CONFLICT
Israel and Hezbollah on edge of war
July 17, 2024 - U.S. and French diplomats are attempting to broker an end to fighting between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah as the two edge towards an all-out war on their 120km border.
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Iran’s “Axis of Resistance”
Since the deadly attack on Israel by Hamas in October 2023, and Hezbollah began launching missiles in support, there have been more than 4,400 violent incidents between Israel and the Iran-backed militia, displacing over 150,000 people, around 60,000 in northern Israel and an estimated 90,000 in south Lebanon. Over 8,700 hectares of forest have been destroyed in Israel and a further 4,000 in Lebanon, compared to the typical summer forest fires of around 500 hectares.
While the near-daily exchanges have at times been intense, and numerous senior Hezbollah leaders have been killed, both sides nevertheless have stayed largely within certain red lines, with neither wanting to escalate the situation. However, if the latest negotiations fail, the IDF has prepared for a full-scale war and its plans were approved by the war cabinet in June.
Since the last war with Hezbollah in 2006, Israel has installed and used its battle-tested range of missile defence systems including Iron Dome, designed to counter short-range missiles, rockets and drones, which would cover the majority of Hezbollah’s 150,000 estimated projectiles. For it’s part, Hezbollah now has access to Iranian and Russian-made long-range and precision-guided missiles, anti-tank and anti-ship munitions, and surface-to-air missiles which have successfully downed Israeli drones. Hezbollah also claims to have up to 100,000 fighters, many hardened by experience in the Syrian civil war.