The Israel-Hamas War: Operation Iron Sword
Hezbollah Joins the Fight

A second front in the war was always a possibility, given Iran’s objective of forcing Israel to fight on multiple fronts. Israel has been preparing for years for the possibility of a war in Lebanon and was on alert for any sign Hezbollah might enter the fighting.

Hezbollah was not supposed to be a threat. The United States pressured Israel to end the Second Lebanon War in 2006 with the promise that an international force would be created to keep the peace, Hezbollah would be disarmed, and arms smuggling would be curtailed. When UN Security Council 1701 was adopted, the expectation was that the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) would enforce these objectives. UNIFIL was a total failure: the Lebanese Army failed to take control of the country, Hezbollah refused to disarm or disband and reestablished itself along the Israeli border, and with the help of Syria and Iran, smuggled weapons into Lebanon to prepare for a future war, to destroy Israel.

Hamas believed it had a commitment from Hezbollah to attack Israel when it launched its raid on October 7, 2023. One reason that did not happen was Israeli preparations. According to the Wall Street Journal, Israel had launched planes for a preemptive strike against Hezbollah on October 11 when its intelligence indicated Hezbollah was preparing a cross-border attack. Believing they needed American support, Israeli officials informed the Biden administration of the plan. Biden’s top intelligence officials did not believe an attack was imminent from Lebanon. Hoping to avert a wider war, the president convinced Netanyahu to call off the attack. Netanyahu denied the report.

Still, Israel prepared for war by sending troops to defend the northern border.

Starting the second day of the war, Hezbollah began launching drones and firing anti-tank missiles and mortar shells at IDF positions on the Lebanese border. Israel returned fire. On October 9, several terrorists crossed the border and were killed by Israeli forces.

Tensions continued to grow as Israel’s attacks on Gaza intensified. Hezbollah and IDF troops periodically exchanged fire along the border; one Israeli was killed and three wounded by an anti-tank missile. Israel used artillery to shell the area and may have killed a Reuters videographer and injured six other journalists.

Israel ordered 22 communities along the border to evacuate and began moving troops north.

Both Iran and Hezbollah were thought to be more interested in seeing Israel bogged down and bleeding in Israel than mounting a direct assault. Israel had warned Hezbollah before the Gaza War began that it would show no restraint if it were attacked from Lebanon. According to the Washington Institute’s Hanin Ghaddar:

The goal of Hezbollah’s current strategy seems clear: to reap the benefits of the Hamas-Israel war without losing the military presence it has steadily built up in Lebanon since 2006. Although the group believes that opening another front could temporarily overwhelm Israel per the “united front” strategy designed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), it also seems to realize that this approach would fail to defeat Israel in the long term—more likely, it would wind up destroying Hezbollah’s arsenal and weakening its forces. A full-scale war that ends without clear victory would leave the organization with insufficient funding to restock its military or push a “victory” narrative to its core constituency in Lebanon; the leadership might not even be able to rebuild their strongholds in Beirut and the south.

Ghaddar added that Iran may be satisfied for now with having frozen the Israeli-Saudi normalization process, exposed weaknesses in Israel’s intelligence and military strength, and, through its support for Hamas, “caused serious harm inside Israel in retaliation for suspected Israeli operations inside Iran.”

While the threat from Lebanon has attracted the most attention, Israel is also concerned with the Syrian border. Iranian and Hezbollah forces have been present in Syria since the beginning of the civil war. Iran is believed to have more than 13 military bases with five divisions of troops in Syria, provoking Israel to repeatedly bomb targets in Syria to prevent a buildup of troops and weaponry.

On October 14, rockets were fired at Israel from Syria. Israel responded by bombing the airports in Damascus and Aleppo to interdict Iranian weapons shipments. Israel also began attacking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. Two days later, the IDF ordered the evacuation of 28 communities within two miles of the border, and Hezbollah and the IDF exchanged fire. An anti-tank missile injured three people in Metulla on the 17th, and the IDF killed four would-be infiltrators and five other Hezbollah terrorists. On October 18, Hezbollah destroyed surveillance cameras on several Israeli army posts along the border, further ratcheting up tensions. Israel launched airstrikes in Lebanon the following night.

On October 19, 30 rockets were launched from Lebanon toward Kiryat Shemonah. They were believed to have been shot by Hamas. A father and his daughter were wounded.

Hezbollah continued to fire rockets and anti-tank missiles into Israel on October 21. The IDF returned fire. On a visit to the area, Defense Minister Yoav Gallan said, “Hezbollah has decided to join the combat and is paying a price for it, and we must prepare for any possibility. Great challenges lie ahead.”

