Israel evacuated residents of 14 towns near the border of Lebanon as the Israeli chief of staff announced the Israel Defense Forces are ready for a ground invasion of Gaza.
The IDF and Israel’s National Emergency Management Authority of the Ministry of Defense evacuated the villages along the border due to fears regarding Hezbollah, further indicating Israel's concern over an attack from the north. Minor clashes between the IDF and Hezbollah have been commonplace since Hamas's Oct. 7 surprise attack, and there have been casualties on both sides. Hezbollah has indicated it will intervene in the case of an Israeli ground invasion of Gaza, which IDF chief of staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said is fully prepared.
BIDEN VACATIONS WHILE PRESSURE TO FREE HOSTAGES MOUNTS
“A maneuver in the south has been very well prepared,” Halevi said, the Times of Israel reported, referring to the planned invasion of Gaza. He addressed the past delays, saying, “There are tactical, operative, and strategic considerations, which gave us more time and forces that have more time to prepare better, and this is what the forces are doing now.”
“We want to bring Hamas to a point of disintegration. Its leadership, its military wing. That is why we attack with great force. We are killing senior commanders, killing operatives, destroying infrastructure, and acting with great determination,” Halevi told commanders of the 146th Division in northern Israel.
The latest evacuations along the border of Lebanon put the total number of civilians evacuated from the borders with Gaza and Lebanon at 120,000. Analysts view the move as a way to shore up defenses and avoid a repeat of Oct. 7, when Hamas militants stormed several Israeli villages along the border, killing nearly 1,400 and carrying over 200 off into captivity.
“Israel is hardening its defenses by evacuating cities and communities in the north that will likely endure heavy rocket fire from Hezbollah if the situation rapidly escalates," Enia Krivine, senior director of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies’s Israel Program and National Security Network, said. "Israel’s emergency management authority is currently dealing with over 120,000 displaced people, and this number could grow considerably in the coming days. Luckily, Israel has contingency plans for getting people out of harm’s way to prevent civilian casualties."
Hezbollah has emerged as a powerful threat against Israel in the current conflict, far outclassing Hamas regarding manpower and firepower. Jonathan Schanzer, senior vice president of the FDD, told the Washington Examiner that Hezbollah has anywhere from 30,000-50,000 trained fighters and the ability to double in case of war. The main threat comes from their missile arsenal, which consists of over 150,000 rockets of varying quality.
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Israel and the United States have taken several steps to deter Hezbollah, and Israel has threatened drastic consequences if it decides to get involved.
Should Hezbollah invade Israel, "It will make the mistake of its life. We will cripple it with a force it cannot even imagine, and the consequences for it and the Lebanese state will be devastating," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday, speaking with IDF troops near the Lebanese border.