Amid the escalating exchange of threats between Hizbullah and Israel, Al-Mudun, an independent Lebanese online daily, reports that Iran has supplied Hizbullah with advanced weapons systems such as unmanned surface vehicles (drone boats) and unmanned underwater vehicles (underwater drones) that can evade the Israeli detection systems and reach the Israeli coast. It has also supplied Hizbullah with torpedoes and floating platforms with which to attack the gas rigs off the Israeli coast, and missiles for attacking Israel's air defense systems.
According to the daily, Hizbullah has placed its troops on a higher level of alert, instructed them to maintain their positions in the towns near the border and reinforced its missile array in preparation for a possible Israeli military operation; furthermore, the joint operations room of the resistance axis has been discussing the option of bringing Shi'ite militias from Iraq and Yemen to Lebanon to assist Hizbullah in the war with Israel.
It should be mentioned that, in his June 19, 2024 speech, Hizbullah secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah threatened that his organization can attack all of Israel's beaches and ports as well as Israeli ships in the Mediterranean, and stressed that "they should expect us on land, in air and at sea."[1] Several days later, Ibrahim Al-Amin, editor-in-chief of the pro-Hizbullah Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar, wrote that Hizbullah would consider any "high-quality" Israeli military operation as a declaration of total war, and that in such a war Hizbullah may invade the Galilee, attack military and civilian facilities in Israel and target the defense systems deployed along the Mediterranean coast and near Mediterranean ports.[2]
Hizbullah military maneuvers in May 2023 (Image: Alnashra.com. May 21, 2023)
The following are translated excerpts from the Al-Mudun report.[3]
"Lebanon has moved beyond the war of diplomatic warnings and Israeli threats [and has entered] a new phase, [a phase] of following the open confrontations between Hizbullah and the Israeli occupation army. This is a phase of psychological warfare, which Hizbullah has decided to accelerate… On the political level, Hizbullah still feels that war is unlikely and that, despite the escalating verbal threats, Israel and the West will not be willing to launch a new war [against it]… [But] on the military level, Hizbullah acts on the assumption that war is likely and is taking all the necessary measures.
"According to military and security sources, there is intelligence that the Israeli army intends to launch a limited military operation in Lebanon in order to push Hizbullah away from the border. According to this intelligence, if such an attack takes place, it may begin with a ground infiltration or invasion via one of the towns on the border, or via several towns simultaneously. Accordingly, Hizbullah has asked its fighters deployed in the towns on the border, in the western, eastern and central sectors, to remain in their positions and instructed the missile unit to reinforce them.
"In preparation for a [possible] Israeli attack, Hizbullah has placed [its elite forces], the Radwan Brigade, and its [rocket and missile force], the Nasser Unit, on a higher level of alert and readiness along the routes Israel may take in infiltrating [Lebanon], especially [in the vicinity of] Ayta Al-Sha'b, Rmeish, Yaroun, Maroun Al-Ras, Aitaroun, Blida, Muhaibib, Meiss Al-Jabal, Houla, Markaba, Odaisseh, Kafr Kila, Al-Taibeh and Al-Wazzani,
"On Hizbullah's part, the confrontation will involve direct clashes and the launching of missiles and attack drones at Israeli targets in the depth of northern Palestine. Hizbullah is also preparing for the possibility that Israel will land forces on the Al-Baida and Naqoura beaches. At the same time, Hizbullah assumes that the Israeli plan is not coherent after all these months of fighting in Gaza and that the Israeli army is not ready to carry it out.
"According to the intelligence, Tehran will support Hizbullah with all the weapons at its disposal. It has [already] supplied it with long-range drone boats and underwater drones that can approach the Israeli coast and attack targets there. These drones are made of materials that are invisible to radar, such as dense carbon fibers, [manufactured using] the most advanced technology that Iran has managed to obtain. Iran has also supplied Hizbullah with low-altitude surface-to-sea missiles, torpedoes that can be used against maritime targets like warships and war submarines, and floating platforms that were developed according to Hizbullah's requirements and from which it can attack Israeli off-shore facilities, such as the gas rigs, as well as ships in the Mediterranean. Based on this, Hizbullah secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah threatened the Israelis, saying: 'expect us on land, in air and at sea.'
"According to the intelligence provided, Iran's military industry has developed a new kind of missile that can hit Israeli's air defense systems, including the Iron Dome [system], which Hizbullah tested in the recent weeks with full success. As part of the preparations for war, the joint operations room of the resistance axis also discussed how numerous forces and factions, including from Iraq and Yemen, could come [to Lebanon] to help Hizbullah if war breaks out."
[1] See MEMRI TV Clip No. 11191, Hizbullah Leader Hassan Nasrallah Warns Cyprus Against Allowing Israel To Use Its Airports And Bases In War With Hizbullah; Adds: We Will Target All Of Israel's Beaches, Ports, And Ships In The Mediterranean Sea; They Should Expect Us In Land, Air, And Sea, June 19, 2024.
[2] See MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 11419, Lebanese Journalist Close To Hizbullah: In Case Of Total War, Hizbullah Is Prepared To Invade Galilee, Strike Civilian Facilities In Israel, Attack Targets Off Mediterranean Coast, Including In Southern Europe, June 25, 2024.
[3] Al-Mudun (Lebanon), June 25, 2024.
