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Northern Front - Order of Battle

The military operations of the Northern Front fall under the Northern Command of the Israeli army, which is a regional command based in the city of Safed. All military activity in the Northern Brigade is subject to it, and the military operations carried out by the army in Syria and Lebanon are subordinate to it. Its operational and intelligence activity is concentrated in the occupied Galilee and Golan Heights and southern Lebanon.

The IDF reports that under the Northern Commands authority are the following brigades: Golani Brigade, 7th Armored Brigade, 188th Armored Brigade, and Division 282 of the Artillery Corps. They also command a number of Reconnaissance Battalions.

Al-Jazeera reported that there are five Israeli military divisions stationed in the northern region: Division 91, also known as the Galilee Division, Division 210, also known as the Golan Division, Division 36, Division 99, and Reserve Division 146, in addition to the northern settlement guard divisions. On the northern front, a group of infantry units, artillery, and brigades are fighting, the most prominent of which are: the "Golani Brigade," the 7th Armored Brigade, the 188th Armored Brigade, and the 282nd Division of the Artillery Corps, in addition to a group of reconnaissance battalions.

The 210th Division consists of 6 brigades, and its mission includes guarding the occupied Golan Heights on the Syrian border. The 91st Division also includes 6 brigades, including two brigades to guard the Lebanese border and prevent infiltration across it: the Baram Brigade, which guards the western side of the border from Ras al-Naqoura to Al-Malikiyah, and the 769th Brigade, which guards the border in the eastern half of Al-Malikiyah to Mount Hermon.

In March 2024, the Israeli army formed the "Ha'arim" or "Mountains" Brigade to strengthen the army's defenses on the northern front and increase its ability to deal with the security situation that has been raging on the northern border since the Battle of the Flood of Al-Aqsa. The brigade specializes in fighting in difficult terrain and mountainous areas, and is stationed in the areas of Mount Hermon and Mount Dov, which form a joint on the Lebanese-Syrian border at the intersection of the "91st" and "210th" divisions.

In September 2024 “Division 98” transfered from the Gaza Strip to the northern border. This division, like its sister divisions from the other divisions, suffered heavy losses in the battles of Khan Yunis and Rafah in particular, and lost dozens of its officers and soldiers, especially from the Paratroopers Brigade. It is an elite and capable division that previously fought in Lebanese territory. This division, in addition to the "99th Division" that preceded it to the northern front, will operate under the command of the northern command of the occupation "army", which includes four other divisions, so that there will be six combat divisions that include more than fifty thousand fighters from various specializations. Their mission, as the occupation claims, is to expand the scope of fighting on the raging northern front, contribute to deterring and defeating Hezbollah, and push it to disengage from the resistance front in the Gaza Strip.

Despite the mobilization of six combat divisions on this front, and the transfer of the military weight of the Israeli “army” and its “elite” divisions from the southern front to the northern front, this does not seem sufficient, especially since the two divisions that were transferred from Gaza did not have a suitable period of rest, nor the rehabilitation that seems necessary in such conditions after the setbacks and losses they suffered in the battles of the sector.

As for the armored corps, which according to a previous Israeli admission suffered heavy losses during the fighting in the Gaza Strip, which, according to some media reports, caused it to lose more than 30% of its tanks, armored vehicles, and personnel carriers, without which the IDF cannot fight, as it depends on them, whether in transporting soldiers and securing their movements, or in relation to targeting the enemy’s forces, opening roads, destroying its infrastructure, and other missions.

Commander of the Northern Command Major General Uri Gordin 24 September 2024 visited the commanders and fighters of the 7th Brigade in an exercise held by the brigade on the northern border, tested their readiness and conducted an operational situation assessment with them. During the visit, the general emphasized the importance of the preparation and readiness of the forces, in order to change the security situation and return the residents of the north back to their homes.

"We have entered another phase of the campaign and we are in the 'Arrows of the North' operation. The operation started with a very significant damage to Hezbollah's capabilities, with an emphasis on the fire capabilities, and a very significant damage to the commanders and people in the organization," said the commander of the Northern Command to the soldiers of the brigade. "We need to face this to change the security situation, we need to be very strongly prepared to enter into maneuver and action."

The IDF spokesman announced 24 September 2024 the mobilization of two reserve brigades to the North: "According to the assessment of the situation in the IDF, the mobilization will enable the continuation of the fighting effort against Hezbollah, the protection of the citizens of the State of Israel and the creation of the conditions for the safe return of the residents of the North to their homes ". According to the IDF's assessment of the situation, the mobilization of the two reserve brigades will allow the continuation of the fighting effort against the terrorist organization Hezbollah, the protection of the citizens of the State of Israel and the creation of the conditions for the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes.

The IDF raised three divisions to the northern border, which were intended to stop a ground attack by Hezbollah, should the organization try to carry out one. However, most of Hezbollah's Radwan force went up beyond the Litani River and is not in southern Lebanon, therefore Hezbollah's ability to carry out an invasion The ground is limited. It is possible that the assassination of Hizbullah's chief of staff, Akil, was carried out due to fears that Hizbullah officials were planning an invasion of Israel. Israel reserved for itself the possibility of ground action in Lebanon. The units in the north conducted exercises that simulate ground action. The same action, if carried out, will harm Hezbollah operatives who fire anti-tank missiles at the settlements of the fence, which are more difficult to hit from the air.

The Israeli army decided 01 October 2024 to call up 4 reserve brigades to operate in the northern region, indicating further escalation on the northern front. The Times of Israel quoted the army as saying that after assessing the situation, it decided to call up four brigades of reserve soldiers and other forces to participate in the ongoing operations on the northern front with Lebanon, which "will allow the fight against the Hezbollah terrorist organization to continue." An Israeli brigade usually consists of several thousand soldiers, according to the newspaper. The correspondent said that the army showed reporters videos of weapons smuggled from Russia and Iran to Hezbollah, including heavy machine guns and shoulder-fired missile.

On 02 October 2024 the Israel Defense Forces announced that 146th Reserve Division was joining three standing army divisions — the 98th, 36th, and 91st — that Israel had already deployed in southern Lebanon to conduct ground operations against Hezbollah. And the Israeli military said on 08 October 2024 its 146th Division had started what it called "limited, localised and targeted" operations against Hezbollah targets and infrastructure a day earlier in southwestern Lebanon.

Division 210 joined 4 other divisions participating in ground incursions into southern Lebanon. The Israeli Army Radio said 15 Octobe 2024 that the 210th Division is carrying out targeted ground raids on Mount Dov, and this is the fifth division operating on the ground in Lebanon since the start of the ground operations. For its part, the Israeli army said in a statement, "Last week, Mountain Brigade (810) forces, led by the 210th Division, carried out targeted raids from the Mount Dov area in complex areas in southern Lebanon."

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on 18 October 2024 it was calling up an additional reserve brigade to be deployed on its border with Lebanon as it battled Hezbollah militants. "In accordance with the situational assessment, the IDF is calling up an additional reserve brigade for operational missions in the northern arena," it said.