The Israel Defense Forces is preparing for the possibility of several days of intensive combat in Lebanon, according to reports Sunday evening, as tensions escalate over ongoing Israeli military operations on the Ali Taher ridge and in the Beaufort area of southern Lebanon.
Channel 12 News reported that the IDF and Israeli leadership remain committed to completing the destruction of terror infrastructure in these strategic locations. While some of the terror facilities have been eliminated, others remain operational. Hezbollah, for its part, views control of these areas as strategically vital and has been attempting to strike Israeli soldiers operating there.
The heightened alert follows an incident Saturday in which three IDF soldiers were seriously wounded near the Ali Taher ridge. In response, the Israeli military launched extensive overnight strikes between Saturday and Sunday that Lebanese sources described as a "belt of fire" across southern Lebanon.
Sunday morning, the IDF announced it had eliminated Abu Hassan Alaa, a senior commander in Hezbollah's Badr Unit, in a strike near the town of Deir al-Zahrani. According to the military spokesman, the targeted killing was carried out in response to the terror organization's activities against Israeli forces operating in the security zone. The spokesman added that in his role, the operative had been involved in advancing terror activities in the field, including launching explosive drones at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon.
Defense Minister Israel Katz wrote on X Sunday morning: "No account in any arena will remain open. We will respond forcefully to any attack on our soldiers and civilians." Lebanese media reported overnight that the IDF struck multiple locations in southern Lebanon, including the Ali Taher ridge area where the officer and two soldiers were wounded Saturday.
