IDF Says Hezbollah Is Hunting Senior Commanders in Night Operations in Southern Lebanon

Israeli military officials say Hezbollah has recently intensified attacks on senior IDF field commanders in southern Lebanon, a pattern they say should trigger changes in Israeli tactics. They also believe the group has rebuilt its observation and intelligence-gathering network along the so-called yellow line in southern Lebanon, and that it now carries out night operations to identify high-level command positions before striking.

The report comes alongside an investigation into the incident in which the commander of Battalion 52 and three other soldiers were killed in a tank. According to the inquiry, Hezbollah may have used a drone shortly before midnight that exploded near the tank’s entrance, or possibly fired an anti-tank missile and mortar shell together, causing the tank to catch fire. The tank has not yet been removed from the area. A military source said, "The tank burned for hours because of the ammunition inside, and it was impossible to approach it. Today efforts will be made to tow it into Israeli territory, and then we will be able to determine with high probability what happened there."

The officials said the recent cases cannot be ignored, citing the serious wounding of a former commander of the 401st Brigade by a drone strike, the injury of the deputy commander of the 36th Division by an explosive device, and the death of the Battalion 52 commander by a drone hit. They said Hezbollah is making technological efforts, especially at night, to detect radio activity and other signs that indicate a senior commander is present in the field, and that this requires a high level of skill.

The assessment follows a recent attack in which an explosive drone hit the vehicle of Northern Command chief Rafi Milo while it was parked in southern Lebanon. Milo had exited the car minutes earlier and was not hurt, though the vehicle was badly damaged. The military said then, too, that Hezbollah was making major efforts to collect information on senior officers moving in southern Lebanon. An in-depth analysis by Division 146 concluded that Hezbollah’s key asset is its intelligence collection on IDF forces, using not only drones but also spotters, cameras, and its familiarity with the terrain. Officials added that despite the war, Iran continues supplying Hezbollah with drones and advanced intelligence and surveillance technology for use at night. They said the IDF must quickly revise its methods and apply the lessons from the inquiries across all forces in the field.