Israeli Defence Minister: A 'New Phase of War' Has Begun

A few hours after the announcement of the transfer of Israeli troops to the north of the country and the second wave of explosions that rocked Lebanon, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said that Israel's war in the region is entering a ‘new phase’. 

‘In a conversation with air force personnel at Ramat David, I emphasised that we are entering a new phase in the war,’ Gallant said in a statement on social media on Wednesday.

‘The centre of gravity is shifting northwards due to the diversion of forces and assets,’ he added. Northern Israel shares a border with Lebanon, home to Hezbollah, with which Israel has exchanged rocket fire almost daily over the past year.

This week, thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies belonging to Hezbollah members exploded in a remotely coordinated attack, killing more than a dozen Hezbollah members and injuring thousands.

Lebanon's Prime Minister called the attacks ‘a serious violation of Lebanon's sovereignty and a crime by all standards’.

During the more than 11 months of fighting Hamas in Gaza, Israel has also been defending itself against Hezbollah attacks from Lebanon on an almost daily basis, although it has largely avoided escalation to full war by focusing its efforts in the south. Nevertheless, 26 civilians in Israel and 20 IDF soldiers have been killed in Hezbollah attacks near the northern border, while more than 450 Hezbollah members have been reported killed, as well as more than 100 civilians in Lebanon.

Hezbollah is called the de facto ruler of Lebanon. The armed group controls the shadow economy, has its own army and determines the country's foreign policy with the opinion of Iran in mind. 

Hezbollah (translated from Arabic as the Party of God or the Party of Allah) is a Lebanese Shiite paramilitary Islamist organisation and political party that was formed in 1982 with the main goals of exporting the Islamic Revolution in Iran and fighting the Israeli forces that invaded Lebanon during the 1975-1990 civil war there. After the 2005 elections, 14 representatives of the party entered the Lebanese parliament. Hezbollah also almost completely controls the southern part of Lebanon. The Islamist group, which is deeply rooted in Lebanese society, has both political and military wings. Hezbollah militants have taken part in conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and with Israel. Hezbollah, like Hamas, does not recognise the state of Israel and aims to destroy it.