The Media Line: Israel, Hezbollah Continue To Exchange Fire, Leaving Border’s Future Uncertain

Israel, Hezbollah Continue To Exchange Fire, Leaving Border’s Future Uncertain

Hezbollah’s missile attacks ignited fires on Israel’s northern border, promptingcriticism of the government. Residents feel abandoned amid rising tensions since theIsrael-Hamas war, and calls for a more robust military response are growing

By Keren Setton/The Media Line

Thousands of dunams were set ablaze on Israel’s northern border with Lebanon onTuesday, a result of missiles fired by the Hezbollah terrorist group. Many Israelis,especially residents of the north, voiced sharp criticism of the government. As theywatched the fires, some thought Israel had given up on its northern frontier eight monthsafter tensions with Hezbollah left the area largely deserted and severely battered. In themorning hours of Tuesday, firefighters continued to battle the fires as missiles were stillbeing fired, sirens blasting the area. The major heatwave made the labor of putting outthe fires an even greater one. Firefighting jets could not be used in the effort for fear ofbeing targeted by Hezbollah rockets.

Tensions between Israel and the terrorist group have escalated since the Israel-Hamas warbegan in the country’s south on October 7. A day after the war in Gaza began, Hezbollahstarted launching rockets, mortars, and offensive drones into northern Israel. Thisongoing offensive by Hezbollah has been met with retaliatory airstrikes and artillery firefrom the Israeli military. In recent weeks, Hezbollah has increased its fire toward Israel.

“We are witnessing a gradual escalation,” said Avraham Levine, digital director for theAlma Research and Education Center, on Israel’s security challenges on its northernborders. “Hezbollah is carefully studying Israel and is using more precise UAVs[unmanned aerial vehicles] and anti-tank missiles in order to challenge Israel’s defensesystems.”

According to data accumulated by Alma, the month of May saw the highest number ofHezbollah attacks since the beginning of the war, with 325 attacks, the majority of theminvolving a number of missiles or UAVs.

Hezbollah has acknowledged the death of at least 285 of its members by Israeli attacks,while defense analysts believe the number is higher. On Monday, the Israeli military saidit had killed a prominent Hezbollah terrorist in addition to targeting a building owned bythe group.

For eight months since the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza began, over 60,000residents of the north have been evacuated in the aftermath of Hamas’ attack in southernIsrael. The fear was that Hezbollah would execute a similar scenario against Israel’snorth, storming the border, killing thousands, and causing significant damage. Somepeople who live in areas that have not been evacuated by the state but are still adjacent tothe fighting have decided to evacuate themselves without being compensated by thegovernment. Others have remained in the area, sticking to their ground and homes. Manybusinesses have shut down, and public services have been reduced to a minimum.Residents have accused the government of abandoning them, and some have made plansto permanently relocate to other places in the country that are out of Hezbollah’s missilerange.

Israel’s leadership has been facing a dilemma regarding the response to Hezbollah andhas so far decided to contain the conflict. Both sides have operated under a silentagreement on the range of the fire and have largely avoided targeting civilian targets. Butwith many Israelis away from their homes and a large chunk of land deserted, some aredemanding Israel adopt a tougher hand and initiate a massive offensive against one of itsmost formidable enemies.

“Whatever Israel decides, it must change the rules of the game so that any presence ofHezbollah on the fence should be met with fire even at the risk of a greater conflict,” saidDr. Harel Chorev from the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Tel AvivUniversity. According to Chorev, Israel faces two options. It can either widen the cycle ofviolence by increasing the fire against Hezbollah, something that would likely include theuse of ground forces, or it could focus on exhausting its operation in the Gaza Strip withthe hopes that its conclusion would bring to a conclusion on Israel’s northern front aswell.

“This would take more time and would increase the feeling of frustration and bitternessamongst Israelis,” Chorev told The Media Line.

Experts warn that Israel could face significant damage in a full-scale conflict withHezbollah, given its arsenal of over 100,000 rockets.

Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, has vowed to continue his aggression against Israelso long as the war in Gaza continues, pledging to accompany Hamas in its struggle.

