IAF chief: Preventing all weapon transfers from Iran to Hezbollah now a top priority
Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar says terror group’s ability to recover from hits depends on bringing in arms; says Air Force, Northern Command are preparing for potential ground op in Lebanon
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The chief of the Israeli Air Force, Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, said Thursday that preventing all weapon transfers from Iran to Hezbollah is now a top priority, adding that the Lebanese terror group’s ability to recover from its losses in recent days, inflicted by a punishing Israeli offensive, is dependent on its ability to rearm.
“We in Lebanon are now going to prevent any possibility of weapon transfers from Iran, in the face of what we have taken away so far from Hezbollah,” Bar said during a meeting with officers at the Tel Nof Airbase.
His comments came as Hebrew media reported that Israel has in recent days identified an increase in Iranian efforts to transfer weapons to its Lebanese proxy, and after the military struck a crossing on the Syria-Lebanon border that it said was being used by Hezbollah for weapons smuggling.
Iran, Hezbollah’s principal sponsor, has long supplied the terror group with weapons for potential use against Israel. Shipments from Iran to Lebanon are reported to have increased dramatically since the start of the war in Gaza last year, including weapons flown into the Beirut airport on flights from Iran in “mysterious large boxes.”
The air force chief on Thursday also stressed the importance of ground-air coordination in the event of a potential ground invasion of Lebanon, which the military has said in recent days that it is preparing for, conducting training exercises in the north and issuing call-up orders to several reservist units.
“We are preparing, shoulder to shoulder with the Northern Command, for a ground maneuver. We’re preparing — whether it will be carried out is a decision made above us,” Bar said.
“But what we demonstrated with the Southern Command during operations in Gaza, with aerial support for each combat team, down to the individual soldier entering on the ground, will be the starting point in the north,” he said.
Bar’s comments echoed remarks by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, who told soldiers Wednesday that their “military boots will enter enemy territory.”
“You can hear the planes above, we are attacking all day. Both to prepare the area for the possibility of your entry [into Lebanon], and also to continue landing blows on Hezbollah,” Halevi told troops of the 7th Armored Brigade during a drill simulating a ground offensive in Lebanon.
Since October 8, 2023 — just a day after Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel, killing 1,200 and abducting 251 — Hezbollah has been attacking Israeli communities and military posts along the border in solidarity with the Palestinian terror group, which is also sponsored by Iran.
So far, the skirmishes have resulted in 26 civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of 22 IDF soldiers and reservists. There have also been several attacks from Syria, without any injuries.
After more than 11 months of cross-border violence that skirted all-out war, the fighting has ramped up in recent days, with hundreds of rockets fired at Israel and intensive IDF airstrikes on Hezbollah sites in Lebanon, as well as the targeted strikes that have killed a number of the terror group’s leaders.
As of last week, Hezbollah had named 512 members killed during the ongoing skirmishes, mostly in Lebanon but some also in Syria. Another 88 operatives from other terror groups, a Lebanese soldier, and dozens of civilians had also been killed.
Israel’s offensive since Monday morning has killed more than 600 people, according to Lebanese health authorities. The figure does not distinguish between combatants and civilians. Israel says many of the dead are Hezbollah fighters.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
