by News Agencies and Israel Hayom Staff
Israeli military on high alert as Operation Northern Shield aims to neutralize multiple terror tunnels running under the Israel-Lebanon border
An IDF bulldozer digs near the Israel-Lebanon border, Tuesday
Photo: Reuters
The Israel Defense Forces on Tuesday launched an operation to expose and neutralize cross-border terror tunnels dug by Hezbollah under the Israel-Lebanon security fence. The military did not disclose how many tunnels snake into Israeli territory from Lebanon or how long the operation would last.
In a statement, the military stressed that the operation, code-named "Northern Shield," was underway on the Israeli side of the border. The military added that with the exception of a few hundred feet near the security fence, which were declared a restricted military zone, the residents of the Israeli communities near the border could maintain their usual daily routine.
Video: IDF Spokesperson's Unit
The operation comes against the backdrop of an urgent meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Brussels Monday, where the two discussed "regional developments."
Israeli media reported that Netanyahu was
poised to ask Pompeo for the United States' support in the event
of an Israeli strike on Hezbollah infrastructure in Lebanon.
The Prime Minister's Office said the two
discussed ways to "work together to curb Iranian aggression in the
region – Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and elsewhere," as well as the joint
effort "to achieve peace and security for all."
Later on Tuesday, Netanyahu issued a
statement saying, "This morning, the IDF launched Operation Northern
Shield with aim of exposing and neutralizing cross-border terror
tunnels from Lebanon. We are proud of IDF officers and soldiers who
carry out these complex missions and for the operational success noted
so far."
"Those who try to harm the State of Israel
will be made to pay a heavy price," the statement continued. "We are
operating with determination in all sectors and we will continue to
launch overt and covert operations to ensure Israel's security."
A senior political source told Israel Hayom
that members of the Diplomatic-Security Cabinet were barred from
commenting on the operation in the media.
According to defense officials privy to the
issue, Operation Northern Shield was launched after lengthy overnight
consultations between IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot and
senior defense officials.
Reuters
Military vehicles are seen from the village of Kafr Kila, in south Lebanon, Tuesday
Israel views the Iranian-backed Hezbollah and its vast arsenal of some 150,000 projectiles as a major threat.
Bracing for a potential border flare-up,
the military has bolstered deployment along the northern frontier,
including air defense systems as well as regular and special forces.
'A blatant violation of U.N. resolutions'
In a press briefing, IDF Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Ronen Manelis offered more details on the operation.
"The IDF first identified Hezbollah
efforts to dig tunnels near the border in 2006. These efforts
increased after the [Second Lebanon] War [in 2006], and in 2012, we
learned of a plan that [Hezbollah leader Hassan] Nasrallah refers to as
the 'plan to conquer the Galilee,' which led us to believe that the
offensive tunnels were the surprise element in this scheme.
"In 2013, the IDF examined several
indicators for the existence of tunnels near the northern border and
ruled it out given their [Hezbollah's] technological capabilities," he
said.
"In October 2014, after Operation
Protective Edge [in Gaza], a special technological-intelligence team
was set up in the Northern Command and tasked with exposing
Hezbollah's tunnel enterprise. The team worked for four years,
compiling the intelligence that culminated with today's operation."
According to Manelis, "Over the years,
various operational technologies from other sectors were deployed
along the Blue Line [the border demarcation between Lebanon and Israel
set by the U.N.] and allowed Military Intelligence to provide the
Combat Engineering Corps with better information on which to base and
launch the operation and neutralize the tunnels. Then, when the
operational conditions presented themselves, the IDF launched Operation
Northern Shield."
Eyal Margolin / JINI
The IDF did not disclose how many tunnels snake into Israeli territory from Lebanon or how long the operation would last
Hezbollah's cross-border tunnels "are a
blatant violation of Israeli sovereignty and of U.N. Resolution 1701,"
he continued. "The tunnels are built on Lebanese soil and pose a
threat to both the Lebanese population and Lebanon itself. The IDF
holds the Lebanese government responsible for everything that happens
on its side of the Blue Line.
"The fact that Hezbollah is building
tunnels under Israeli surveillance proves that the Lebanese army has
no control on the ground and that Hezbollah dominates south Lebanon and
uses Iranian money and knowledge to do so."
He further said that IDF deployment in the
northern sector has been increased and that "we are ready for any
development. Nevertheless, there are no special instructions for the
area's residents. Local mayors have and are being kept abreast of the
necessary developments," he said.
Manelis noted that the IDF was operating under the assumption that Hezbollah was monitoring its progress.
"We are on high alert and if needed – we
know what to do. The operation was launched at this time because the
operational conditions are right and we have the technological
abilities at our disposal."
He stressed that "the tunnels pose no
threat to the Israeli public – we're dealing with them before they can
become a threat. We are determined to make sure this doesn’t pose a
threat to the border-adjacent communities."
Commenting on the operation, Foreign
Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon tweeted, "Hezbollah attack tunnels
crossing from Lebanon into Israel is a blatant violation of U.N.
Security Council Resolution 1701, it is an act of aggression. Israel
will do its utmost to protect its citizens and its territory against
such aggression."
Brig. Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser, a
senior researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and
former head of the Military Intelligence's Research Division noted that
Operation Northern Shield may prompt a security escalation on the
border.
The IDF, he said, has humiliated Hezbollah,
and while the Shiite terrorist group has not reacted thus far, the
IDF must remain alert.
According to Kuperwasser, while the
operation is being carried out in Israeli territory, it concerns
infrastructure that Hezbollah has spent years developing, thus
exposing its intelligence vulnerabilities and increasing the potential
for retaliation that could result in a border flare-up.
Sivan Yechieli, head of the Forum of
Frontline Communities in the North, told Israel Hayom that the
residents were not surprised by the tunnels' discovery.
"Residents in the area have been very concerned about this issue for years, and they remain concerned," he said.
"We were always told that the IDF had no
knowledge of existing terror tunnels in the area, and it's clear to me
that once the IDF had the intelligence and the technological ability
to identify tunnels, the operation was launched."
"Israel cannot tolerate a violation of its
sovereignty in the north," he added. "Clearly, a threat of this
nature requires a response. We have every faith in the military."
News Agencies and Israel Hayom Staff
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/2018/12/04/israel-launches-operation-to-thwart-hezbollah-border-%e2%80%8etunnels/
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