BEIRUT – Israel’s recent failed operation in Labbouna, South Lebanon raises a number of questions as to what the commando force was planning to do before it fell into Hizbullah’s ambush.

Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said Wednesday, Aug. 14, his party was responsible for the ambush that wounded four Israeli soldiers, who crossed the border into Lebanon last week. 

Nasrallah said Hizbullah is ready to confront the Israeli army again if it violates Lebanese sovereignty.

“We had prior information that two Israeli units of the Golani brigade were planning to infiltrate Lebanon, so we planted the explosives,” Nasrallah said, speaking on the seventh anniversary of the end of July War between Lebanon and Israel.

The Israeli army had claimed that its soldiers were wounded by an old landmine. Nasrallah dismissed those reports.

“The operation was deliberate and not an accident, nor was it the result of a landmine left over from the Israeli occupation of Lebanon,” he said.

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah during his interview with Al Mayadeen TV.

Nasrallah told Al Mayadeen TV in an interview that Hizbullah had been monitoring the location of the explosion for a long time. He added that two Israeli teams had crossed to Lebanon. One team was to carry a specific mission, and the second as a backup. He said the incursion was not a mere breach of sovereignty; it had military objectives.

“We will confront any entry by Israelis into Lebanese territory that we know of,” he said. “We will cut off the feet of those entering (invading) our land.”

According to Nasrallah, the Israeli forces were targeted by remotely detonated bombs.

“We carried out the Labbouneh operation for reasons of defense and the Israeli enemy was surprised by the response,” Nasrallah said.

Informed sources following the details of the Israeli operation in South Lebanon report that the force sent across the border was an elite commando unit.

Referred to as Unit 269, this force is often used in highly classified and specialized missions like the 1988 assassination of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s second-in-command Abu Jihad in Tunis, in addition to operating in Syria, following the movement of weapons there, according to the same sources.

The operation left a number of unanswered questions about what Israel was after and whether the Hizbullah may have set their trap, in the form of a series of bombs, in order to capture enemy soldiers.

Despite evidence of live rounds having been fired following the ambush, it appears this was only cover from the Israeli side to evacuate their wounded and retreat from the area.

The Labounna area is not ideal terrain for Hizbullah to engage in confrontations with the enemy, but it serves as a strategic point for the Israeli military, as it overlooks vast stretches of South Lebanon. Simply depriving Israel of access to this important area is a major achievement for Hizbullah.

It remains unclear, however, what was the goal of the Israeli operation: Was it surveillance in nature or did it have a specific target? In either case, the generals in Tel Aviv are trying to figure out just how Hizbullah knew the details of the operation in advance.

Some suggest that the operation was intended to test the readiness and capabilities of Hizbullah in light of the party’s increasing involvement in the Syrian crisis – a test that Hizbullah has unequivocally passed, sending a message to all those concerned that despite having to turn its attention to another front, it remains vigilant as ever when it comes to Israel.  

– TAAN