Residents of northern Israel disappointed in IDF, government as Hezbollah resumes regular ‘program’ of daily attacks

Effect from Israeli pre-emptive attack on Hezbollah appears to have fizzled out

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Despite Israel’s large-scale attack striking approximately 90 Hezbollah rocket launch sites about a week ago, the terror group seems to have recovered and resumed its usual frequency of attacks on Israel, leaving residents of Israel’s north deeply disillusioned.

On Tuesday afternoon, the Lebanese terror group fired several anti-tank missiles toward Arab al-Aramsheh in the Western Galilee, damaging one home.

Over the past day, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for seven attacks on targets in Israel, including the launch of a 30-rocket barrage toward the towns of Ein Yaakov, Ga’aton and Yehiam.

According to Hezbollah, the attack was in response to an IDF strike near Naqoura on Monday that killed two employees of the United Nations peacekeeping mission (UNIFIL) near the Israeli border, the Associated Press reported.

The IDF hasn’t yet commented on the strike, and Hezbollah didn’t claim the two UNIFIL employees belonged to its organization.

כוח צה״ל מיחידת האיסוף 869 זיהה מוקדם יותר היום מחבל מארגון הטרור חיזבאללה נכנס למבנה צבאי של הארגון במרחב מרכבא שבדרום לבנון.
בסגירת מעגל מהאוויר, מטוסי קרב תקפו את המבנה בו פעל המחבל>> pic.twitter.com/TpxYee4Pl1
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 3, 2024

On Tuesday, the IDF announced that Israeli Air Force (IAF) fighter jets struck a Hezbollah terrorist after he was spotted entering a military building in the area of Markaba.

Over the past 24 hours, IDF airstrikes targeted Hezbollah structures in Reihan,Yaroun, Ayta al-Sha’ab, Hanine, Tayr Harfa and Bayda in southern Lebanon.

In addition, the IAF destroyed approximately 10 rocket launchers in Zabkine and Shihine, and an observation post near Houla.

מטוסי קרב תקפו מוקדם יותר היום מבנה צבאי של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה במרחב מרכבא שבדרום לבנון.

בהמשך להתרעות שהופעלו לפני זמן קצר במרחב הגליל המערבי, זוהו כ-30 שיגורים שחצו משטח לבנון, אין נפגעים pic.twitter.com/ENjOwaGi0o
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 2, 2024

Israel’s Alma Research Center said that despite the temporary decline in Hezbollah’s frequency of attacks following Israel’s pre-emptive strike, the terror group has steadily increased its attacks on Israeli towns farther than 5 kilometers (about 3 miles) from the border, which have not been evacuated.

“I was so excited and even happy that it begins and the IDF is finally working to complete the war and stop Hezbollah,” a resident, Michael Mor, from Kibbutz Gonen in the Upper Galilee told Ynet News referring to a large-scale IDF attack on Hezbollah targets.

Gonen is among the towns that were not evacuated, but are so close to the border that they have been living with daily alarm sirens under constant bombardment.

“After about three hours, the noise from the planes’ movement in the sky suddenly stopped,” Mor said. “I was so angry with myself that I believed the statements of the army and the prime minister, and I was optimistic that security would be restored here. My hope was dashed too quickly. It’s a shame what's happening in the country.”

Despite declaring the return of the north’s tens of thousands of still-evacuated citizens to their homes as a war goal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to present a concrete plan for how to accomplish it when asked about it during a press conference on Monday evening.

“The feeling is that no one cares about us. Israel has two states, one in Tel Aviv and one in the periphery,” Mor shared.

“There is no routine here. It is possible that in 10 minutes we will receive an order to stay near protected areas and wait for a Hezbollah attack for hours. Hezbollah controls our routine and they decide when and where to shoot and repeatedly disrupt our lives.”