Israel army begins operations against Hezbollah in southwest Lebanon

A child looks on while families sit in their temporary shelter in a park in the centre of the city, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel, in Beirut, Lebanon. (Reuters)

Smoke rises from destroyed buildings at the site of an Israeli airstrike hit in Choueifat, southeast of Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024. (AP)

A framed image of Imam Hussein ibn Ali, the Muslim prophet Mohamed's grandson and third Shiite Muslim Imam, hangs in an exposed room in a building that was heavily-damaged by an overnight Israeli air strike on the neighbourhood of Kafaat in Beirut's southern suburbs, on October 7, 2024. (AFP)

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted a neighborhood in Beirutís southern suburb late October 6, 2024. (AFP)

A demonstrator holds a banner with the portrait of Israelís Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu next to list with dead Palestine people during a pro-Palestinian protest within the framework of the first anniversary of the Israel-Hamas conflict at Plaza de Mayo Square in Buenos Aires on October 7, 2024. (AFP)

• The military said its 146th Division began “limited, localized, targeted operational activities” against Hezbollah targets
• Israeli ground operations inside southern Lebanon began on September 30

JERUSALEM/BEIRUT: The Israeli military said on Tuesday it had launched targeted raids against Hezbollah in southwest Lebanon, expanding its ground operations along the country’s coastline after deploying more troops.
On its Telegram channel, the military said its 146th Division began “limited, localized, targeted operational activities” against Hezbollah targets and infrastructure in southwestern Lebanon.
While the military has not disclosed how many troops are operating inside Lebanon, the Times of Israel newspaper reported the number likely exceeds 15,000.
The 146th division is the first reserve division to operate in southern Lebanon as part of the ongoing operations against Hezbollah, the military said.
It previously served in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank.
Israeli ground operations inside southern Lebanon began on September 30.
The military describing them as “limited, localized, and targeted raids” aimed at dismantling Hezbollah’s infrastructure.
Initially concentrated in the south and southeast of Lebanon, the Israeli military operations have now been extended to the southwest.