Full story
Iran warning, ridge flashpoint
Iran warned the United States it would respond with a large-scale attack if Israel launches a full-scale assault on the Ali al-Taher ridge in southern Lebanon, according to Reuters and three officials familiar with the warning.
“Iran has warned the United States that it would respond with a large-scale attack”
The warning, reportedly issued in August, was transmitted through Oman, which has previously played a mediating role, and it highlighted Iran’s ongoing and direct role in ground operations in southern Lebanon.
The Ali al-Taher ridge is located about 15 km (10 miles) from the Israeli border and has been described as one of Israel’s “primary operational focuses,” with Israeli troops operating in an expanded, self-declared buffer zone.
Hezbollah has publicly maintained that it controls the ridge and would resist any Israeli attempt to advance on the position, referring to a “facility” at the site without disclosing additional information.
A White House official rejected a claim that Washington pressure contributed to Israel postponing an assault, stating, “this is not accurate.”
IDF clears tunnels, Hezbollah reacts
The IDF announced on Thursday that it completed the clearance of two Hezbollah underground infrastructures on the Ali al-Taher ridge in southern Lebanon and that forces are now working to neutralize them.
According to the military, the infrastructures were built over a period of about two decades and were planned and funded by Iran, and the IDF said the complex allowed Hezbollah operatives to remain underground for extended periods and conduct combat operations from there.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “Today we can already say it: We eliminated a great many terrorists there,” as troops from the IDF’s 36th Division operated to clear two underground routes in recent weeks.
Brig. Gen. Yiftach Norkin said from the area that “We are effectively completing the clearing and takeover of them,” describing the site as one of two underground networks where Israeli forces had been operating in recent weeks.
The IDF also emphasized that operations in southern Lebanon are continuing and that the IDF remains committed to the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon.
What’s at stake next
Reuters reported that Iran’s warning underscored Tehran’s readiness to retaliate against Israeli attacks on the ridge, where more than a dozen Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps personnel were said to be with Hezbollah fighters.
““Iran considers any Israeli move on the ground in southern Lebanon”
The Reuters account also said Hezbollah’s media office told Reuters that “Iran considers any Israeli move on the ground in southern Lebanon, especially territorial expansion, a major violation of the Islamabad Agreement,” referring to a June U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding that included a Lebanon ceasefire.
In parallel, the IDF said it would not allow the Hezbollah terrorist organization to advance terror attacks against Israeli troops and that “Any attempt by the Hezbollah terrorist organization to act against IDF troops will be met with force.”
The Financial Express, citing Reuters, described the ridge as a dividing point between Israeli-occupied territory to the south and towns to the north that Israel’s air force has bombed heavily, including Nabatieh.
The same Reuters reporting said that even with Iran’s warning, a Lebanese source and a senior Lebanese security official said Israel could still launch an operation to seize the ridge in the coming weeks.