The Israeli military has pushed back Hezbollah to “significant distances” from the border with Lebanon, Defense Yoav Gallant said on Wednesday, amid an ongoing low-intensity conflict with the Iranian-backed terrorist group in the north.
“The defensive battle is a complex one—it is a battle in which you are constantly anticipating the enemy’s actions while remaining alert and active. The [91st] Division is carrying out its missions in an excellent fashion— we have pushed Hezbollah to significant distances,” said Gallant following a situation assessment held at the division, aka the Galilee Formation.
“In order to safely return [to their homes] the residents of Israel’s northern communities, we require either a process that will lead to an agreement or an operational process. It is the military’s duty to prepare the operational process, which also serves as an anchor for additional processes. I am determined to return these communities to their homes and to rebuild that which was destroyed,” added the minister.
The Israel Defense Forces announced on Thursday morning the death of Staff Sgt. Haim Sabach, 20, who was killed the previous day by a Hezbollah missile at a military post near Kibbutz Malkia. Sabah, from Holon, was a member of the Border Defense Corps’ 869th Combat Intelligence Collection Unit.
Another soldier was lightly wounded in the attack.
Two reserve soldiers were killed on Monday by a Hezbollah drone attack against a military position close to the northern town of Metula. The IDF said it had failed to intercept the explosive-laden UAV.
The casualties were identified as Master Sgt. (res.) Dan Kamkagi, 31, from Kfar Oranim, and Master Sgt. (res.) Nahman Natan Hertz, 31, from Elazar.
Six hundred and fifteen Israeli soldiers have been killed since Oct. 7.
Hezbollah has carried out near-daily attacks on northern Israel after joining the war against the Jewish state in support of Hamas following the Gaza-based terrorist group’s massacre of some 1,200 people in the northwestern Negev.
Tehran’s Lebanese terrorist proxy has killed eight Israeli civilians, one foreign worker and 14 IDF soldiers since it began its current round of attacks.
Israel has threatened a major military offensive in Southern Lebanon to push Hezbollah north of the Litani River—some 18 miles from the border—if a diplomatic solution is not found. Efforts to calm tensions, including those of the United States and France, have been unsuccessful.
