Hezbollah Introduces New Weapons and Tactics Against Israel as War in Gaza Deepens

Beirut: Lebanese militant group Hezbollah this week struck a military post in norrn Israel using a drone that fired two missiles. attack wounded three soldiers, one of m seriously, according to Israeli military.

Hezbollah has regularly fired missiles across border with Israel over past seven months, but one on Thursday appears to have been first successful missile airstrike it has launched from within Israeli airspace.

group has stepped up its attacks on Israel in recent weeks, particularly since Israeli incursion into sourn city of Rafah in Gaza Strip. It has struck deeper inside Israel and introduced new and more vanced weaponry.

“This is a method of sending messages on ground to Israeli enemy, meaning that this is part of what we have, and if needed we can strike more,” said Lebanese political analyst Faisal Abdul-Sater who closely follows Hezbollah.

While cross-border exchanges of fire have been ongoing since early October, “complex attacks” by Hezbollah began a few days after Iran's unprecedented drone and missile barrage attack on Israel in mid-April.

In past two weeks, Hezbollah has escalated furr in response to Israeli incursion into city of sourn Rafah in Gaza Strip, a Lebanese official familiar with group's operations said. official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to detail military information to media.

Thursday afternoon attack by a drone carrying missiles came just days after Hezbollah launched three anti-tank guided missiles at an Israeli military post that controlled a surveillance balloon flying over border.

y released camera footage afterward to show y h hit ir mark. Hours later, Israeli military confirmed that spy balloon h been shot down over Lebanon.

night before, Hezbollah h carried out its deepest attack in Israel to date using explosive drones to strike at a base in Ilaniya near city of Tiberias about 35 kilometers (22 miles) from Lebanon border. Israeli military said attack did not hurt anyone.

Abdul-Sater, analyst, said Iran-led coalition known as axis of resistance, which includes Palestinian militant group Hamas, has warned that if Israeli troops launch a full-scale invasion of Rafah in an attempt to go after Hamas, or fronts will also escalate.

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed Wednesday that y attacked a US destroyer while Iran-backed militants in Iraq have said y fired a series of drones toward Israel in recent weeks after having gone relatively quiet since February.

Hezbollah's use of more vanced weaponry, including drones capable of firing missiles, explosive drones and small of guided missile known as Almas, or Diamond, that was used to attack base controlling balloon has raised alarms within Israeli military.

“Hezbollah has been escalating situation in north,” said military spokesman Lt. Col. Nav Shoshani. “y've been firing more and more.” In apting its attacks, Hezbollah has also managed to reduce numbers of fighters lost compared with early weeks of conflict.

group has lost more than 250 fighters so far, compared with 15 Israeli troops since fighting broke out along Lebanon-Israel border a day after Israel-Hamas war started on October 7.

According to a count by Associated Press, Hezbollah lost 47 fighters in October and 35 in November, compared with 20 in April and 12 so far this month.

official familiar with group's operations said Hezbollah h reduced numbers of fighters along border areas to bring down numbers of casualties.

While Hezbollah continues to fire Russian-me anti-tank Kornet missiles from areas close to border, it has also shifted to firing drones and or s of rockets with heavy war hes — including Almas as well as Falaq and Burkan rockets — from areas several kilometers (miles) from border.

Over weekend, Hezbollah said it h launched a new rocket with a heavy warhe named Jih Mughniyeh after a senior operative who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on sourn Syria in 2015.

Eva J. Koulouriotis, a political analyst specialized in Middle East and jihi groups wrote on social media platform X that Hezbollah's recent escalation likely has several goals, including raising ceiling of group's demands in any future negotiations for a border deal, as well as raising military pressure on Israel's military in light of preparations for battle in Rafah.

Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowed in a speech last week that “we will stand, we will achieve our goals, we will hit Hamas, we will destroy Hezbollah, and we will bring security”.

On Monday, Hezbollah leer Hassan Nasrallah reiterated in a speech that re will be no end to fighting along Lebanon-Israel border until Israel's military operations in Gaza Strip come to an end.

“ main goal of Lebanon's front is to contribute to pressure on enemy to end war on Gaza,” Nasrallah said.

His comments were a blow to attempts by foreign dignitaries, including US and French officials, who have visited Beirut to try to put an end to violence that has displaced tens of thousands of people on both sides of border.

A day after Nasrallah spoke, Cana's Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly visited Beirut and told Lebanon's private LBC TV station that she was pushing for a cease-fire.

“We need people living in south of Lebanon to be able to go back to ir homes," she said. "We need to make sure that Israelis living in norrn part of Israel are able to get back to ir homes also.” Hezbollah's deputy leer Naim Kassim warned Israel in a speech over weekend against opening an all-out war.

“You have tried in past and you were defeated and if you try again you will be defeated,” said Kassim, referring to 2006 Israel-Hezbollah 34-day war that ended in a draw. 

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