Report: A source close to Hezbollah confirms for the first time that the organization is rebuilding its forces in southern Lebanon with the help of Iranian advisers.
YONI BEN-MENACHEM -- The newspaper "A-Sharq Alawest" reported this morning from a Lebanese political official close to the "Amal" movement and the Hezbollah organization, that Iranian expert advisers from the "Revolutionary Guards" are monitoring Hezbollah's battles against the IDF forces in southern Lebanon alongside Hezbollah commanders. However, he denied the presence of Iranian volunteers in Lebanon for the purpose of fighting against the IDF.
He added: "We do not hide the presence of Iranian experts who were killed together with Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah or together with Hashem Safi al-Din, the head of Hezbollah's executive branch, or with other senior officials that Israel eliminated."
In his estimation, the chances of a political solution have diminished, and it is better that the last word be said on the battlefield as long as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to destroy the Lebanese villages on the front line of the border with Israel. This is with the aim of creating facts on the ground that will allow him to control fire on the area south of the Litani River, empty southern Lebanon of its inhabitants and turn it into a "scorched earth", in order to impose his conditions for the implementation of UN Resolution 1701.
The report claims that Hezbollah made a situational assessment for its war against Israel, and its military leadership was able to overcome the mistakes made during the confrontation against the IDF forces. According to him, "Hezbollah began to restore the balance" on the battlefield, and in recent days it has caused unprecedented losses to the Israeli army.
Hezbollah also overcame the problem resulting from the disconnection between its central operations room and the units deployed along the line of confrontation with Israel. He managed to replace most of the squads that were in the confrontation line with the "Reduan" forces, which led to an improvement in their establishment and a reduction in the number of casualties, it was reported.
The report also claims that Hezbollah equipped its units with advanced missiles along the entire front, in order to harm the IDF commando units during their attempt to capture the strategic points around the villages that control the Litani River. .
The newspaper claims that Hezbollah operates "sleeper squads" in southern Lebanon that set ambushes for IDF forces, plant explosive devices and prevent them from controlling the hills that overlook Wadi al-Saluki and Al-Hajir and the towns of Adaisa, al-Taiba, Merkaba and Rab Talathin.
In recent days, the fighting between Hezbollah and the IDF forces has increased and there is a "balance in deterrence", because Hezbollah is fortifying itself in tunnels and arrays in terrain that is difficult to breach, which has increased the number of casualties on the Israeli side.
The newspaper reports that Israel is increasing the demolition of villages in the northern Litani area up to the A-Dahiya area in Beirut, in order to put pressure on Hezbollah to accept its conditions for the implementation of UN Resolution 1701 in the way it wants.
It seems that Hezbollah is afraid of Israel's damage to the economic infrastructure and the destruction of commercial and industrial institutions in southern Lebanon, and of damage to the large cities where there is a Shiite majority, such as Nabatia, Tyre, A-Dahiya district in Beirut and Alabak. Israel's damage to the economic capabilities of the Shiite community, and the increased departure of Lebanese residents from these areas, are creating unrest in the area against Hezbollah.
In the assessment of the Lebanese political party, in the end what will determine is the situation on the battlefield and Hezbollah's ability to stand up to the IDF, as long as the American envoy Amos Hochstein does not bring with him an Israeli proposal that will create optimism and allow reaching a ceasefire and the deployment of the Lebanese army in the south of the country.