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Taking the War to Hizbullah
(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) Matthew Levitt - The IDF is back in southern Lebanon. But unlike in the 2006 war with Hizbullah, Israeli military and intelligence planners are benefiting from years of intelligence collection and improved battlefield tactics. The Israeli government's main strategic goal is to ensure that Iran's primary proxy remains too weak to pose a serious threat to Israeli security. Within the span of a couple of weeks, the Israeli military carried out a series of attacks that have significantly degraded Hizbullah's leadership and its operational capacity. The group still has thousands of fighters and no shortage of small arms, but the loss of its leadership, command centers, rockets and weapons, and frontline infrastructure along the border with Israel means the group no longer presents a clear and present strategic threat to Israel. Nevertheless, its armed fighters are all it needs to continue intimidating fellow Lebanese who challenge the group. Hizbullah has a history of raising its arms against fellow Lebanese when challenged. Political will aside, nobody in Lebanon will even consider taking on Hizbullah if they fear that the group can still fight challengers at home. And what's done in Lebanon will determine whether a new version of Hizbullah emerges to present a threat to Israel. The writer is director of the Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence at The Washington Institute.