Israel-Hezbollah clashes likely to escalate into full-scale war

The conflict between Israel and Lebanon's Shiite militant group Hezbollah is showing signs of escalating into a full-scale war. The ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas has heightened concerns that Israel may soon find itself in another conflict with Hezbollah.

On Tuesday, Israeli forces bombed southern Lebanon, killing four Hezbollah members, including senior commander Taleb Sami Abdullah, according to Reuters and other sources. Abdullah held a higher rank than Commander Wissam al-Tawil, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike earlier this year in January.

The same day, the Israeli military launched a rocket attack on Baalbek in northern Lebanon, resulting in the deaths of three more Hezbollah members. The Israeli military stated that the attack was "in retaliation for Hezbollah's shooting down of an Israeli drone over southern Lebanon on Monday." Baalbek is known to be an arms distribution base for Hezbollah, supplying weapons to various parts of Lebanon.

"The fog of war is growing around us," an Israeli official told The Washington Post on Tuesday. "Airstrikes from both sides are becoming more intense and frequent every week." Key mountain towns and valleys along the border have already become battlegrounds, he noted.

Leaders from both sides have openly expressed their readiness for all-out war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to the Lebanese border on Friday, stating, "We are preparing a very strong operation. One way or another, we will restore security in the north." Israeli public opinion also appears to support a war against Hezbollah. According to a Friday poll by local newspaper Maariv, 62% of Israelis "support a decisive attack on Hezbollah."


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