Shortly after Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah concluded his speech, Israeli officials were holding their breaths, with Zionist circles calling to take threats by the Lebanese resistance leader seriously.
Israeli commentators warned that stances announced by Sayyed Nasrallah imposed new rules of engagement especially regarding drones entering the Lebanese airspace, a report prepared by Al-Manar’s Israeli affairs editor Hasan Hijazi said.
Hijazi quoted Israeli channel 13 as reporting that Israeli occupation troops were ordered to take precautions and avoid being ‘exposed targets’ to Hezbollah.
“What we will witness is a state of alert and readiness by the army at the border with Syria and Lebanon,” Or Heller, Israeli Channel 10 military correspondent said, as quoted by Al-Manar’s Hijazi.
For his part, Israeli analyst Alon Ben David said Sayyed Nasrallah “is committed to retaliate and he is carefully mulling steps.”
“Like in previous confrontations, Hezbollah’s retaliation will take days. They (Hezbollah commanders) plan well without rush and they will choose a painful and humiliating response,” Ben David, who is specialized in defense and military issues said, noting that the occupation army was fully ready at the border with Lebanon as Sayyed Nasrallah was delivering his speech on Sunday.
“I advise that Nasrallah’s threats should be taken seriously,” Ehud Yaari, Arabic affairs editor said, as quoted by Hijazi. The Israeli commentator also warned that Hezbollah’s response will be “very violent”.
On the other hand, Amos Harel, media expert in military and defense issues, said the Israeli defense establishment takes Hezbollah’s threats seriously.
“Alert levels were raised at Iron Dome batteries in the north and at outposts along the Lebanese and Syrian borders,” Harel said in an article in Haaretz entitled, “Israel Broke the Rules of the Game with Hezbollah, and Now the Ball Is in Nasrallah’s Court”.
Meanwhile, Avi Issa charoff, The Times of Israel’s Middle East analyst said, “The fact that Nasrallah went into such specifics leaves no room for doubt that Hezbollah intends to respond to the series of recent strikes in Syria, Lebanon, and possibly even Iraq; a fresh drone strike on Shi’ite militiamen in Iraq was being reported even as he spoke. The question is when, where and how exactly will Hezbollah respond?”
Al-Manar’s Hijazi also quoted Kiryat Shmona city council Avihai Stern as saying that he has ordered emergency services to be fully ready for any development.
“I’m sure that other neighboring settlements will take the same measures,” Stern was quoted as saying.
Israeli media, meanwhile, reported that security measures were also taken at Israeli embassies abroad over fears that Hezbollah may retaliate.
Shelters
Describing the situation at the border between Lebanon and the occupied territories, Al-Manar reporter in south Lebanon, Ali Shoueib revealed that Israelis were ordered to ready their shelters as measures to be taken in case Hezbollah fulfills his threat.
“We obtained unannounced information that Israelis in the northern settlements were order to clean and prepare shelters,” Shoueib said in a live message at Al-Manar on Monday.
The reporter affirmed meanwhile, that occupation troops stationed in posts at the border with Lebanon have not appeared on Monday, noting that Israeli patrols were also reduced and limited to necessary movements.
Unlike the situation in the occupied territories, Shoueib said the towns located at the Lebanese side of the border were witnessing a normal life, with Lebanese citizens spotted by Al-Manr’s camera carrying out their daily activities across roads and in their orchards.
Source: Al-Manar and Israeli media
