Hezbollah fired explosive drones at IDF troops in the Ali Taher Ridge area of southern Lebanon. The Times of Israel reports that one of the drones was shot down, with none of the soldiers in the unit injured. The IDF responded with overnight strikes against the terror group in the Nabatieh area, which is home to a major, active underground facility.
Meanwhile, Israel has begun releasing Lebanese detainees as part of negotiations with Beirut in exchange for efforts to locate the remains of Lebanese Jews who were abducted and murdered by terror groups more than 40 years ago.
Hezbollah’s refusal to hand over control of the Ali Taher Ridge to the Lebanese army has reportedly become an obstacle to efforts to advance towards a permanent ceasefire agreement to end an ongoing war.
Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the broader Middle East conflict in March by launching rockets at Israel in support of its sponsor Iran, which had come under attack by a US-Israeli air campaign. Israel responded to the Hezbollah attacks with a heavy air campaign and ground invasion.
Despite the ceasefire declared in Lebanon in April, fighting has persisted to a lesser extent. Israeli forces continue to operate inside a self-declared “security zone,” which runs around 10 kilometers (six miles) deep inside Lebanese territory along the border.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed the release of the first of five Lebanese detainees after it was determined that they were not involved in any terror activity. Searches continue for the remains of Lebanese Jews, including community leaders. In the mid-1980s, Lebanon’s Jewish communities were victimized by terror groups, causing them to shrink in size. Many of the Jews who were abducted and murdered have never been found or even identified
Iran has also warned the U.S. that it would respond to continued Israeli offensives against Hezbollah. It has been reported that Iranian military personnel are working alongside Hezbollah terror operatives and are holed up in the Ali Taher mountains. The area has become a focal point of IDF operations, as the terror group is said to have a key underground command center there.
Along with our daily prayers for IDF personnel and for peace, The Fellowship and our supporters pray for the families of Lebanon’s Jewish community and that the latest efforts between Jerusalem and Beirut will give them closure after all these decades.