Of the many residents evacuated, there are no numbers on how many intend to return.Unable to receive clear answers from the government, families have already made plansfor the next school year elsewhere. In addition, there is a growing feeling that Israel haslost its deterrence.

“The main goal is to see the return of the residents to the north,” Levine told The MediaLine, “The question is how. I have never seen a viable diplomatic solution upheld with aterrorist organization, and previous attempts with international peacekeeping forces haveachieved nothing.”

The UN Interim Force in Lebanon, which has been in Lebanon for decades, has notproven to be a forceful factor against Hezbollah’s menacing presence on Israel’s northernfrontier.

Avital Kessler is a mother of five from the northern Israeli city of Kiryat Shmona. Shehas been evacuated from her home since the beginning of the war. Her temporaryresidence in central Israel will no longer be available in the coming days, forcing her andher family to move to a hotel, after which she will seek another, more permanentsolution. Her apartment was directly hit by a missile three weeks ago. It was then she firstreturned to the city since leaving it.

“There is a profound sadness,” Kessler told The Media Line. “The feeling is that of anearthquake. How could this happen? Why is Hezbollah doing this to us, and where is ourleadership that told us to leave for them to be able to do the job, to defend us? What arethey doing?”

In an attempt to cause a strike, last week, the council head of the village of Margaliot,also adjacent to the border with Lebanon, said he would sever ties with the Israeligovernment that has abandoned the area.

“We don’t need defense from Hezbollah. We need defense from our government,” EitanDavidi was quoted on several media outlets, calling Israeli soldiers to leave the village,claiming there was nothing left to defend there. It was another testament to the growingfrustration in the population.

“I will return to my home; there is no other way, but I understand people who won’t,”said Kessler. “I’m looking for real safety, not some illusion. I want to see Israel defendingitself, not just responding because responding means damage has already been done.”

But not everyone shares Kessler’s resolve.

“If residents won’t return, it will be like Israel is forfeiting its territory, and if people doreturn and nothing has changed, it will be under constant Hezbollah threat,” said Levine.“Abandoning the north would mean no tourism and no industry in the area.”

Hezbollah and Israel last engaged in war in 2006. It concluded with UN Security Council Resolution 1701, establishing a cease-fire and mandating the distancing of Hezbollahforces from the Israeli border—a resolution that was never implemented.

Before the war erupted, tensions between Hezbollah and Israel were high. A year ago,Hezbollah erected tents in the Ghajar area, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967War and annexed in 1981. Lebanon claims the small village of Ghajar belongs to it,leading to an ongoing dispute since the end of the 18-year Israeli military occupation ofsouthern Lebanon in 2000. Envoys from the UN split Ghajar between Lebanon andIsrael, but Israel reoccupied the northern half of the town during fighting with Hezbollahin 2006. Israel’s response to what it defined as an infringement on its sovereignty wasviewed by many as lackluster, choosing diplomacy over a military response.

“Israel was addicted to quiet and shouldn’t do so anymore,” said Chorev. “Israel needs toexact a heavy price for each attack until the moment it feels prepared to take advantage tocreate a much stronger deterrence, but a point in time in which Israel is stronger than it isnow.”

One of the main reasons Israel is believed to have stalled on a greater operation againstHezbollah is its concern that its army cannot fight two fronts simultaneously andsuccessfully. Freeing up forces in Gaza, once realized, could turn Israel’s attention andforce to the north.

Efforts by Amos Hochstein, the American envoy tasked with mediating between Israel,Lebanon, and Hezbollah, to reach a political settlement have so far been futile. TheLebanese newspaper Al Akhbar reported Monday that Lebanon should be prepared for amassive Israeli attack in mid-June.

The attempts to reach a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza could either coolthe northern front or allow Israel to pivot its attention there.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military has announced on numerous occasions that it hascompleted preparations for a broader confrontation on the border. Israeli media reportedTuesday that the war cabinet would convene later in the day for a special sessiondedicated to the latest events in the north.

“Any deviation from the current rules of engagement between Hezbollah and Israel couldeasily lead us to a full-scale war,” said Levine. “For now, both sides are being cautious.”