Report by Raneem Bou Khzam, English adaptation by Nadine Sassine
On October 8th of last year, the Southern Front entered into the support line of Hamas in Gaza.
From the beginning, the level of clashes was limited within what was called the rules of engagement, which practically translated into tit-for-tat strikes within a relative balance of harm and depth of the strikes.
The strikes began by targeting combat sites within a distance of no more than five kilometers. The confrontation escalated, with the first attack on civilians recorded by targeting journalists on the outskirts of Aalma Shaab, then civilians in Shabaa.
On that day, Hezbollah raised the slogan of civilian for civilian. The scope of the clashes expanded, but remained controlled by limited security targets.
The last strike in Nabatieh, which resulted in a significant loss of civilian lives, was seen by some as the biggest escalation, and therefore an indicator of a breakdown in the situation in the south.
On the Lebanese side, there is no indication of a desire to expand the war, but the party will respond to the strike, always on the basis of civilian for civilian.
On the Israeli side, the Israeli media points to exercises conducted by the Israeli army in anticipation of a possible escalation in the north. For them, there is a vast difference between the front with Hamas and that with Hezbollah due to the latter's more advanced military capabilities.
The Israeli army considers it necessary to make fundamental changes before engaging in a war against Hezbollah, starting from the leadership level down to the last soldier.