Provocations continued from both Lebanon and Syria. In response to rocket launches from Syria toward Israel on October 24, IAF fighter jets struck military infrastructure and mortar launchers belonging to the Syrian Army. The IDF has intercepted drones from Lebanon and eliminated more than 20 Hezbollah cells.

Another 14 communities close to the Lebanese border were set to be evacuated and settled in state-funded guest houses. Many residents began moving south when attacks from Lebanon escalated. An estimated 250,000 Israelis were displaced from 64 evacuated towns.

Hezbollah is coordinating activities with the Gaza terrorists. According to a report by Hezbollah’s al-Manar TV, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah met with the head of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Ziad Nahleh, and the deputy head of Hamas’ political bureau, Saleh al-Arouri to discuss the path to “real victory.”

On October 29, the IDF destroyed several Hezbollah observation posts in southern Lebanon in response to four separate rocket and missile attacks. The IDF intercepted a surface-to-air missile that was launched from Lebanese territory on the 31st. Exchanges of fire continued daily, prompting thousands of Lebanese civilians near the border to move north.

Hamas in Lebanon fired 12 rockets at Kiryat Shemonah on November 2, wounding two people and causing widespread damage.

In a much-anticipated speech on November 3, Nasrallah denied that Hezbollah was aware of the Hamas plan or had any part in it but expressed solidarity with the Palestinians and their “martyrs.” He was vague, however, about whether Hezbollah would intensify its attacks. “Some claim Hezbollah is about to join the fray. I tell you: We have been engaged in this battle since October 8,” he said. “Some would like Hezbollah to engage in an all-out war, but I can tell you: What is happening now along the Israeli-Lebanese border is significant, and it is not the end.”

Nasrallah and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also exchanged threats. In his speech, the Hezbollah leader said, “I tell the Israelis, if you are considering carrying out a preemptive attack against Lebanon, it will be the most foolish mistake you make in your entire existence.” Israel’s prime minister responded that Israel’s “enemies in the north” should not escalate the war. “You cannot imagine how much this will cost you,” he declared.

He also accused President Joe Biden of making a “fake argument that Hamas cut off children’s heads (without) evidence.”

Violence Escalates

Violence along the border escalated after his speech, with one Israeli civilian killed by an anti-tank missile fired from Lebanon and Israel launching new airstrikes on Hezbollah targets. On November 6, 30 rockets were fired from Lebanon. There were no reports of damage or injuries, and the IAF responded with strikes on Hezbollah targets. Kiryat Shemonah continued to be bombarded, and the estimated 3,000 residents who remained after the town was evacuated were advised again to leave.

Chief of Staff Herzl Halevi said the military was “ready at any moment to go on the offense in the north.”

Undeterred, Hezbollah fired 20 rockets into Israel on November 7. IAF jets destroyed a Hezbollah weapons warehouse, rocket fire installations, and infrastructure for directing terror attacks.

Hezbollah ceased its attacks during the pause in fighting when Israel and Hamas exchanged prisoners for hostages. Once Hamas broke the ceasefire, Hezbollah resumed its attacks, which seemed to be carefully calibrated to avoid provoking a large-scale Israeli response. Rockets, mortars, and anti-tank missiles were directed at areas close to the border. Israel struck the source of the fire and, in one case, inadvertently hit an area that caused casualties to the Lebanese army. The IDF said it “regretted an incident.”

Nasrallah made another speech saying that Iran supports the “axis of resistance” (including Hamas, Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis, and Iraqi Shia groups). He admitted Arab states felt no compulsion to go to war with Israel but insisted they pressure the United States to call for a ceasefire.

On November 10, a drone fired from Syria hit a school in Eilat. Some 40 students were in the basement at the time but had no serious injuries. Israel responded with an airstrike targeting the group that launched the drone. Hezbollah said seven of its fighters were killed but didn’t say if it was from the Israeli attack.

On November 11, six Israeli civilians were wounded by anti-tank missiles fired from Lebanon as violence continued to escalate. The following day, eight soldiers and ten civilians (six making repairs for the Israel Electricity Corporation) were wounded by missiles. Multiple rockets were fired, four were intercepted, and the rest fell in open areas. Another 20 rockets were fired on the 13th. The IAF responded with airstrikes.

Hezbollah continued to fire at Israeli targets. On November 17, more than ten missile and mortar attacks came from Lebanon. An anti-tank missile wounded four Israelis. The IDF  responded with artillery shelling and airstrikes.

Hezbollah also stepped up its attacks on northern Israel. Rather than react to each one as it did in the first weeks of the war, the IDF began to initiate operations against Hezbollah’s infrastructure. The Biden administration remained worried that the fighting would escalate to all-out war and rebuked Israel for attacks that had hit Lebanese armed forces, which the U.S. has been supporting and arming.

One reason Israel may be holding back from a major assault is that approximately 20% of Hezbollah’s rockets have landed inside Lebanon.

