The Israeli military has reached the deepest point in Lebanon since the ground offensive began about six weeks ago. This has been reported by both Lebanese and Israeli media, amid raging battles with Hezbollah on Saturday. "The state-run National News Agency reported that Israeli troops temporarily captured a strategic hill in the southern Lebanese village of Shamaa, about five kilometers (3 miles) from the border early Saturday, before later being pushed back," Israeli media reports. "The outlet claimed soldiers detonated several buildings including a shrine before they withdrew."
Image source: Israeli Army The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed that troops "continue their limited, localized, and targeted operational activity in southern Lebanon."
Airstrikes continue to reach across the country, but it is the ground war which remains the riskiest endeavor for the IDF. For example on Wednesday, the IDF announced that six soldiers and officers from its Golani Brigade were killed in a single combat action.
They were reportedly ambushed by Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon, after which a lengthy firefight ensued. It is rare for that many Israeli troops to die in a single ground engagement:
Israel suffered one of its deadliest days of its ground offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon on Wednesday, November 13, when six of its soldiers were killed in combat near the border.
The soldiers "fell during combat in southern Lebanon," the army said in a statement. Their deaths mean 47 Israeli troops have been killed in combat with Hezbollah since September 30, when Israel sent ground forces into Lebanon. The army's announcement came after Israel's new Defense Minister Israel Katz said there would be no easing up in the war against Hezbollah.
As for the new action in Shamaa, the IDF has reportedly since retreated. Warplanes have meanwhile continued to pound Beirut's southern suburbs, as well as the port city of Tyre.
Tyre has been issued new evacuation orders this weekend, and over a dozen buildings have been destroyed in new rounds of strikes. The last couple weeks have seen a new focus on targeting alleged Hezbollah hideouts in the densely populated southern city.
Lebanon's government has said several paramedics and emergency workers have been killed and wounded in some of these latest air raids. The country has remained helpless under Israeli airpower, having no real air force with modern jets to speak of. The Lebanese Army also doesn't have anti-air defense missile systems, and all of this is largely due to US policy.
Hezbollah has also not relented in its rocket attacks on Israel, launching at least 65 projectiles across the border Saturday. Much of the Israeli population of the north remains evacuated from their homes on an indefinite basis.
Poster Comment:
After 6 weeks, 50,000 IDF soldiers including two armored divisions did manage to penetrate 5 Kms (3 miles) before withdrawing. But they were able to blow up a shrine. And this unit was their elite Golani brigade.
Does not look good.
Elon Musk met with the Iranian ambassador to the UN. Iran is weighing their options. Iran was recently upgraded to the S-400 air defense system. And now they have received elements of the S-500.
At this point, I think Iran wants to finish these tit for tat exchanges with Israel before the end of 2024. I think they are getting as many Mach 9 Zircon cruise missiles as possible into the hands of their very best friends in the region.
They are also waiting for the completion of the delivery of the remainder of those SU-35s and the R-37 air-to-air missiles. It might be possible for Iran to mount R-37 missiles of the longer 400 Km range variety on some of the older aircraft.
At some point, Iran can unload 1,000 missiles and 1,000 drones on Israel while Hezbollah does 400 missiles and drones. This will deplete Israel's supply of air defense interceptors. And it will drain those two THAAD batteries of their missiles. I think Iran will hit Israel very hard. The goal is to get Israeli voters angry enough to arrest Netanyahu.
If he does manage to get the Biden admin (Jake Sullivan, Anthony Blinken) to launch an air assault with the Israelis on Iran. It is within the power of Iran and their friends to destroy every US air base in the region including Diego Garcia. They can also take out US aircraft carriers with those Zircon cruise missiles.
Alastair Crooke is a former UK diplomat and MI-6 man, who lives in Beirut. He says Iran held back on that last Israeli air assault so the Israelis would not know what will hit them during this upcoming assault.
All of this has to be done before Trump takes office.
I doubt the US and Israel will continue their air operation after more than 100 planes fall from the skies. This will be a disaster for US military recruiters. And it will hit the value of the dollar.
Wall Street will see the light and demand an end to Netanyahu's blank check. Might start with an Iranian-Hezbollah strike before a US holiday, maybe Thanksgiving Day or Christmas. That way a joint US Israel air assault fiasco occurs around the time of an American holiday when American voters are together with families and friends and can see the End of the US Empire.