IDF: Over 30 Hezbollah operatives killed in southern Lebanon operation

The IDF said its troops have eliminated more than 30 Hezbollah operatives in recent days during ongoing operations in southern Lebanon as part of efforts to maintain a forward defensive posture along the northern border. The military said the activity is aimed at protecting residents of northern Israel amid continued tensions with the Iran-backed group.

According to the IDF, those killed include approximately 10 operatives from Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force. The operations involved coordinated activity using Israeli Air Force strikes, tank fire, sniper units, and drones targeting operatives across multiple areas.

“IDF soldiers continue their forward defense activity to maintain a forward defensive posture in order to defend the residents of northern Israel,” the military said in a statement, adding that it is “operating decisively against the Hezbollah terrorist organization.”

In one incident, troops identified several Hezbollah operatives inside a building and struck the site within minutes, killing those inside, the military said. The IDF added that its forces continue to act based on real-time intelligence to target what it describes as immediate threats.

The military also reported dismantling dozens of Hezbollah infrastructure sites and uncovering stockpiles of weapons during the operations. These actions, the IDF said, are part of a broader campaign to degrade the group’s operational capabilities in southern Lebanon.

Earlier on Thursday, IDF troops came in contact with a group of Hezbollah operatives in what it said was its first direct engagement with enemy forces on the ground in the current operation. Another Israeli soldier was seriously wounded Wednesday by a mortar strike, and several others in sustained minor injuries in seperate incidents, including friendly-fire. Fifteen soldiers have also been treated for suspected hypothermia during ongoing operations.

The increased activity follows continued cross-border hostilities that flared up again earlier this month after Hezbollah decided to blatantly break its existing ceasefire with Israel and join Iran in shooting incessant rocket barrages towards Israeli civilian areas. 

Israeli forces responded to these attacks by expanding operations in southern Lebanon while targeting Hezbollah infrastructure and operatives. Israel is also currently considering mobilizing up to 400,000 reservists to expand ground operations in Lebanon amid this escalation of hostilities.