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IDF chief of staff says army is preparing for ground offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon - UPDATED

25 September 2024 19:29 (UTC +04:00)

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said the military is preparing for a ground offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon, APA reports citing The Times of Israel.

“You can hear the planes above, we are attacking all day. Both to prepare the area for the possibility of your entry [into Lebanon], and also to continue causing blows to Hezbollah,” Halevi told troops of the 7th Armored Brigade during a drill simulating a ground offensive in Lebanon.

“Hezbollah today expanded its [range] of fire. Later today, it will receive a very strong response,” he vowed, after the terror group fired a missile at central Israel this morning.

“Today we will continue, we do not stop, we continue to attack and continue to strike them everywhere. The goal is a very clear goal, to return the [displaced] residents of the north safely,” Halevi added.

“To do this, we are preparing the [ground] maneuver,” he said to the soldiers.

*** 16:39

The chief of the IDF Northern Command, Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin, said the military needs to be “strongly prepared” for a ground offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon, APA reports citing The Times of Israel.

“We have entered another phase of the campaign… The operation began with a very significant blow to Hezbollah’s capabilities, with an emphasis on [rocket] capabilities, and a very significant blow to the commanders and members of the organization,” Gordin said while visiting a drill simulating a ground operation in Lebanon yesterday.

“We need to change the security situation. We need to be very strongly prepared to enter [Lebanon] in a [ground] maneuver,” he added.