Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held several phone calls with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin over the weekend as the Jewish state braced for Lebanese Hezbollah terrorists to launch a large-scale cross-border assault, Gallant’s office said on Sunday morning.
Gallant briefed Austin on “the precise operation conducted by the IDF to eliminate the head of Hezbollah’s Operations Unit [the Radwan Force] and Commander of the Radwan Forces, Ibrahim Aqil—senior Hezbollah leader and planner of numerous terror attacks against Israel, and wanted by the United States for the killing of U.S. citizens,” according to the statement.
The defense minister also discussed Jerusalem’s defensive measures against the ongoing rocket, missile and drone attacks from Lebanon directed at Israeli residential area.
Gallant stressed to Austin that Israel is committed to returning citizens to all evacuated communities in the country’s north, the statement noted.
The minister also discussed the Israel Defense Forces’ ongoing military activities against Hamas terrorists in Gaza, underscoring Jerusalem’s commitment to bringing home the remaining 101 hostages.
Gallant voiced his “appreciation to Secretary Austin and U.S. leadership for reaffirming their commitment to Israel’s security,” his office said.
In a call late last week, Austin “reiterated unwavering U.S. support for Israel in the face of threats from Iran, Lebanese Hezbollah and Iran’s other regional partners,” while calling for de-escalation, according to a readout provided by Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder.
Several people were hurt when Hezbollah terror army in Lebanon launched more than 100 rockets and drones at northern Israeli towns and cities in waves of attacks overnight Saturday and Sunday morning.
Hezbollah took responsibility for the launches, saying that it had sent “dozens of Fadi 1 and Fadi 2 missiles” at the Ramat David Airbase and a Rafael Advanced Defense Systems facility near Haifa. This reportedly marked the first time that it has used this type of weapon since Oct. 8.
Hezbollah has attacked Israel nearly daily since Oct. 8, 2023, firing thousands of rockets, missiles and drones. The attacks have killed more than 40 people and caused widespread damage. Tens of thousands of Israeli civilians remain internally displaced due to the violence.
Hezbollah said that the projectiles launched were “in response to the repeated Israeli attacks that targeted various Lebanese regions and led to the fall of many civilian martyrs,” in reference to last week’s device explosions that killed and wounded thousands of Hezbollah terrorists.
The Israel Defense Forces has declined to comment on the two waves of explosions—the first of which came hours after the Israeli Cabinet added the return of residents displaced from their homes in the north to the country’s war goals, bringing a major clash with Hezbollah closer.
