Hezbollah's biggest 'retaliation' attacks – The Jerusalem Post

Hezbollah launched numerous attacks against Israel on July 4. Most of the attacks began around 10 a.m. and continued throughout the day. They mostly involved the use of drones, which have become one of Hezbollah’s main weapons in its arsenal since the start of the October 7 war and Hezbollah’s choice to launch attacks against Israel.

Hezbollah claimed, via Iranian media, that it had “launched a salvo of rockets on several Israeli military positions in response to the regime’s assassination of one of its commanders in southern Lebanon.” It said it had targeted “five Israeli military positions, including 100 Katyushas that targeted the headquarters of the Golan Division as well as Israeli air and missile systems at the Nafah base,” Iranian news agency IRNA reported.

Hezbollah called the attack a retaliation for the killing of Muhammad Nimah Nasser, known as “Hajj Abu Naameh,” by Israel on Wednesday. He is the second senior Hezbollah official killed in the past month. Another was killed on June 12. Hezbollah responded in June by firing up to 215 rockets and projectiles into northern Israel.

Hezbollah MPs said that retaliation against Israel would intensify. “Hassan Fadlallah (a Hezbollah MP in the Lebanese parliament) stressed that Hezbollah’s punitive response would come and that the enemy should understand that the resistance front has the upper hand,” IRNA reported. Hezbollah continues to warn Israel against launching a large-scale military operation in Lebanon. Iran has also issued warnings about the risks of an escalation of the war.

It is clear that Iran and Hezbollah do not want a wider war, because Iran wants to preserve Hezbollah so that it can use it against Israel. Hezbollah has achieved many of its goals in nine months of attacks. It has depopulated areas of northern Israel, including Kiryat Shmona, an unprecedented “success” in Hezbollah’s eyes.

Hezbollah members (credit: REUTERS)

A recent article by Iran’s official IRNA news agency, which echoes Hezbollah’s statements, pointed out that Israelis who left the north in October because of the attacks had become “refugees” in hotels in Israel. This is the plan of Iran and Hezbollah. Their plan does not aim for a major war because they fear the damage that Hezbollah could suffer.

The Real Message of Hezbollah

Hezbollah’s message is clear in its attacks. It used drones in numerous incidents on Wednesday between 10 a.m. and noon, targeting an increasingly wide area between the Sea of Galilee and Metulla. This included numerous sirens in the Golan and also in the Huleh Valley. These included communities overlooking Huleh such as Shamir and Gonen. It also included Katzrin in the Golan. At 11:23 a.m., the area of Hezbollah’s attacks expanded to target Nahariya and communities along the coast as well as further inland.

Hezbollah’s message is clear. It has a large arsenal of drones, as well as rockets and missiles, to choose where and when to attack. It has been bolstering its drone arsenal in recent months, increasing its use of them. Indeed, drones can be precise and effective, and can sound sirens over large areas. Hezbollah can then obtain a list of what it considers “successes.” It can target Israeli areas with precision, as well as force civilian areas into shelters using the sirens. Hezbollah often relies on Israeli media to bolster its sense of accomplishment. It sometimes seeks to whitewash information through foreign media, and then rebroadcast its “success” through Al-Mayadeen to make its claims more legitimate.

The problem here is that Hezbollah’s statements are not enough to make them true, but it believes they will be truer if it can get others to repeat them. Therefore, the attacks in retaliation for the commander’s assassination will also multiply on the Internet and in the media. For example, Al-Mayadeen reported that the Israeli newspaper Haaretz had said that “difficult days” were ahead after Nasser’s assassination in Lebanon. It remains to be seen whether this is what Hezbollah has in store for now or whether the retaliation will subside one day.