Those reaching Israel caused extensive damage. On December 7, an Israeli civilian was killed by an anti-tank missile fired from Lebanon.

Israel has continued its limited strikes in Lebanon and also targeted Hezbollah military sites inside Syria. The violence has escalated almost daily. on December 26, nine soldiers were wounded while helping an Israeli civilian wounded by an anti-tank missile fired at the St. Mary’s Greek-Orthodox Church in the northern village of Iqrit. The IDF killed the terrorist who fired the missile.

The heaviest barrage to date was on December 27, with six rockets causing damage to residential buildings and infrastructure in Kiryat Shemonah, An additional three rockets were intercepted by Iron Dome, with the remainder landing in open areas.

War On the Horizon

The inevitability of an all-out war was becoming increasingly obvious. On December 27, a source told Haaretz, “Hezbollah has fired off in the current conflict more than 2,500 missiles and mortar shells. This is nothing less than a declaration of war. In any other situation, we would have responded differently, but we have consciously decided not to fight back. We hope and pray that diplomacy will cause Hezbollah to calm down. But even if that happens, it’s like taking an aspirin.” A Likud minister lamented, “Yes, we may find ourselves in a more difficult situation than we’re in now, as difficult as that is, as odd as that may seem. We understand that if we don’t act now, the price will be higher and more painful later. The real test of Hezbollah’s intentions will come when we move to the next stage in Gaza.”

Following the assassination of Arouri in Beirut, Nasrallah called the attack a “major and dangerous crime” that “will not go unanswered and unpunished.” He said, “If the enemy thinks of waging a war on Lebanon, we will fight without restraint, without rules, without limits and without restrictions.”

Hezbollah Weapons Storage Facilities Targeted by IDF

The Biden administration sent Special Envoy Amos Hochstein to Lebanon and Israel “to help resolve some of the tension” and prevent the escalation of fighting. Gallant said after meeting with the envoy that time for a diplomatic solution was running out. “There is only one possible result – a new reality in the northern arena, which will enable the secure return of our citizens,” Gallant said. “Yet we find ourselves at a junction -- there is a short window of time for diplomatic understandings, which we prefer. We will not tolerate the threats posed by the Iranian proxy, Hezbollah, and we will ensure the security of our citizens.”

Hezbollah targeted Israeli surveillance outposts and damaged a key air traffic control base on Mount Meron used to coordinate air attacks in Lebanon. The person believed responsible for the attack on the base, Wissam Al Tawil, a senior commander also responsible for the Radwan Brigade in the area, was killed in a targeted strike two days later. Tawil was Nasrallah’s brother-in-law. The commander of Hezbollah’s drone force, Ali Hussein Barji, was killed on his way to Tawil’s funeral.

Terrorists attempted to infiltrate from the north. Israel killed four on January 13. The following day, a missile strike in Kfar Yuval killed a mother and her son, and seriously injured the father. These were the first civilian casualties on the northern border since November 13, when an anti-tank missile killed an electrician repairing power lines damaged in another attack. Israel responded with air and artillery strikes on Hezbollah sites.

On January 25, the IDF attacked a key Hezbollah-Iranian airstrip in Kilat Jaber, Lebanon, that was used for launching aerial attacks against Israel.

The impact of Hezbollah’s anti-tank strikes was receiving little publicity in the international media because the civilian areas they were targeting were evacuated. Still, they were affecting families from places like Kiryat Shemonah, Shtula, Metullah, and Kibbutz Dafna, whose homes were being destroyed. As of February 1, 2024, 80,000 residents had been evacuated, 427 homes had structural damage, and 80 had major damage from direct hits. The most damage was in Metulah 131 homes, Shlomi 130, and Manarah 121.

The United States reportedly exchanged messages with Nasrallah, who believes the Americans control Israel and can prevent it from attacking Lebanon. Nasrallah was told he was wrong and should not make the mistake of provoking Israel to launch an all-out war.

Meanwhile, Biden emissary Amos Hochstein continued efforts to reach a diplomatic solution. The proposals, however, require only a partial implementation of Resolution 1701. Hezbollah would not be required to disarm or move its forces north of the Litani River. Lebanese army troops would be deployed along the border, and Hezbollah would agree not to move forces it has withdrawn back to the area. Lebanon would receive economic carrots for agreeing to a deal. Israel would have to stop its flights into Lebanon and pull out some of its forces from the border. Israel did not reject the proposal but continued to insist that the border situation would have to change to allow its citizens to return to their homes.

Since Hezbollah began bombarding northern Israel, few casualties were reported. On February 13, 2024, however, a 15-year-old boy and a 47-year-old woman were seriously injured when their car was hit by a rocket near Kiryat Shemonah. The following day, multiple rockets landed in Safed, killing one and injuring seven.

