Tensions in the Middle East surged again on Thursday, October 23, as Israel launched a series of unexpected airstrikes on mountainous areas in eastern Lebanon.
According to statements from both Lebanese and Israeli sources, the attacks targeted Hezbollah positions near the Syrian border.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency confirmed the incident, reporting that “Israeli warplanes launched a series of violent strikes on the eastern mountain range” in the Bekaa region.
It further stated that two Israeli strikes also hit the Hermel range in the country’s northeast.
The strikes have left residents in shock, especially as both sides had agreed to halt hostilities late last year.
In a statement released shortly after the incident, the Israeli military acknowledged that its forces had carried out the strikes.
The army explained that it had targeted “a military camp and a site for the production of precision missiles” belonging to Hezbollah in the Bekaa region.
Moreover, the statement added that Israeli forces struck “several terrorist targets,” including “a camp used for training Hezbollah militants” and “military infrastructure at a site for the production of precision missiles.”
Furthermore, it noted that a Hezbollah military site in the Sharbin area of northern Lebanon was also hit.
The precision of the attack and the chosen targets suggest that Israel’s intelligence had been monitoring Hezbollah’s activities closely, despite the peace accord in place.
The airstrikes come despite a ceasefire agreement reached in November, which ended over a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.
The deal, backed by the United States and other international mediators, required Israeli forces to withdraw from southern Lebanon while Hezbollah agreed to dismantle its military presence there.
However, Thursday’s attack marks a major setback to that effort.
The Lebanese government, under increasing pressure from Washington, has recently taken steps to disarm Hezbollah in hopes of maintaining peace.
Yet, the militant group and its allies have strongly resisted these moves, arguing that disarmament would leave Lebanon vulnerable to future Israeli aggression.
