CNN: Israel stunned by sophisticated Hezbollah attack
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant claims that any war with Hezbollah would “send Lebanon back to the Stone Age,” while former Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz also claims that they could plunge Lebanon into total darkness and defeat Hezbollah in a few days. However, according to the US broadcaster CNN, this is not as easy as Israel thinks. It is not difficult for Israel to plunge Lebanon into darkness. Lebanon’s power grid has already been paralyzed for a long time, but it seems unlikely that Hezbollah will be defeated within a few days.
While Israel has been preparing for a rematch since the inconclusive 2006 war, Hezbollah has been preparing for war for much longer. Israel estimates that it now has more than 150,000 rockets in its arsenal.
Israel was surprised
In an analysis of the region published today, CNN wrote that Israeli officials were surprised by the sophistication of Hezbollah’s attacks. While the coordinated bombing of guard posts along the border, the downing of an Israeli drone and the attack on the Iron Dome battery have put Israel in a difficult position, the biggest surprise for Tel Aviv was the nine-minute drone footage of civilian and military infrastructure that Hezbollah released online.
All soldiers are trained, experienced and disciplined.
Recalling Nasrallah’s recent statement that the number of soldiers had exceeded 100,000, CNN stressed that all of the fighters had experience in the Syrian civil war and were highly trained and disciplined. CNN noted that unlike Gaza, Lebanon is not under siege and has direct access to Iran, arguing that the potential for war is far more dangerous than the 2006 conflict.
Fire and Blood
In a report titled “Fire and Blood: The Terrifying Reality Israel Faces in a War with Hezbollah,” Reichman University painted a frightening scenario in which Hezbollah would launch 2,500 to 3,000 rockets and missiles per day at Israel’s populated cities. During the 34-day war in 2006, Hezbollah fired an average of 117 rockets per day, according to the report. In 2006, Israel’s third-largest city, Haifa, was within range of Hezbollah missiles. This time, the missiles are expected to reach even deeper into Israel.
