fighting the war as if there are no negotiations, and
negotiating as if there is no war
Avi Melamed
It is dangerous to be found in the company of God's enemies
Operation Northern Arrows - 24 Sep 2024
At the end of his visit to one of the Israeli intelligence agency's bases, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to launch new strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Meanwhile, Israel continues its war on the Gaza Strip, ignoring the UN Security Council resolution to stop it immediately, and the International Court of Justice’s orders to take measures to prevent acts of genocide and to improve the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza. The war on the Gaza Strip had left, up to the 354th day, more than 41,000 dead and about 96,000 wounded.
Some Israeli sources spoke of “great successes” achieved by the air campaigns, and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant claimed to have eliminated 50% of Hezbollah’s missile capabilities. But some senior experts, including the former National Security Adviser, the hard-line right-wing Major General Yaakov Amidror, rejected this assessment. Amidror confirmed that Israel “has not even begun to destroy Hezbollah’s capabilities and is still far from doing so.”
Iranian leader Ali Khamenei for the first time referred to the serious escalation in the war between Israel and Hezbollah, and said that despite everything - the Lebanese terrorist organization will win the war. At the same time, Iran's President Massoud Pazkhian continues to "scatter smiles" and signal his intentions to get closer to the West, and tonight he will meet with French President Emmanuel Macron.
Israeli military spokesman Admiral Daniel Hagari told reporters that Israel seeks to keep the military campaign against the Lebanese Hezbollah group as short as possible, but is prepared for it to be prolonged. The Israeli military also revealed that Hezbollah fired about 300 rockets towards Israel today, while its aircraft bombed sites housing the party’s weapons in Lebanon. Hagari told reporters: “Today, about 300 rockets were fired towards Israel... resulting in six civilians and soldiers being injured, most of them lightly.”
A Hezbollah military commander was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Beirut. The Israeli military said the strike killed Ibrahim Qubaisi, who it said was the commander of the Lebanese group’s missile system. Two security sources in Lebanon described Qubaisi as a senior figure in the Iran-backed group’s missile system. The Lebanese Health Ministry said six people were killed and 15 others wounded in the Israeli raid. The Israeli raid targeted two floors of a building in the Ghobeiry area in the southern suburbs, in a strike confirmed by the Israeli army.
Arab sources claim that Israel was unable to bear a front that was limited to a depth of about 20 km (excluding the strikes carried out by Hezbollah in response to specific attacks) with 100,000 displaced persons, while it will be obligated to adapt to a front that extends beyond Haifa to Zichron Yaakov (about 60 km), with estimates of doubling the number of displaced persons.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz said on 24 September 2024 that the Israeli army was following with concern the arrival of about 40,000 fighters from various countries, including Iraq, Yemen and Syria, and are present near the Golan Heights. The newspaper added that the fighters are waiting for an invitation from Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah to join the fighting. The Israeli security establishment says that although they are not particularly professional fighters, this is a cause for concern. The security establishment explained that it had seen and experienced what a force of 2,000 to 3,000 armed men could do when it surprised and attacked a settlement.
Haaretz said that the authorities in Tel Aviv, despite the damage to Hezbollah's missile capabilities, the harm to its elements, and the killing of hundreds of its members since the beginning of the war last year, including fighters from elite units, believe that Nasrallah will not find it difficult to recruit a large number of fighters against Israel. "If necessary, we will also act in Syria to make it clear to Damascus that we no longer accept their presence there," a senior Israeli official said.
Hezbollah announced that it had bombed the "Samson" base with "Fadi 3" missiles. In its statement, the Islamic Resistance explained that the "Samson" base is a command equipment center and a regional equipment unit. Thus, the "Fadi 3" missile entered service for the first time in this battle, by striking the "Samson" base for the technology weapon at the "Golani" junction west of occupied Tiberias.
In turn, Al-Mayadeen's correspondent in the south explained that the "Samson" base, which the resistance bombed with "Fadi 3" missiles, is about 35 km from the Lebanese border. It is located west of Lake Tiberias and is affiliated with the Northern Region Command in the occupation "army." He also pointed out that the Sky Dew balloon, which the resistance had previously taken out of service, is located in the vicinity of this base. The Islamic Resistance also bombed the Dado base - the headquarters of the northern region of the Israeli army - with fifty rockets, in addition to the Gesher Haziv settlement with rocket salvos.
Before that, the resistance targeted the Rosh Pina settlement with rocket salvos, and also bombed the main warehouses of the northern region in the Nimra base with dozens of rockets, in addition to the Hagoshrim settlement with rocket salvos. At the same time, Hezbollah announced that it had bombarded the settlement of "Katzrin" with a salvo of rockets. The resistance confirmed, in its statements, that these operations come in support of the steadfast Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, in support of their valiant and honorable resistance, and in defense of Lebanon and its people.
