The intensity of clashes between Israel and "Hezbollah" has escalated on the southern front of Lebanon, coinciding with stagnation in the ceasefire negotiations in Gaza and the waning of positive signals following the conclusion of the Doha meetings. Meanwhile, 10 Syrians were killed in an Israeli airstrike late Friday to Saturday on a factory in the Nabatieh area. The Israeli army acknowledged that two soldiers were injured, one seriously, due to a shell fired from Lebanon, while "Hezbollah" announced a new settlement had been added to its fire targets according to "Asharq Al-Awsat."
This comes hours after the party released a video of one of its underground military facilities, concurrently asserting its determination to respond to the assassination of its senior leader Fouad Shukr.
### Comprehensive War is an Israeli Decision
Retired Brigadier General Munir Shhada, a former government coordinator with international peacekeeping forces, believes that "(Hezbollah) is taking advantage of its threats to Israel in response to Shukr's assassination, resorting to field escalation, which leads Tel Aviv to perceive the strikes as not the expected response it has been preparing for weeks." He explained in a statement to "Asharq Al-Awsat" that "the video presented by the party of the underground military facility is a response to what was brought by U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein, just as it happened in his previous visit when the ‘Hodeidah’ video was released," noting that it also coincides with ceasefire negotiations in Qatar, making it a pressure tool on Israel.
Shhada adds: "The new video showcased the rockets that will target the sites presented in previous videos under the title ‘Hodeidah’." He points out that "Hezbollah" is certain that "the current round of negotiations is a new round to buy time and absorb the escalation and tension that existed following the assassination operations of Ismail Haniyeh and Fouad Shukr," emphasizing that "the response to these operations is inevitable, whether from Iran or (Hezbollah). However, a comprehensive war in the region is linked to the Israeli response to the resistance axis's counter-response," according to "Asharq Al-Awsat."
