Israel army chief tells troops to be ready for possible Lebanon entry

Smoke billows over southern Lebanon following an Israeli strike, as seen from Tyre, Lebanon September 25, 2024. (Reuters)
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  • “You can hear the planes here; we are attacking all day, both to prepare the ground for the possibility of your entry, but also to continue striking Hezbollah,” Halevi said

JERUSALEM: Israel’s army chief told troops on Wednesday to be prepared for possible entry into Lebanon as Israeli fighter jets bombarded Hezbollah targets across the border.
“You can hear the planes here; we are attacking all day, both to prepare the ground for the possibility of your entry, but also to continue striking Hezbollah,” Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi told a tank brigade, according to a statement issued by the military.
“We are not stopping. We will keep attacking and harming them everywhere,” Halevi said.
“To do this, we are preparing for the course of the maneuver, and the sense is that your military boots, your maneuver boots, will enter enemy territory,” Halevi said.
“Your entry there with force... will show (Hezbollah) what it is like to meet a professional combat force,” he said.
“You are coming in much stronger than them, much more experienced than them; go in, destroy the enemy there, and go destroy the infrastructure,” Halevi said.
“These are the things that will allow us to safely repatriate the residents of the north later.”