Iranian politicians, military officials, and media outlets are currently advancing a series of threats, half-truths, and outright lies in the service of softening the political blow that any Israeli strike could land while also raising military costs.
The IDF focused air strikes on Hezbollah command centers in southern Lebanon. The Israeli military estimated that it eliminated fifty Hezbollah terrorists, including six “senior commanders from Hezbollah’s southern front and the Radwan forces,” the IDF said on October 8. Hezbollah launched 220 rockets into Israel on October 9. Two Israelis were killed by Hezbollah rocket fire in the northern city of Kiryat Shmona. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to US President Joe Biden about possible Israeli retaliation for Iran’s ballistic missile attack on Israel.
With Israel’s September 27 assassination of Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s voice has been subdued. But it has not, unfortunately, been entirely silenced. The mantle of Hezbollah’s spokesman is a heavy one to take up, made all the more difficult by Israel’s continued elimination of the group’s top leadership cadre. For now, however, Hezbollah seems to have settled on Nasrallah’s deputy, the soft-spoken philosopher-idealogue Naim Qassem. An intellectual, Qassem lacks any of the charisma or presence around which Nasrallah’s hold over Hezbollah’s flock and cult of personality were built – and therefore his ability to inspire and rouse the base remains in question. But for lack of any other options, he now appears to be Hezbollah’s placeholder voice.
Israel announced that it killed Hashem Safieddine, the likely successor to Hezbollah’s longtime Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah. Safieddine was a veteran Hezbollah leader, and the group has suffered significant losses to its leadership cadre.
Hezbollah targeted Israel’s northern city of Haifa with rocket fire on October 8 after launching 190 rockets at Israel on October 7. The IDF continued to carry out operations in southern Lebanon. Israel’s Golani Brigade uncovered Hezbollah weapons in Maroun al-Ras. The IDF also dismantled a tunnel that stretched into Israel. Four IDF divisions are now operating in Lebanon.
Israel commemorated the anniversary of the October 7 massacre as Hamas fired more than 135 rockets at southern and central Israel, Iraqi militias targeted Israel with drones, and the Houthis launched a long-range missile at central Israel. The IDF’s top general met with the head of US Central Command on October 6. A third IDF division began operations in Lebanon as the Israeli Air Force hit 120 Hezbollah targets.
On the anniversary of the October 7 terrorist attack, the Islamic Republic has pledged to target Israeli cities and critical infrastructure while US and Israeli officials consider their options in response to Tehran’s second ballistic missile assault. With Israel’s air defense capabilities demonstrating superiority over Iranian missiles and the military setbacks suffered by the regime’s proxies, Tehran has increasingly diminished its leverage over Jerusalem. This shifting dynamic offers Israel a strategic opportunity to target the regime’s nuclear facilities, addressing the primary existential threat it faces.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched a new operation in northern Gaza directed at Hamas terrorists in Jabliya, an area the IDF has cleared three times during the war. The new operation, launched as Israel prepares for the anniversary of the October 7 attack, began after the Israeli military detected evidence that Hamas was seeking to rebuild its forces there.
The Houthis in Yemen have an extensive leadership hierarchy. FDD’s Long War Journal lists some of the leaders of the organization, their roles, and if they have been sanctioned by the United States government.
The Israeli military suffered its first casualties in southern Lebanon battles with Hezbollah on October 2. Eight soldiers were killed in one incident and a ninth in a second clash, according to Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reports from October 2 and October 3. The IDF struck approximately 200 Hezbollah targets and estimated it eliminated 60 of the group’s members. During the same two days, Hezbollah launched 360 projectiles at Israel. In addition, the IDF downed several drone threats off the coast. Two Israeli divisions, the 98th and the 36th, are now operating in southern Lebanon.
A breakdown of the Hezbollah officials Israel has assassinated, those who remain, and the impact on the organization and its durability.
Jaish al-Adl claimed responsibility for twin attacks in Iran’s Sistan and Baluchistan province that killed IRGC members and local law enforcement personnel. The separatist group has intensified its attacks against regime targets recently, with one previous wave occurring in three cities.
The Israel Defense (IDF) Forces began a ground operation in southern Lebanon against Hezbollah, led by the IDF’s 98th Division. The IDF described the offensive as “localized, and targeted ground raids based on precise intelligence against Hezbollah terrorist targets and infrastructure in southern Lebanon.” Iran launched 180 ballistic missiles at Israel, while Hezbollah fired rocket barrages at northern and central Israel.