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Israel Has Tactical Superiority over Hizbullah in Lebanon Fighting

(Jerusalem Post) Jonathan Spyer - Israel's northern border area is an active combat zone. About 170 Hizbullah fighters have been killed since Oct. 8, along with 19 members of other terror groups. Israel has lost nine soldiers and six civilians. U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein visited Israel and Lebanon last week in an attempt to find a diplomatic solution to the current impasse. Diplomatic processes generally require concessions on both sides. The systematic violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, however, has come from the Hizbullah side alone. Hizbullah began to rebuild its presence along the border immediately after the ceasefire that ended the 2006 war, in direct contravention of Resolution 1701, which requires it to stay north of the Litani River. From the Israeli point of view, it is being asked to discuss territorial concessions as a reward for Hizbullah's unilateral violations. The number of fighters that Hizbullah has lost is large and creeps up every week. In tactical encounters, Hizbullah appears to have little response to superior Israeli intelligence, and use of drones and missiles to target its teams close to the border. Hizbullah's fighters' recent combat experience was in fighting poorly armed and trained Sunni Islamist militias in Syria. It is now encountering a very different enemy that has tactical superiority. Hizbullah-associated Arabic media channels are nearly silent on the fighting at the Lebanon-Israel border, while giving saturation coverage to events in Gaza. Evidently, Hizbullah sees little to celebrate as its forces continue to absorb losses.
2024-01-21 00:00:00
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