Spotlight on Terrorism: Hezbollah and Lebanon (July 7 – 14, 2025)
IDF forces attacked Hezbollah facilities from the air and on the ground and eliminated operatives as part of ongoing operations to counter Hezbollah's presence in south Lebanon, a violation of the ceasefire understandings, and against the organization's attempts to rebuild its arsenal and power. The IDF attacked a military headquarters, destroyed underground facilities, and eliminated Hezbollah operatives, an operative of the Iranian Qods Force and a senior Hamas figure in Lebanon; A senior Hezbollah figure claimed that Israel was targeting the "simple" operatives because it was no longer able to attack the organization's leaders. Meanwhile, Hezbollah was reportedly being on high alert and had evacuated some of its leaders and centers, fearing of a large-scale Israeli attack; The Lebanese security forces were instructed to arrest those involved in attacks on UNIFIL forces, which had been increasing due to friction between south Lebanese residents and UN soldiers; The Lebanese leadership said they were committed to ensuring the state's monopoly on weapons, even after submitting their response to the American special envoy Thomas Barack, while Hezbollah continued to defy the demands to disarm. Barack warned that Lebanon would face an existential threat if it did not resolve the issue of Hezbollah's weapons; Hezbollah secretary general Na'im Qassem gave an extensive interview in which he claimed that Hassan Nasrallah, the former secretary general, had received information about the October 7, 2023 attack and massacre only half an hour before it began, and that Hezbollah did not enter into a full-scale war against Israel, fearing destruction and American intervention; Hezbollah reportedly began reorganizing in order to merge several of its combat and operational units and redundant institutions.
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