Hezbollah is preparing to down an Israeli drone in the coming days,
after leaving time for Israeli politicians and media to increase their criticism and attacks on Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu, accused of undermining Israel's vital deterrence strategy in force since 1955.
The Secretary General of Hezbollah, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, has decided to make his own contribution to the forthcoming Israeli elections, expected on September 18, by
backing the failure of Netanyahu's candidacy. Hezbollah achieved the first part of its two-part plan by hitting a military vehicle last Sunday on the 3.8 km road between Yiron and Avivim. The attack caused the destruction of the Israeli vehicle and
inflicted casualties among the five soldiers inside - notwithstanding the Israeli denial of casualties. The hit was filmed by Hezbollah's cameras and shows the firing of two anti-tank Kornet guided missiles.
The attack came as
retaliation against Israel's violation of UN resolution 1701 which in its first article stipulates "the immediate cessation by Israel of all offensive military operations". Indeed, Israel sent two suicide drones last month to blow-up a Hezbollah military asset in a suburb of Beirut, after killing two Hezbollah members in a direct targeted killing in Syria. That triggered an overt threat by Sayyed Nasrallah to hit back, which gave Israel ample time to take counter-measures.
Israel deserted its military positions all along more than 100 kilometers of the UN blue-line separating Lebanon and Israel, to the extent of 4 to 5 kilometers and more. This was interpreted as an admission of cowardice by the Israeli Army, shaking its reputation as the "
eighth strongest army in the world." This hide and seek followed a televised threat by a "non-state actor". Hezbollah doesn't have tanks or jets in Lebanon but its guerrilla skills gained through decades of experience, in particular in the Syrian war, have transformed it into a an organised, strong, "non-regular" army.
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