The Israel Defense Forces struck and eliminated Abu Ali Salameh, a terrorist who served as a Hezbollah liaison officer in the village of Yanouh in Southern Lebanon, on Wednesday.
Ali Salameh engaged in a “cynical exploitation” of the residents of Yanouh, the IDF said, embedding terrorist infrastructure within the population.
On Dec. 13, the IDF submitted a request to the ceasefire enforcement mechanism demanding action against a Hezbollah weapons storage facility in Yanouh.
The U.S.-led International Monitoring and Implementation Mechanism is meant to supervise the November 2024 Israel-Lebanon ceasefire agreement. According to the terms, neither Hezbollah forces nor infrastructure are permitted in the southern Litani area.
When Salameh received the request from the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), he passed it to additional Hezbollah operatives. When LAF troops arrived, Hezbollah prevented them from dismantling the infrastructure by creating a gathering, giving time for the terrorists to transfer the weapons out of the property, the IDF reported.
Several “suspicious boxes” were removed from the rear door of the property, it said.
“The actions of the terrorist Abu Ali Salameh constitute a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon. The IDF will continue to act to remove any threat and to defend the State of Israel,” according to the army statement.
Also on Wednesday, the IDF struck a Hezbollah terrorist in the Sidon area of Southern Lebanon, the military confirmed.
The attack was carried out in response to “Hezbollah’s repeated violations of the ceasefire understandings,” the IDF said.
The IDF also targeted a Hezbollah terrorist in the Bourj el-Chamali area of Lebanon’s south on Wednesday.
On Monday, the military attacked Hezbollah training camps. The IDF also said it struck tunnel shafts used to store weapons at several sites in Southern Lebanon, adding that “unusual” Hezbollah terrorist activity had been identified at those locations in recent months.
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem declared on Saturday that the Iranian-backed terrorist army would not disarm and “the aggression against Lebanon cannot continue,” claiming the organization had the “right to defend ourselves.”
The remarks followed statements by Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji, who said in a recent interview with Sky News Arabia that Israel retained the right to strike Lebanon until Hezbollah fully disarms.
Rajji was quoted as saying that “as long as weapons are not permanently restricted, [Jerusalem] unfortunately has the right to continue its attacks according to the agreement.”
Hezbollah started attacking Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, one day after the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel, opening a second front in the country’s north that lasted until the truce deal on Nov. 27, 2024.
The truce terms required Hezbollah to disarm, starting in regions adjacent to the border, with the Lebanese Armed Forces being mandated to establish a monopoly over weapons in the country.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office in a Jan. 8 statement said that while Beirut’s efforts were “an encouraging beginning,” they were “far from sufficient” given Hezbollah’s ongoing Iran-aided rearmament efforts.
“The ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States between Israel and Lebanon states clearly that Hezbollah must be fully disarmed. This is imperative for Israel’s security and Lebanon’s future,” said Jerusalem.
