by Yoav Limor
A second tunnel discovered under the Israel-Lebanon border and a border clash between IDF troops and Hezbollah operatives prove the threat on the northern frontier is very real
IDF troops near the Israel-Lebanon border over the weekend
Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit
Northern Israel was
covered by thick fog during the course of the weekend with near-zero
visibility. The rain came and went, mostly drizzling and turning
everything that is not concrete into mud.
Someone just passing through would probably
be unable to tell anything was wrong or that the entire area was on
edge. The partial military restrictions imposed on a section of the
border when Operation Northern Shield was launched last week have
already been lifted, and nothing could be said for a military presence
beyond the sporadic military vehicle driving around. For all intents
and purposes, this was just another rainy Saturday in northern Israel.
This facade, however, successfully hid the
military's nonstop efforts to neutralize Hezbollah terror tunnels
snaking under the Israel-Lebanon border.
The decision to continue the search for
tunnels over the weekend was unorthodox, and not only because it
involved operations on Shabbat. The work was hindered by the stormy
weather, but the complex engineering and logistics effort involved in
this intense operation never waned. If anything, the IDF kept pushing
and everyone – from GOC Northern Command Maj. Gen. Yoel Strick to the
last special combat engineering soldier deployed on the ground – seemed
to be accelerating the pace.
The Israeli operation is currently underway
in several locations simultaneously. One of them is a tunnel running
under the northern town of Metula and on Saturday afternoon, another
significant tunnel was discovered.
A security incident interrupted the work
on Saturday when IDF commandos securing the operation came across
three Hezbollah operatives trying to exploit the fog to steal technical
equipment. The troops opened fire and the three fled, but the incident
stressed the prudence of increasing military deployment along the
border, as the threat is very real.
Hezbollah may be biding its time quietly at
the moment, but it very well may retaliate – not just verbally (though
Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah is sure to give a fiery speech
eventually), but also physically, in the battlefield. There is real
concern that Hezbollah operatives could booby-trap one of the tunnels,
use the weather to plant roadside bombs or try to target the Israeli
troops with sniper fire.
These scenarios are passed on to the
soldiers in every security briefing. Anyone who scoffed at the fact
that this military activity was labeled an "operation" is welcome to
visit the border and see how palpable the threat actually is.
The military effort on the ground is only
part of the overall effort. In the background, the Israeli Air Force
is gearing up for potential escalation and Military Intelligence is
fully engaged as well.
Another important aspect is the
international diplomatic effort, where Israel engages in massive public
diplomacy. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been briefing world
leaders on the issue since last week, including – and perhaps most
importantly – Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The United Nations Security Council is
expected to discuss a draft resolution condemning Lebanon on Monday,
over the fact that it turns a blind eye to Hezbollah's activities, and
Israel would like to see Russia refrain from using its veto power on
the issue.
Israel would like to see international
pressure on the Lebanese government stir up a public debate in the
country and prompt criticism of the Shiite terrorist group despite the
considerable political power it wields. Lebanon has so far remained
indifferent, but it is doubtful whether Beirut could keep that up for
long. Operation Northern Shield is expected to last several weeks, and
the daily media attention to the issue will turn the spotlight on
Lebanon's actions or lack thereof.
Still, nothing essential is likely to
change, except, of course, for the fact that Israel has deprived
Hezbollah of a major strategic asset. This cannot be taken lightly, as
one need not have a particularly wild imagination to understand what
Hezbollah had planned for Metula and other Israeli communities along
the border. Some of the tunnels were on the verge of becoming
operational in the coming weeks. If an attack had been launched using
those tunnels, the first question for the political echelon and the IDF
would have been, "If you knew, why didn't you do anything?"
Yoav Limor
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/2018/12/09/fog-of-war-cant-conceal-hezbollahs-plotting/
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