An IDF spokesman: "Following the alerts that were activated in the Arava area, an unmanned aircraft was detected crossing from the east, a crash was detected in the area. There are no casualties." The pro-Iranian militias in Iraq accepted responsibility for launching a UAV at "a vital target near the Jordan Valley".
The Political Bureau of the Ansar Allah Movement in Yemen condemned the "dangerous criminal escalation of the Zionist enemy, which crosses all red lines by targeting the southern suburb of Beirut." The Political Bureau said in a statement that the Israeli escalation is "an aggression against Lebanon, a flagrant violation of its sovereignty, and a criminal and sinful assault on the Lebanese people," reiterating that " these crimes, which are deeply savage, are unable to weaken the resolve of the Lebanese people and the Islamic resistance." He condemned "the American positions, which proved that the United States is a full partner in all the crimes and terrorist acts that targeted civilians in Lebanon," and renewed the movement's solidarity with Lebanon and its resistance, noting that "the uncontrolled escalation will not prevent or hinder the Islamic resistance from continuing to support Gaza and triumph for the Palestinian cause."
The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah - announced the launch of an air attack via a squadron of attack drones on the headquarters of the special naval missions unit, "Shayetet 13", at the "Atlit" base, south of Haifa. The resistance said that the attack targeted the locations of the headquarters' officers and soldiers, stressing that the drones hit their targets accurately. She stressed that this targeting comes in support of the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, in support of their resistance, and in defense of Lebanon and its people.
It is noteworthy that the "Shayetet 13" unit is the elite unit of the Israeli Navy, and is one of the first-level units in the Israeli occupation "army", and is considered one of the three most important special units, and a basic reconnaissance unit in the "army". In the same context, an Israeli media platform reported that sirens sounded in Atlit and Neve Yam for the first time in 5 years. Israeli media reported that the party's drones, which reached the naval base in "Atlit", reached "the greatest depth since the beginning of the war." "Atlit" is located on the Mediterranean coast, south of the occupied city of Haifa, and is 12 km away from it.
Hezbollah carried out a series of qualitative operations in "northern occupied Palestine", the most prominent of which was the bombing of the "Samson" base with "Fadi 3" missiles , which were introduced for the first time in this battle. The resistance bombarded the "Dado" base, the headquarters of the northern region of the IDF, with fifty rockets, in addition to the "Gesher Haziv" settlement, with rocket salvos. Before that, the resistance targeted the settlement of Rosh Pina with rocket salvos, and also bombed the main warehouses of the northern region in the Nimra base with dozens of rockets, in addition to the settlements of Hagoshrim and Katzrin with rocket salvos. The spokesman for the IDF indicated that 300 rockets were launched from Lebanon today towards the north.
The Israeli newspaper "Israel Hayom" confirmed that the streets of the city of Haifa are now empty, noting that the missile bombardment affected the city immediately, after the targeting carried out by Hezbollah on Sunday. The newspaper quoted one of resident as confirming that "no warnings were received" in the city about the possibility of being subjected to shelling by Hezbollah, noting that Rambam Hospital in Haifa had transferred all its activities to a parking garage. The settlers of Ein Zivan in the Golan Heights and Kiryat Shmona received instructions to remain near the shelters until further notice.
The American website "Axios" reported, quoting Israeli officials and a Western diplomat, that the Lebanese "Hezbollah" called on Iran in recent days to launch an attack against Israel, but Tehran has so far refrained from doing so. The two Israeli officials said that "Iranian officials informed their counterparts in Hezbollah that the timing is not right to launch an attack on Israel because Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is currently in New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly."
Axios pointed out that any direct Iranian attack on Israel would greatly destabilize the region, and would likely drag the United States into more active combat. "Israel is the party seeking a wider war in the region," Pezeshkian said in a press briefing in New York on Monday, stressing that Iran does not want to fall into this "trap."
It is worth noting that Iran pledged to respond to the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, which took place in the presidential palace in Tehran, and the United States and Israel said at the time that they were concerned that Iran would carry out another missile and drone attack against Israel, similar to the attack that took place last April, but two months after Haniyeh's death, Iran has still not responded.
The officials said that during their talks with Hezbollah in recent days, the Iranians expressed their reservations about joining the fight against Israel now and did not provide a positive response. Israeli officials said U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin discussed the possibility of direct Iranian involvement in the fighting in Lebanon with his Israeli counterpart Yoav Galant during a phone call on 22 September 2024. A senior Israeli official said the security cabinet's directive to the Israel Defense Forces was to avoid steps that would give Iran a reason or pretext to join the fighting.
