IDF discusses returning northern residents as Hezbollah hits Haifa area with over 200 rockets

The IDF said on Tuesday that as the military continues its progress in destroying Hezbollah military assets near the Israel-Lebanon border, a detailed discussion needs to move forward with 60,000 evacuated Israeli northern residents about the practicalities of their returning to their homes.

IDF sources said that weakening Hezbollah was one component of the residents returning but that receiving assessments of what they needed in terms of repairs, new infrastructure, and reorganizing the northern border corridor were separate civilian activities that needed to start moving along.

On Monday, Yisrael Hayom reported that Maj.-Gen. Uri Gordon had told northern resident regional council leaders that they should start working on a return to their towns around the end of the Sukkot holiday.

Gordon and the IDF eventually said that he had not given a set deadline but was merely trying to jump-start their process to return now that the invasion of Lebanon was well underway and after the subject had been ignored for most of the last year since their evacuation.

For much of the war, these 60,000 residents slammed the government for forgetting them while the country's attention focused on Gaza, the South, and the victims and hostages from the October 7, 2023 invasion.

How long will Northern Arrows last? 

Since the invasion of Lebanon on September 30, which now has four divisions there, including Division 143, which entered on Tuesday and is likely to grow more at some point, there is an ongoing debate about whether the IDF will finish its missions of clearing HHezbollah'snear border weapons by mid-late October or whether it will remain for months or longer. In the longer scenario, it might be used as a negotiating chip to try to force Hezbollah to become less of a threat to Israel.

There is still no specific strategy that has been articulated for getting Hezbollah to permanently stop firing rockets at Israel or to prevent them from eventually returning to southern Lebanon after an Israeli withdrawal, as occurred after the withdrawal from the area in 2000.

At the same time, no senior Israeli officials have any interest in permanently occupying Lebanon, and the longer the IDF remains there, the greater pressure there will be from the US to exit.

The IDF also faces a harsh upcoming Lebanese mountainous winter as well as US elections on November 5 as potential deadlines for an exit.

That said, there is a debate within the IDF about whether the military will be significantly disadvantaged by the winter and the loss of significant aspects of its air support to inclement weather or whether IDF infantry training is superior enough for inclement weather to Hezbollah Israel will obtain other advantages.

Limit future capabilities

On Tuesday night, IDF Chief Spokesman Daniel Hagari noted that 50 Hezbollah officials, including several senior commanders from the Badr, Naser, and Aziz invasion groups, were killed by a series of IDF airstrikes.

Hagari said this would limit HHezbollah'sfuture capabilities to try to mount an invasion into Israel.

Moreover, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant essentially confirmed the killing of Hashem Saffiedine several days ago. Saffiedine was HHezbollah'snew presumed leader and replacement for Hassan Nasrallah, but many officials had already declared him likely dead during an attack on a Hezbollah intelligence center. Hagari also suggested he was likely dead but did not issue a final confirmation.

Overnight, IAF jets struck a Hezbollah weapons storage facility along with additional infrastructure in Beirut, the military noted, adding that the attack had been guided by intelligence information.

The military further stated that the IAF continued to strike Hezbollah terrorists and infrastructure within Lebanon, among which were launchers, military structures, and anti-tank missile launchers.

Next, the IDF noted that it had found another tunnel 25 meters long, which crossed through the UN-ratified Blue Line by 10 meters, near Mavarchin and was eliminating the tunnel.

In fact, the IDF said that it had had control of the tunnel for months, even before the invasion, and that the tunnel opening into Israel was always blocked by a rock but that it kept the matter under wraps until the invasion expanded.

More broadly, the IDF said that it has encountered a number of pockets of resistance from Hezbollah but has been able to beat back all such resistance, including preventing Hezbollah fighters from fleeing afterward.

In addition, the IDF said it is attacking Hezbollah anti-tank cells both in Lebanese villages, where it is clearing weapons, but also in other villages, which it has not yet reached with its ground forces.  

Barrages to Haifa

Meanwhile, Hezbollah fired over 200 rockets into Israel, including the largest barrage into the Haifa area of the war.

According to the IDF, there were two direct hits in the Haifa area, including three wounded civilians.

Due to this latest barrage deeper into Israel, the IDF Home Front command updated the restrictions on the Haifa area, making them stricter to reduce the now heightened danger of rocket attacks.

Later Tuesday, the air force said that it struck the Hezbollah rocket launchers from which the earlier barrages of rockets were fired at Haifa.

This comes a day after Hezbollah fired missiles at central Israel without causing serious damage.

In Gaza, the IDF announced that St.-Sgt. Noam Israel Abdu, 20, from Kadima Tzoran, had fallen in battle during his service in Unit 17 (NCO training) in the Bislach Brigade, which is part of the Golani Brigade.

Separately, two rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip at Sderot and towards several Gaza border communities, the military said on Tuesday evening, adding that they were both intercepted.

Later, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror organization, the Al-Quds Brigades, claimed responsibility for firing rockets on Israeli territory.

This comes a day after Hamas fired a number of rockets into Israel, including toward central Israel, though it did not cause serious damage.

Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this story.