Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Thursday that the Israeli army had destroyed underground infrastructure belonging to the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah on the Ali Taher ridge in southern Lebanon.
In a joint statement, Netanyahu and Katz said the operation meant Israel had completed what they called the establishment of the security zone in southern Lebanon.
Eight tunnels over 5,400 meters
An Israeli army official told the EFE news agency that the underground network along the Ali Taher ridge consisted of a total of eight underground routes, with a combined length of more than 5,400 meters.
Netanyahu and Katz said the tunnels had been built over two decades with financing and planning from Iran, and that they were intended, in their account, to facilitate what they described as the conquest of Galilee, in northern Israel. Netanyahu also said in a social media post that the army had destroyed overnight the largest Iranian outpost outside Iran, referring to the Ali Taher tunnels in Lebanon.
Israel claims control of the ridge
Israel said it had obtained operational control of the Ali Taher mountain ridge, both on the surface and underground. It announced that its forces would remain in the area to prevent Hezbollah's return and to continue destroying what it describes as the group's infrastructure.
Hezbollah is a Lebanese Shiite armed group and political party backed by Iran that has fought several wars with Israel, most recently in a conflict that escalated sharply in 2024. Israel has continued carrying out strikes and ground operations in southern Lebanon in the months since, despite a ceasefire agreement between the two countries.
Stalled talks and disputed violations
The operation comes as negotiations between Israel and Lebanon, mediated by the United States, remain stalled.
The Lebanese army said on Wednesday that it had recorded about 7,700 Israeli violations since the framework agreement between the two countries was signed on June 26. It said an end to hostilities was essential for it to complete its deployment in the south of the country.
Beirut also accused Israel of intensifying its attacks in recent days on residential areas and institutions, and said the operations had caused new waves of displacement.
