Above photo: AFP.
Israel has escalated its attacks on Lebanon in violation of a US-backed ceasefire.
Killing at least seven people in the past two days alone.
A large-scale Israeli military operation in Lebanon is imminent, according to European sources who spoke with Sky News Arabia on 24 October, describing it as “just a matter of time.”
The report came as the Israeli army announced a series of military drills carried out recently, aimed at simulating an attack on Lebanon and various defense-related scenarios that could come with such a decision.
According to the military, Israel’s 91st Division – the “Galilee Division” – has completed the largest exercise since the beginning of the genocide in Gaza, aimed at “enhancing operational readiness” for military offensives along the border “by way of air, sea, and land.”
Israel claimed these exercises are being carried out to prepare for a “range of scenarios,” including reserve mobilization and force buildup.
“The exercise scenarios were adapted to the operational situation following fighting in southern Lebanon, during which Hezbollah’s operational capabilities were damaged,” the military added.
Israeli media had reported a day earlier that it carried out extensive drills, including simulating a Hezbollah ground assault on the Galilee.
Hezbollah’s former secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah warned years ago that an Israeli assault on Lebanon could trigger Hezbollah to invade the Galilee.
After targeting and assassinating leaders of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Unit in September last year, Tel Aviv claimed it had completely thwarted the so-called “Galilee Invasion Plan.”
Friday’s announcement on the military exercises came as Israel escalated deadly attacks on southern Lebanon. One strike targeted the southern town of Toul in Nabatieh.
The Israeli army said Abbas Hassan Karaki, a senior Hezbollah logistics official from the town of Harouf, was assassinated in its strike on Toul. Several others were injured.
Israel says it assassinated senior Hezbollah logistics official Abbas Karaki, from Harouf, in its strike on Toul in south Lebanon’s Nabatieh today.
Under international law, targeting Hezbollah members not actively engaged in hostilities is prohibited. pic.twitter.com/WLt65KzUah
— The Cradle (@TheCradleMedia) October 24, 2025
Under international humanitarian law, it is prohibited to target resistance members during a ceasefire if they are not directly participating in hostilities at the time of the attack, regardless of their affiliation.
One person was also killed in Nabatieh on Friday evening in an Israeli attack on a car. At least two others were injured.
BREAKING | Israeli drone bombs a vehicle near Zawtar al-Gharbieh, south Lebanon, assassinating one person and injuring two others. pic.twitter.com/H5EF6RmYyf
— The Cradle (@TheCradleMedia) October 24, 2025
The attacks bring the death toll of Israeli strikes on Lebanon in the past two days up to at least seven.
Israel bombed the town of Arabsalim in south Lebanon on Thursday, killing two people. The strike came after a massive wave of airstrikes on the Bekaa region in the east that afternoon, which also killed two people.
One elderly woman was murdered, and two Lebanese were injured in a Zionist strike on a site containing bulldozers and excavators near the municipal building in the town of Arabsalim.
Amid Western media silence, the regime is attempting to ethnically cleanse southern Lebanon. pic.twitter.com/SZY5n08HXv
— Seyed Mohammad Marandi (@s_m_marandi) October 24, 2025
من الغارات العنيفة على البقاع pic.twitter.com/XbC0H5Esx7
— bintjbeil.org (@bintjbeilnews) October 23, 2025
Israel has significantly escalated its attacks and violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon, under the pretext of “preventing” Hezbollah from rebuilding its forces and infrastructure.
Many of the strikes have targeted equipment needed for reconstruction, hindering the Lebanese state’s ability to rebuild areas destroyed by Israel in the last war.
Over 300 people have been killed by Israeli attacks on the country since the ceasefire was reached in November last year. Israel has also expanded the occupation it established during the ceasefire in violation of the deal, and Tel Aviv has said that it will not consider withdrawal until Hezbollah is disarmed first. Washington has publicly backed Israel’s position more than once.
“If Beirut fails to act, Hezbollah’s military wing will inevitably face a major confrontation with Israel, at a moment when Israel is at peak strength and Iranian support for Hezbollah is at its weakest,” US envoy Tom Barrack said on Monday.
