Israel and Hezbollah are setting up forward positions ahead of a potential military clash on the Lebanon border.
Hezbollah completed the deployment of forces at dozens of outposts and observation towers near the Israel border, Ynet reports. Some of these posts are right next to the border fence and the group’s elite Radwan force patrols the area, the report says.
The IDF has responded to the threat by setting up dozens of combat positions along the tense border. This includes areas where there was no military presence before and Israeli enclaves beyond the fence.
It appears that both sides are now in position to engage in border battles on short notice. Notably, the Alma Research Center sees an elevated risk of a Hezbollah attack on Israeli forces building a barrier on the Lebanon frontier.
In parallel, Hezbollah deployed over 1,000 operatives along the border in recent weeks to collect intelligence, N12 News reported. This is another signal that the group is taking steps to prepare for military operations.
The report says that hundreds of Palestinians from Lebanon are working for Hezbollah to gather intel. Moreover, terror leaders in Lebanon are coordinated with Hamas in Gaza.
War on several fronts?
The latest developments come as Israel’s defense chiefs see growing danger of a military conflict on multiple fronts.
Israel faces a real threat of a multi-front clash at this time, journalist Tal Lev-Ram wrote in Ma’ariv daily. Iranian leaders are debating whether to order their proxies to launch attacks as Israel faces political turmoil, Ron Ben-Yishai reported in Ynet.
The most immediate threat at this time appears to come from the Palestinian front, where Hamas is planning to escalate violence during Ramadan. A surge of terror in the West Bank could quickly trigger an eruption in Gaza and elsewhere, possibly sparking a war within weeks.
