Hezbollah gears up for ground war against IDF; asks Iranian regime to attack Israel directly
'Not the right timing' – Iran declines attack on Israel while president is at UNGA in NY
As it was being hammered from the air for the past few days, Hezbollah has been preparing for a potential Israeli ground invasion into Lebanon. According to the Axios news site, the group has sought direct assistance from its Iranian backers to attack Israel, but without success
On Wednesday, Israeli officials and a Western diplomat told Axios that Hezbollah has urged the Iranian regime to carry out the revenge attack for the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Iran, which would divert Israel’s attention from the near-continuous bombing raids on Hezbollah targets these past days.
However, the regime reportedly rebuffed Hezbollah’s pleas, saying the “timing isn’t right," while Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is embarking on a charm offensive at the UN General Assembly in New York.
Speaking to the media on Monday, Pezeshkian emphasized that Iran would avoid the Israeli “trap” of escalating the conflict with Hezbollah into a regional war. However, in another interview with CNN, the Iranian leader reiterated Iran’s support for Hezbollah.
“Hezbollah cannot stand alone against a country that is being defended and supported and supplied by Western countries, by European countries and the United States,” Pezeshkian said.
Far from standing alone, the Lebanese terror group has received increased financial support and numerous weapons shipments from its Iranian patron over the past months.
"As far as Iran is concerned, at this stage, there is no real reason to intervene in the fighting directly," said Dr. Raz Zimmt, an expert on Iran at Tel Aviv University.
"There is no doubt that the blows inflicted on Hezbollah were received in Tehran with surprise and concern, and yet, the leadership still believes that despite the destruction of the terror organization's capabilities by the IDF, Israel does not have the ability to defeat it," he added.
While Israeli officials have emphasized that Israel would not take the possibility of a ground invasion off the table, media reports suggest that, at the moment, Israel’s strategy is to pressure Hezbollah into a diplomatic agreement.
Israeli officials also told Axios that the IDF has been instructed to avoid actions that could pull Iran into the fighting.
Despite this, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah emphasized that his group was prepared for a ground invasion, which he called a “historic opportunity.”
“We’re waiting for their tanks. When they come, they’re welcome,” he blustered.
According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, Hezbollah has accelerated preparations for the next face-to-face showdown with the IDF, after it was widely seen to have performed well in the Second Lebanon War 2006.
The terror group has been preparing by “expanding its network of tunnels in southern Lebanon, repositioning fighters and weapons and smuggling in more arms,” according to WSJ.
U.S. and regional officials told the newspaper that Hezbollah has been stockpiling small arms and RPGs. “The south is like a beehive right now,” a former Hezbollah military officer told WSJ.
“Everything the Iranians have, we have.”
Among the most dangerous Iranian-supplied weapons in the hands of Hezbollah is the Iranian-made guided anti-tank missile Almas, which has already been used by the terrorists in the fire exchanges along the border.
Almas is believed to be a reverse-engineered version of an Israeli spike anti-tank system and is comparable to advanced Western systems like the American Javelin.
Other weapons systems that Hezbollah hasn’t used in the conflict so far include advanced, precision-guided missiles, anti-ship missiles, and – possibly the most concerning for Israel’s military – advanced anti-aircraft missiles.
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The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
