Israeli army says it began ‘limited targeted ground operations’ against Hezbollah in south Lebanon

JERUSALEM – The Israeli military said on March 16 it had begun what it described as “limited ground operations” against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.

Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war on March 2 when the Tehran-backed Hezbollah attacked Israel in response to the killing of Iranian supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in US-Israeli strikes. Israel responded with air raids on the neighbouring country and troop incursions into border areas.

“In recent days, IDF (Israel Defense Forces) troops from the 91st division have begun limited and targeted ground operations against key Hezbollah strongholds in southern Lebanon, aimed at enhancing the forward defence area,” the military said in a statement.

“This activity is part of broader defensive efforts to establish and strengthen a forward defensive posture, which includes the dismantling of terrorist infrastructure and the elimination of terrorists operating in the area, in order to remove threats and create an additional layer of security for residents of northern Israel,” it added.

“Prior to the troops’ entry into the area, the IDF conducted strikes using both artillery and the Israeli Air Force against numerous terrorist targets in order to mitigate threats in the operational environment.”

The announcement echoes similar statements issued in 2024, when Israel and Hezbollah fought a major war in Lebanon, and in 2023, when the military launched a ground assault in Gaza in response to Hamas’ Oct 7 attacks.

In a separate briefing to journalists, military spokesman Nadav Shoshani said Hezbollah had recently expanded its activities in southern Lebanon.

“We have identified Hezbollah is intending to expand their operations... and firing hundreds of rockets a day” towards Israel, the Lieutenant-Colonel said.

“They have also sent hundreds of Radwan terrorists to the south,” he said, referring to an elite unit within Hezbollah.

Lt-Col Shoshani said the ground operations were “limited in target against locations... (where) we understand Hezbollah is posing a threat towards our civilians”.

“Those are new locations that our troops were not operating in yesterday,” he added.

Since Hezbollah plunged into the war, the Israeli military has repeatedly said it would not evacuate Israelis from northern parts of the country this time as it did in the previous 2024 war.

During the 2024 war, Israel evacuated tens of thousands of residents from northern communities as it fought Hezbollah until a ceasefire was struck between the two in November 2024.

Despite the ceasefire, Israel had conducted near-daily air strikes on Hezbollah targets inside Lebanon.

In recent days, the military has said that Hezbollah and Iran have launched several coordinated rocket and missile attacks against Israel.

Late on March 15, Israel launched a new strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs, a stronghold of Hezbollah.

The Lebanese authorities said the death toll from Israeli attacks had risen to 850. More than 830,000 people had registered as displaced, including around 130,000 staying in collective shelters.

Israel, meanwhile, said no direct talks were planned with Lebanon to end the latest war with the militant group Hezbollah, which has been raging for two weeks.

The statement came a day after a Lebanese official said Beirut was preparing a delegation to negotiate with Israel. AFP