In recent days, Israeli forces have been carrying out a wide operation in the Tabnit area of southern Lebanon against a vast Hezbollah underground complex stretching more than a kilometer. The fighting has taken place both above and below ground, and at this stage dozens of Hezbollah militants are reportedly trapped inside the target area.
The main objective is Tel Ali al-Tahir, a strategic ridge between Tabnit and Nabatieh al-Fawqa, north of the Litani River. Rising to about 700 meters, it provides critical observation and control over Nabatieh and large parts of southern Lebanon, including key routes linking the coast with the country’s center and connections between Nabatieh, the Bekaa, Tyre and Marjayoun.
According to Arab media reports, the site is a real underground city run by Hezbollah, serving as the central headquarters of the Badr Unit and the group’s command room in southern Lebanon. That unit is responsible for the sector from north of the Litani River to the Sidon area, and the headquarters is said to coordinate rocket fire, drones, UAVs and ambushes. The article says the complex is part of the broader Iran-Hezbollah “axis of resistance,” built since the 2006 Second Lebanon War with major support from Iran’s Quds Force, including tunnels, stockpiles, command rooms and concealed launch systems.
The aim, according to the piece, is to ensure survival under Israeli airstrikes while preserving command, control and the storage of advanced weapons such as precision missiles, drones and supplies. It also says North Korean technical know-how may have been involved. Hezbollah builds and operates the infrastructure through local engineering units and Jihad al-Bina, keeping a continuing threat to Israel’s home front even as exposed capabilities are destroyed.
The article notes that one month before Hassan Nasrallah was killed, Hezbollah released propaganda footage that first exposed its tunnel network, and this may have been the first hint of the Tel Ali al-Tahir facility. Lebanese assessments suggest this is indeed the site now under combat. The battle comes as Israel seeks to expand the “yellow zone” in southern Lebanon and destroy Hezbollah command infrastructure, but an American veto has so far blocked the fighting, leaving the underground complex’s fate unclear.
