Retired Maj. Gen. Gershon Hacohen warned against any Israeli withdrawal from South Lebanon, arguing that as long as Hezbollah retains weapons, the IDF must hold territory deeper inside Lebanon to defend northern communities. In an interview with Channel 7, he said there is no security logic in yielding ground, even if the United States pressures Israel to do so.
Hacohen said top Israeli leaders have already made clear there is no plan to pull back. He argued that towns and villages from Rosh Hanikra, Hanita, Shlomi, Dovev, Avivim, Misgav Am, Manara and Metula cannot be defended from the border line, especially against flat-trajectory weapons such as anti-tank missiles. He said Israel learned that lesson from October 7. He added that the evacuation of 60,000 northern residents at the start of the war created huge economic damage and gave Hezbollah a sense of victory for about a year and a half.
The former general said the ground war has transformed the balance against Hezbollah. He cited Israeli operations that pushed the defense line into Lebanese territory, including areas beyond the Litani River, the Beaufort area and territory north of it, and pressure on Nabatieh, which he described as the center of Hezbollah command in southern Lebanon. He said Hezbollah has suffered thousands of dead since October 2023, including about 1,000 since the ceasefire, compared with 600 in the Second Lebanon War.
Hacohen said Hezbollah entered the war with more than 150,000 rockets and missiles, Radwan commando forces numbering 6,000 to 7,000, and confidence in underground defenses built in villages and nature reserves. He said more than 80 percent of Hezbollah’s rockets were hit, the Radwan launch bases in villages were destroyed, and the underground system proved inferior to IDF ground forces. He noted that Hezbollah fired about 200 to 300 rockets a day during Operation Northern Arrows, rather than the planned 3,000, and said Israeli air defenses could handle that level.
He also said it took 1.5 years to destroy tunnel systems in places like Beit Hanoun in Gaza, so the same kind of underground network in South Lebanon cannot be eliminated quickly. Rejecting remarks attributed to President Donald Trump about the Syrian army handling Hezbollah better than Israel, Hacohen said the U.S. does not know the regional reality well. He said an American demand for withdrawal is possible, but Israel must stand firm on what it needs for its own survival and security.
