Israel announced on Thursday that it had demolished critical tunnels constructed by the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group beneath the strategic Ali al-Taher ridge in southern Lebanon, an operation that registered a 4.1 magnitude seismic tremor.
Journalists from the AFP news agency reported hearing multiple explosions in the area. A video released by Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz depicted a massive fireball erupting into the night sky.
This destruction occurred shortly after Israeli authorities asserted control over the Ali al-Taher ridge, claiming that Hezbollah had excavated extensive tunnels there to facilitate attacks on Israel from the mountainous terrain.
Israeli forces currently occupy portions of southern Lebanon, where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu intends to establish a “security zone” to thwart potential attacks on northern Israel.
In a joint statement, Netanyahu and Katz declared, “This is strategic terrorist infrastructure that was constructed over two decades, supported by Iranian funding and planning.”
The statement added that the destruction “completes the achievement of operational control over the Ali al-Taher ridge—both above and below ground.”
The United States Geological Survey recorded the 4.1 magnitude earthquake in the region, following Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) reporting that Israel executed a “massive explosion” on the Ali al-Taher ridge in the Nabatieh region, which “caused tremors and a powerful rumble.”
AFP correspondents in southern Lebanon also reported hearing “huge explosions” on Thursday evening.
– ‘Everything shook’ –
“We were sitting there and everything shook,” stated Joelle Fares, a recent resident of Majayoun, in an interview with AFP.
Israel announced the previous week that it had seized the Ali al-Taher ridge.
The Israeli military stated that the Hezbollah infrastructure spanned over two kilometers (1.2 miles) and housed “dozens of Iranian-made rockets, missiles, and UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), alongside machine guns, dozens of anti-tank missiles, and hundreds of mines and explosive devices.”
The underground complex also featured a command center for Hezbollah’s “Badr” unit, the army noted.
A military official told AFP that militants who had operated near the ridge had either abandoned the area or were “eliminated by aerial strikes and artillery fire.”
The official further noted that Hezbollah members had constructed eight underground routes to safely navigate beneath the ridge, and the Israeli army seized several dozen explosive drones and hundreds of mines.
In March, Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East conflict in support of its ally, Iran.
A period of relative calm followed the understanding reached between Iran and the United States in June, which was succeeded by an agreement between Lebanon and Israel.
However, the intensity of strikes has escalated in recent days.
During negotiations, the United States—which sponsored the discussions—proposed that the Lebanese army assume control of the Ali al-Taher ridge, but Hezbollah refused, according to a source close to the involved parties.
Authorities in Beirut report that Israeli strikes have killed over 4,300 people since March, and Israeli forces continue to occupy a so-called “security zone” in the south.