Posted on 09/23/24
| News Source: Arutz-7
IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari on Monday afternoon gave a briefing on the fighting in Lebanon, warning that the IDF is about to strike in Beqaa.
Unusually, the briefing is Hagari's second in less than 12 hours; his first briefing was at 7:50a.m. Israel time.
In the Monday afternoon statement, Hagari noted that the IDF has struck over 300 Hezbollah targets since Monday morning, and emphasized that the strikes in Beqaa would be widescale, and warned Lebanese citizens in the area to leave areas in which Hezbollah weapons are embedded.
"This morning, the IDF launched extensive, proactive airstrikes, based on precise intelligence, aimed at degrading the capabilities and infrastructure of the Hezbollah terrorist organization in Lebanon," he said. "This is infrastructure that Hezbollah has built over many years. So far, since this morning, more than three hundred terrorist targets across Lebanon have been struck."
"We are continuing to conduct a situational assessment regarding the home front, and at this stage, there is no change to the defensive guidelines. However, it is important to remain vigilant and alert. Follow the Home Front Command's defensive guidelines as you have throughout the war. The full guidelines are available on the website and official platforms. We will take all necessary precautions and provide immediate updates on any changes."
"The scenes which can be seen right now in southern Lebanon show Hezbollah's weapons exploding inside homes. In every home which we strike, there are weapons- rockets, missiles, UAVs - which were intended to be used to kill Israeli civilians," he emphasized, showing footage of the strikes, where secondary explosions can be clearly seen on camera.
"Here you can see on the screen one example from the recent strikes. This was a strike on a building in the village of Jabal al-Batam, which clearly shows that there were secondary explosions, as a result of the explosion of weapons that were hidden inside the building.
"We are continuing to monitor Hezbollah’s preparations in the field in order to proactively thwart attacks against Israeli territory, and we are systematically broadening our strikes against Hezbollah. We are preparing to strike terrorist targets in the Beqaa Valley region soon."
Hagari reiterated, "Hezbollah stores strategic weapons in civilian buildings, knowingly using the population as human shields and endangering them. We are currently using aerial and intelligence means to locate the weapons, destroy them and remove the threat they pose to the citizens of the State of Israel, and mitigate the harm to Lebanese civilians as much as possible."
"This warning is focused on the villages in the Beqaa valley. I urge the Lebanese residents of the villages in the Beqaa Valley who are inside or near houses where rockets and weapons are stored, to move away immediately! For your safety and protection. You can see the operations we are currently conducting in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah intends to launch these weapons toward Israel, and we will not allow it! Stay away for your own protection. Hassan Nasrallah is lying to you and putting you in danger. Listen to the warnings and messages that will be issued by the IDF for your safety and the safety of your families."
Hagari also stressed that at this stage, there are no changes in the instructions for the Israeli home front: "Citizens of Israel, the IDF is doing and will continue to do everything to protect you. We are conducting ongoing situational assessments and will update you with every development," he promised.