In the last two weeks alone, Hezbollah has suffered heavy losses, most notably the assassination of its long-time leader, Hassan Nasrallah, in an Israeli airstrike on an underground bunker.
Thousands of communications devices used by Hezbollah members exploded, killing 40 people and wounding nearly 3,000 in an unprecedented remote-controlled attack.
According to Associated Press figures, the Lebanese militant group has lost nearly 500 fighters since it began attacking Israeli military positions in support of Hamas last October. And hundreds more were likely killed in Israel’s bombing of Lebanon last week, which took out a number of senior commanders and officials.
Nevertheless, Hezbollah has continued to fire rockets into central Israel. The group’s chief spokesman, Mohammed Afif, warned on Tuesday that these attacks were only the beginning and that the militant group was waiting for invasion forces to enter Lebanon to counter them.
Iran, which backs Hezbollah, fired dozens of missiles into Israel on Tuesday and referred to Nasrallah’s death in a statement on state television claiming responsibility for the attack.
Where are Hezbollah’s forces deployed?
Hezbollah’s tens of thousands of fighters have been battle-hardened in regional conflicts, including in Syria, where the militant group helped tip the balance of power in the 13-year conflict in favor of President Bashar Assad. Hezbollah has five main units, each consisting of several thousand fighters.
The Nasr and Aziz units are deployed in areas bordering Israel, with Nasr controlling the southeastern region, including the edge of the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. The Aziz unit is deployed in the southwest, including the Mediterranean coast. Commanders Nasr and Aziz were killed in Israeli airstrikes earlier this year but are believed to be replaced.
The Badr unit is deployed in an area that includes Apple province, a mountainous region that dominates large parts of southern Lebanon and has been a Hezbollah stronghold since the late 1980s. The Haidar unit is located in the eastern Bekaa Valley while the Dahiyeh unit is in the densely populated southern suburb of Beirut, which houses the group’s headquarters where Nasrallah was killed on Friday.
The group also has the elite Radwan Force of several thousand fighters, part of which is deployed along the border with Israel. Hezbollah’s Al-Manar television said in a report on Monday that invading Israeli troops would meet the experienced Radwan Force fighters if they decide to launch a ground invasion.
Which Hezbollah commanders are still in control?
In recent weeks, Hezbollah has lost some of its most experienced military commanders, including Ibrahim Akil, who was head of the Radwan Force, and Ibrahim Kobbeisi, who was the group’s missile commander. The commander of Hezbollah’s drone unit, Mohammed Surour, and the commander of Hezbollah’s forces in southern Lebanon, Ali Karaki, were also killed in airstrikes.
In late July, Israel killed Hezbollah’s top military commander, Fouad Sukur. Among the group’s commanders still active are Talal Hamieh, who is in charge of Hezbollah’s foreign operations, and Khodor Nader, who heads the group’s security unit. Hezbollah denied Israeli statements claiming to have killed a senior military commander known as Abu Ali Rida, commander of the Badr unit.
The organization’s strongman, Hashim Safedin, Nasrallah’s maternal cousin, is also alive and widely expected to replace Nasrallah as Hezbollah’s secretary general. Safieddine is close to Iran and his son, Rida, is married to Zeinab Soleimani, the daughter of an Iranian general killed in a U.S. airstrike in Iraq in 2020.
Still possesses a large arsenal
The organization has an arsenal of more than 150,000 rockets and missiles, as well as surveillance drones and explosives of various types. In the last year, the organization has used a small type of guided missile known as Almas or Diamond, as well as short-range Falaq and Burkan missiles from areas several kilometres (miles) away from the border.
Last week, Hezbollah introduced the medium-range Fadi missiles, attacking the outskirts of Tel Aviv and the northern city of Haifa. Hezbollah has yet to use all the weapons it is believed to possess, including precision-guided missiles and surface-to-surface missiles such as the Russian-made Yakhont.
Israeli officials say last week’s bombing of large areas of Lebanon was aimed at neutralizing Hezbollah’s weapons supplies. However, since the escalation began, it has continued to launch attacks across the border and even introduced new types of weapons. On Tuesday, Hezbollah said it fired medium-range Fadi-4 rockets at the headquarters of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency. Hours later, the group said it fired similar rockets toward an air base in a Tel Aviv suburb.
The group has used surface-to-air missiles and shot down Israeli drones on several occasions, including last week. Most of the incoming fire was either intercepted or landed in open areas. But Israeli military officials warn that the country’s air defenses are not airtight.
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