By AVI ASHKENAZI

MAY 11, 2026 08:27

The situation on the Lebanese border remains deeply troubling for Israel, which is holding back for now. However, current developments suggest it is just a question of time before Jerusalem must adopt a different strategy.

Over the past few days, Hezbollah has adopted a combat style it views as capable of testing the IDF. Several weeks back, coinciding with the ceasefire announcement in Lebanon - prompted by US demands influenced by Iran - Hezbollah deputy leader Naim Qassem declared a return to guerrilla operations targeting Israeli forces.

Qassem and other top Hezbollah officials are now spearheading the campaign against Israel. In straightforward terms, Defense Minister Israel Katz has come across as all talk, repeatedly issuing warnings without follow-through. He vowed to eliminate Qassem alongside Hassan Nasrallah and others, yet for the moment, he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have spared him. They have held off on IDF strikes against Hezbollah's protected urban strongholds in Lebanon.

IDF field commanders in Lebanon report that Hezbollah continuously dispatches fighters from the north to engage Israeli troops in the southern 'yellow zone.' Katz, for his part, claimed credit for demolishing Litani River bridges to isolate the south. Yet IDF sources note the river's water barely reaches knee level, allowing militants to cross effortlessly, bridge or no bridge. Still, no need to spoil the success story.

Hezbollah seeks to reverse momentum and reshape perceptions

Hezbollah is suffering losses. The IDF has eliminated over 2,000 of its fighters and destroyed numerous - possibly thousands of - Lebanese homes repurposed as militant bases. Internal pressures on Hezbollah within Lebanon are substantial. The group is countering by flipping the script, using inexpensive, accessible weapons while filming assaults for propaganda, in an apparent bid to instill anxiety among Israelis.

This approach is familiar. It mirrors Hezbollah's 1990s playbook against IDF patrols in the security zone. A recent Hezbollah video, depicting an attack on an IDF air defense unit near the northern border that injured three soldiers - one critically - exemplifies these methods.

Lately, Hezbollah has grasped a key shift from the 1990s: ramping up assaults along the border and against nearby Israeli communities. It is crafting the dynamics it favors - evacuating southern Lebanese villagers while subjecting northern Israeli towns to relentless rocket and drone barrages.

A local figure from the border area yesterday highlighted residents' plight, underscoring Israel's ensnarement in Hezbollah's design. The group has pivoted to prolonged attrition warfare, aimed purely at undermining Israel's northern security and daily life.

'Our circumstances are untenable. The nation carries on routinely, but we are at war. They target our towns at dusk or night, then demand we send kids to school or head to jobs come morning, ignoring the dangers. Local children endure a deranged existence,' shared a confrontation-line resident who holds a leadership role in a northern council.

The Lebanese border scenario is acutely challenging, with Israel restraining itself. Trends indicate a looming need for tactical overhaul. Drone strikes are no mere weather event, and the empty rhetoric from Defense Minister Katz and Prime Minister Netanyahu requires real enforcement.

The IDF must launch sweeping actions across Lebanon's sanctuary cities, neutralize Hezbollah's command structure, dismantle its drone capabilities decisively, and forge a balance where the group is crippled and unable to sustain even guerrilla efforts against Israeli forces. That, recall, was the core aim of Operation Roaring Lion.