hezbollah, preparing offensive actions in Lebanon,’ IDF chief warns

Attacks from Hezbollah throughout weekend damage homes, ignite fires in Israel

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Amid ongoing, daily attacks by Hezbollah against Israel, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi warned the terror group that the army is “preparing for offensive moves” inside Lebanon.

Halevi’s threatening statement came during his latest tour of the northern border on Israel’s Golan Heights. “The IDF is very focused on fighting Hezbollah. I think that the number of attacks in the last month, operatives killed, rockets destroyed, infrastructure destroyed, is very large,” Halevi said.

The IDF announced on Friday that over 50 airstrikes last week targeted Hezbollah buildings, infrastructure, weapon depots and rocket launchers in Lebanon.

“The Northern Command, with all the capabilities of the IDF, is attacking many of Hezbollah’s capabilities inside Lebanon before they attack us, and at the same time, we are also preparing for offensive moves inside its territory,” Halevi said.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi on Israel's northern border, Sept. 6, 2024 (Photo: IDF)

On Friday, within the span of an hour, the IDF struck 15 rocket launchers poised for immediate launches against Israel in the area of the Litani River, approximately 25 kilometers (about 15 miles) from the border, and targeted several other Hezbollah positions across southern Lebanon.

The IDF published footage of the strikes, noting that the rockets flying off in various directions indicated they had been prepared for immediate launches.

מטוסי קרב, בהכוונת פיקוד הצפון, תקפו בשעה האחרונה יותר מ-15 משגרים ותשתיות צבאיות של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה בדרום לבנון.

לאחר תקיפת המשגרים, אשר חלקם היו מוכנים לשיגור מיידי לשטח הארץ, זוהו שיגורים שיצאו מהמשגרים ונפלו בשטח לבנון. pic.twitter.com/DHMTUWq6ne
— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) September 6, 2024

Exchanges of fire continued through the Jewish Sabbath, as Hezbollah launched some 30 rockets toward Mount Meron on Saturday morning.

Later in the day, around 10 rockets were fired at the Western Galilee area, damaging a home in the town of Shlomi and causing a fire near Moshav Liman, Army Radio reported.

Some hours after this, four to five rockets were fired at the town of Safed, activating sirens in the area for the first time in over two weeks.

In response. the IDF struck a vehicle in a Hezbollah military compound in the area of Faroun, near the Litani River.

Three Hezbollah terrorists were killed in the attack, according to Lebanese reports.

The terror group responded by launching two to three drones at Ayelet al-Hashahar, which exploded in open areas without causing damage.

In the evening, the IDF carried out another round of airstrikes, noting that it bombed the rocket launcher used to attack Safed earlier in the day.

מטוסי קרב תקפו במרחב עינתא שבדרום לבנון והשמידו משגר של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה ממנו שוגרו היום רקטות לשטח פתוח במרחב צפת.

בנוסף, כוחות צה"ל תקפו בארטילריה במרחבים אל עדייסא, א-נקורה, אבו שש וטיר-חרפא שבדרום לבנון>> pic.twitter.com/7XaiejcvsA
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 7, 2024