A senior Israeli official spoke today, Tuesday, about studying a ground operation in southern Lebanon, revealing the amount of ammunition that the Israeli army dropped on Lebanon yesterday. Channel 12 Israel quoted a senior official as saying that the army dropped 2,000 shells on Lebanon, while it was reported that the warplanes launched 1,300 raids on the southern and Bekaa regions in eastern Lebanon.
The senior official said that if the political track to return the residents of the north does not lead to a solution, we will consider a ground operation in Lebanon. In this regard, Agence France-Presse quoted an American official today, Tuesday, confirming Washington's rejection of an Israeli ground invasion of Lebanon, indicating that his country will present concrete ideas to contain the crisis. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to carry out more attacks and expand military operations in Lebanon, considering that what Israel is doing is "changing the balance of power."
While former French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian arrived in Beirut in an effort to de-escalate the situation, the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar reported that Washington sent a brief message to the Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri and the Prime Minister Najib Mikati stating that the doors of diplomacy have been closed and there is no longer room for any negotiations. The newspaper also quoted sources as saying that "all the messages to Lebanon intersect around one point, which is that Israel wants to create a buffer zone 10 kilometers deep, and will not back down from that, and that the only solution is to return to implementing Resolution 1701 with the concessions Israel is requesting, and any refusal will only be met with more strikes and escalation."
In times of war, the Israeli administration resorts to a media blackout plan on the damage, amid strict military censorship that restricts the media and social networking sites from accessing information. Between a picture here of broken glass and a scene there of a damaged car, the source of information coming from Israel about the damage caused by Hezbollah missiles - including the heavy missiles it fired in the past two days - is limited to social media sites, which are naturally less subject to restrictions.
Also, since the beginning of the war in Gaza in October 2023, there has not been media image of any Israeli casualties, and this situation has declined until these days with the escalation of the situation on the northern front. Media sources note that all statements issued by the Israeli authorities about the fall of the missiles and their locations confirm categorically that no one was injured. When the Israeli media discloses any information, it is trimmed, stereotyped and abbreviated without details.
For example, the Israeli media reported that an Israeli was killed in northern Israel in a traffic accident that coincided with the fall of missiles fired by Hezbollah, and today it was said that a number of Israelis were injured in a stampede while heading to protected areas, i.e. shelters.
Sources confirm that journalists working in Israel avoid commenting in compliance with military censorship. The Israeli authorities have closed the offices of a number of Arab media outlets and prevented their crews from working since the beginning of the war in Gaza, including the Lebanese Al-Mayadeen channel and recently the Qatari Al-Jazeera channel for a temporary period, while recording a record number of targeting journalists in Gaza, where 173 Palestinian journalists have been killed since October 7 and 32 others have been arrested.
For the first time in the war, Hizballah launched a surface-to-surface missile 24 September 2024 into the Gush Dan area. Air defense fighters intercepted the missile using a David slingshot system. Fearing the fall of fragments of an interceptor, alarms were activated in large areas, from Netanya in the north to Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan in the south. This is the system that intercepted the missile - and this is how the IDF prepared to expand operations in Lebanon. Hezbollah launched the missiles from the area of Nafjah village in Lebanon. Later, alarms were also activated in Zichron Yaakov and in large areas in Wadi Ara and Carmel. No casualties are known. The alarms at Zichron Yaakov were activated for the first time in 2019.
Hizballah claimed that they launched a ballistic missile, of the "Kader 1" type, at the Mossad headquarters in Tel Aviv. According to them, the same headquarters was used to plan the assassination of senior Hezbollah officials and the operation to blow up the pagers and radios. Despite Hezbollah's statement, missile experts explain that it is unlikely that the Ark of Terror launched a missile of this size and with such a relatively short range. According to them, what was launched was probably a smaller ballistic missile, possibly "Fateh 110". Hezbollah's official propaganda did not initially disclose documentation of the missile and its launch. Missile diameter ws reportedly 1.25 meters, and the length 15.5 to 16.58 meters. The missile weight was 15,000 to 17,480 kg, with a warhead of high explosive materials weighing 700 to 1,000 kg.
The David Sling system successfully intercepted the Hezbollah missile that was launched into Gush Dan. A David Slingshot interceptor hit the target at a high altitude, and the alarms that were activated in large areas in the center were activated due to fear of fragments of an interceptor falling. The system, previously called a magic wand, is designed to intercept advanced threats including ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, aircraft and drones.
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