IDF operation to expose and neutralize Hezbollah tunnel network completed; Six tunnels exposed since December; IDF: All of the tunnels have been exposed and have either already been destroyed or are going to be destroyed.
The IDF announced it completed exposing and neutralizing Hezbollah’s tunnel network on the border with Israel.
The IDF confirmed on Sunday that it had located and will destroy the sixth and final Hezbollah tunnel. The tunnel ran 180 feet deep from the town of Ramyeh and infiltrated Israeli territory by dozens of yards. It confirmed Sunday, “We have now exposed all attack tunnels dug by Hezbollah from Lebanon into Israel.” A spokesman for the IDF Spokesperson Unit, Lieutenant-Colonel Jonathan Conricus, also confirmed Sunday, “All of the tunnels have been exposed and have either already been destroyed or are going to be destroyed. According to our assessments, there are no longer any tunnels crossing into Israel.”
Operation Northern Shield began in December of 2018, the IDF announcing at the time that it had been monitoring the tunnels for several years. The tunnel network, which has been funded and supported directly by Iran to be used to attack Israel, has been under IDF surveillance since the Second Lebanon War in 2006.
Hezbollah had plans to use its tunnels to carry out a massacre on the Israeli town of Metulla to be “followed by a full-scale missile assault and ground invasion”.
The tunnels, which were confirmed by the UN peacekeeping forces, UNIFIL, are in violation of international law, specifically UN Security Council Resolution 1701 established following the 1982 Lebanon War.
At the beginning of the mission, Prime Minister Netanyahu vowed to destroy Hezbollah’s terror tunnel network and combat Iran’s ongoing efforts through its proxies, stating at the time, “These cross-border terror tunnels were built by Hezbollah with direct support and funding from Iran. They were built with one purpose in mind – to attack and murder innocent Israeli men, women and children. This is a grave violation of Israel’s sovereignty and a gross violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701. It is an unacceptable act of wanton aggression.”
The IDF will construct a barrier on the border with Lebanon and will continue to monitor the region. The “Defensive Obstacle Project” will include a barrier and IDF units to monitor above and underground activities.
Be sure to tune in for Amir’s weekly Middle East Update, this Monday at 10:00 am Manila time. He will speak on the deteriorating situation in Europe (particularly in France), the tension between Turkey and the US over the Kurds, the good report on rainfall in Israel, the end of Operation Northern Shield, the recent Israeli strikes in Syria and much more!
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