In a speech on February 13, Nasrallah declared, “We are committed to fighting Israel until it is off the map. A strong Israel is dangerous to Lebanon, but a deterred Israel, defeated and exhausted, is less of a danger to Lebanon.” He added, “The national interest of Lebanon, the Palestinians, and the Arab world is that Israel leaves this battle defeated. Therefore, we are committed that Israel is defeated.”

On February 15, Israel killed Ali Muhammad al-Debes and his deputy Hassan Ibrahim Issa. The former was a commander in the Radwan Force who Israel said was one of the masterminds behind a bombing attack at the Megiddo Junction and other attacks against Israel.

With the scale of violence ramping up, the Washington Post reported that Iranian officials have told Hezbollah not to give Israel a reason to initiate an all-out war in Lebanon. Hezbollah was also urged to “exercise restraint against U.S. forces” to avoid provoking an American response.

Meanwhile, little attention has been given to another serious threat posed by Hezbollah, namely its tunnel system. Israel discovered some tunnels near the border, which it believed were meant for a 10/7 type attack. Operation Northern Shield destroyed them at the beginning of 2019. This was yet another example of how Hezbollah violated UN Resolution 1701, and UNIFIL failed in its primary mission.

A new report from a French publication says that Hezbollah has a tunnel network built with North Korean assistance that stretches hundreds of miles, including branches into Syria. The tunnels are believed to house missiles and other weapons. As in Gaza, they are built under civilian homes. This may pose an even greater challenge for the IDF as Hezbollah has far more experienced and skilled fighters in addition to more sophisticated weapons than Hamas.

In preparation for the expected expansion of the war with Hezbollah, the Israeli Navy conducted exercises to simulate preventing drone attacks, aerial rescue operations from vessels, and refueling the missile boats at sea. The exercises were timed with new warnings from Israel that if a diplomatic solution to the threat from Hezbollah were not found soon, it would be necessary to take military action. 

Foreign Minister Israel Katz said Israel provided the UN Security Council with evidence that Iran was continuing to send arms to Hezbollah in violation of Resolution 1701. The intelligence included details on the types of weapons supplied, the routes used, and the shipment dates.

Strikes back and forth continued daily, with Israel hitting deeper into Lebanon and Hezbollah escalating threats of reprisals.

On March 4, 2024, eight foreign workers were injured by an anti-tank missile. One from India died.

Even as Hochstein met with Lebanese officials in an effort to head off further escalation, Hezbollah was launching salvos of missiles. Hochstein said a truce in Gaza would not necessarily bring an automatic end to hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah. “Escalation of violence is in no one’s interest, and there is no such thing as a limited war,” he said. “A temporary ceasefire is not enough. A limited war is not containable.”

Israel’s position remained unchanged. It would not stop fighting until it was safe for the 80,000 residents who were evacuated from border communities to safely return to their homes. All efforts to pressure the Lebanese government and Hezbollah to accept the terms of UN Security Council 1701 failed.

On March 27, a 25-year-old man was killed by a Hezbollah rocket that hit a building in Kiryat Shmona and caused a fire. A second man was rescued unharmed. Hezbollah said the attack was in retaliation for an Israeli airstrike that killed seven members of the al-Jama’a al-Islamiyya group who were planning to infiltrate the border. The group cooperates with Hezbollah even though it is composed of Sunni Muslims while Hezbollah is Shiite.

On April 16, 14 IDF soldiers and four civilians were wounded by two Hezbollah drones and two anti-tank missiles fired at and around a community center in Arab al-Aramshe, a Bedouin village in northern Galilee. Civilians had returned to the town after having left for safety for three months because they had not received any financial aid. Israel responded with multiple airstrikes.

“Half of the Hezbollah commanders in south Lebanon have been eliminated… and the other half hide and abandon south Lebanon to IDF operations,” Gallant said on April 24.

On April 26, an anti-tank missile killed an Israeli Bedouin working on an infrastructure project for the IDF in the Mount Dov area, which was a frequent target of Hezbollah.

France, which has historic ties to Lebanon, has been attempting to negotiate an end to the fighting. French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne met with Lebanese and Israeli officials and reportedly proposed that Hezbollah withdraw its forces to 10 km north of the border and remove outposts near the border. Lebanese Armed Forces would then be deployed along the border. Israel would stop flying over Lebanese airspace and negotiate a change in the border. Hezbollah rejected the deal and continued its bombardment of northern communities in Israel, with Israel responding with tank and mortar fire along with airstrikes.

On May 6, two Israeli reserve soldiers were killed in a Hezbollah drone attack.

Table of Contents for Israel-Hamas War
Bibliography and Photo Credits