Israel begins limited ground offensive in southern Lebanon
Israel announced the start of limited ground strikes against Hezbollah targets.
According to RIA Novosti on October 1, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said its army had conducted limited ground attacks against Hezbollah targets in the border area in southern Lebanon.
The Israeli Air Force and artillery are supporting IDF ground forces throughout the operation, attacking military targets.
“In accordance with political decisions, a few hours ago the IDF carried out limited, localized and targeted strikes, based on precise intelligence, against Hezbollah targets and infrastructure in southern Lebanon,” the Israeli military said on its Telegram channel on October 1.
Earlier, US officials said that Israeli special forces conducted several raids on Lebanese territory, near the border between the two countries on the morning of September 30 to collect intelligence and destroy Hezbollah outposts in the area.
An unnamed US official described the raids as “small, very precise, very targeted attacks” targeting Hezbollah’s capabilities.
The US does not consider these to be Israeli ground attacks, but they continue to prepare for the scenario of Israel conducting a limited ground offensive campaign in Lebanon in the coming days.
Hezbollah said it was ready to respond to an Israeli invasion. Iran also warned of retaliation for recent Israeli actions that have killed more than 1,000 people in Lebanon and injured more than 6,000.
