Lebanon and israel flags / OpenAI
by Emmitt Barry, with reporting from Worthy News Jerusalem Bureau Staff
(Worthy News) – The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Thursday it killed three Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon over the past two days, as tensions escalate along the northern border and Washington moves to bolster Lebanon’s official security institutions.
The IDF confirmed that a strike in the town of Kafra on Wednesday eliminated Ali Mohammed Qarouni, identified as Hezbollah’s local representative in the area. According to the military, Qarouni was responsible for managing the group’s economic and military links with residents, including seizing private property for Hezbollah’s operational use.
“The terrorist acted to seize private property for the organization’s military needs, such as renting homes for storing weapons and conducting surveillance,” the army said.
On Thursday, a separate airstrike targeted a vehicle in Kfar Reman, killing two additional Hezbollah operatives. The IDF said the pair were engineering operatives tasked with rebuilding the group’s military infrastructure in the Mount Dov and Khiam areas. Video footage released by the army showed the moment a car was struck while traveling through the region.
The strikes come as Hezbollah, backed by Iran, faces renewed pressure both internally and externally. On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration approved $230 million in support for Lebanon’s security forces, including $190 million for the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and $40 million for the Internal Security Forces.
“For a small country like Lebanon, that’s really, really significant,” said one Democratic congressional aide, who confirmed the aid was released before the close of the U.S. fiscal year. The funds are aimed at strengthening Lebanon’s official forces as they pursue a plan to ensure all arms are held only by state security bodies by the end of the year.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam urged the army in August to develop a strategy for consolidating weapons under government control, a move widely seen as a direct challenge to Hezbollah’s parallel military power.
Hezbollah, however, has consistently rejected calls to disarm since its 2006 war with Israel, portraying itself as Lebanon’s main defense against Israeli threats. Yet as clashes with the IDF continue and Washington increases pressure, analysts say the group faces one of its most challenging periods in years.
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