Israel targets Hezbollah’s strongholds in Syria

The Israeli Air Force has launched attacks on Hezbollah facilities located in Syria, specifically targeting the Lebanese Shiite organization's operational assets.

According to a statement from the Israeli military press service, the strikes focused on weapons depots and command centres associated with the elite Radwan units of Hezbollah, situated near the border town of al-Quseira, Caliber.Az reports.

The military indicated that intelligence revealed the Hezbollah unit responsible for supplying arms to Shiite militias had recently intensified its activities in the area.

The objective of these airstrikes is to disrupt the flow of weapons from Iran to Hezbollah in Lebanon via Syria. This follows previous Israeli strikes on multiple border crossings between Syria and Lebanon known to be used for smuggling arms.

On the morning of October 31, the IDF reported attacking approximately 100 targets within Lebanon over the prior 24 hours, resulting in the elimination of dozens of Hezbollah operatives, including Muhammad Khalil Aliyan, a commander of an anti-tank unit based in Hajira, southern Lebanon. The airstrikes targeted a range of military infrastructure, including fuel depots, command posts, ammunition storage facilities, observation points, and rocket launchers in the vicinity of Mazrat al-Ghudiyah, northeast of Tyre.

Additionally, on October 30, the Israeli Air Force targeted fuel depots linked to Hezbollah’s Logistics Unit 4400 in the Bekaa Valley of eastern Lebanon. These depots were crucial for supplying fuel to Hezbollah's military vehicles, essential for maintaining the organization’s operational capabilities. The Israeli military stated that the fuel for these sites was provided by Iran, further supporting Hezbollah's military activities.

In October 2023, following Hamas's attacks on Israel's border areas and the subsequent conflict in Gaza, Hezbollah declared its support for Hamas and engaged in hostilities against Israel, frequently shelling northern Israeli territories and causing evacuations among the local population.

On September 27, 2024, an Israeli airstrike in Beirut resulted in the death of Hassan Nasrallah, the secretary general of Hezbollah, during a meeting of the group's leadership in an underground command centre in the Dahiya neighbourhood of southern Beirut.

By Tamilla Hasanova