Israel Strikes Hezbollah Weapons Depots in Southern Lebanon Amid Rising Tensions
JERUSALEM, Sept 28 (VoM): The Israeli military announced on Sunday that it had carried out airstrikes targeting weapons depots belonging to Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, underscoring simmering tensions despite a fragile ceasefire.
In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the depots were used by the armed group “to advance and carry out terror attacks against the State of Israel.”
The strikes come in defiance of a November 2024 ceasefire that ended more than a year of cross-border hostilities. Israel has nonetheless continued periodic strikes in Lebanon and maintains troops at five positions along the border inside Lebanese territory.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah faces mounting pressure to disarm. The Lebanese army has reportedly prepared a plan to begin dismantling the group’s arsenal, starting in the south. The United States has also urged Lebanon to take action amid the continuing Israeli raids.
On Saturday, Hezbollah’s deputy leader Naim Qassem reiterated the group’s refusal to surrender its weapons, vowing resilience as he addressed supporters during a commemoration of former Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed by Israel a year ago.
Hezbollah, the only militia permitted to retain arms after Lebanon’s civil war, has justified its arsenal as necessary to resist Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon. The group’s base of support lies in the Shiite-majority regions of southern and eastern Lebanon, as well as Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The latest escalation follows a cycle of violence that began in October 2023, when Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel in solidarity with Hamas in Gaza. Months of clashes spiraled into full scale war by September 2024, before the two sides agreed to a ceasefire two months later.
The new Israeli strikes raise fears that the truce may unravel, risking yet another round of conflict in the already volatile region.