IDF chief says Israel is prepared for ‘multi-front war’ with Iranian proxies amid rising tensions
The Israeli military is ready for a “multi-front war” against Iranian proxies, the IDF’s chief of staff declared on Sunday, as troops prepared to shift from defense to offense against Hezbollah terrorists along the northern border.
Israeli Defense Force Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said his soldiers were ready for any and all attempts at retaliation from Iran and its proxies after Tehran accused the Israeli military of conducting an airstrike in Syria that killed two Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commanders last week.
“IDF troops are prepared and operating in all arenas, in the south [near Gaza], in the north [near Lebanon], in Judea and Samaria and in more distant arenas,” Halevi said in a statement. “The IDF also knows how to deal with Iran – offensively and defensively.
“We prepared for this, we have good defense systems, we know how to act powerfully against Iran in places near and far,” he added.
Halevi ultimately slammed Iran for its backing of the terror organizations that have brought chaos to Israel and the region, including Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Houthi rebels in Yemen.
The military chief’s statement came as the IDF revealed that troops are preparing to shift from defense to offense against Hezbollah following months of deadly skirmishes along the northern border.
“In recent days, another phase of the Northern Command’s preparations for the war was completed, which centered around raising the capabilities of emergency operational depots for the purpose of large-scale recruitment of IDF forces when necessary,” the IDF said in a statement.
The Israeli military boasted that its reserve forces would soon be ready to be deployed at the front lines within “a short time with all the equipment required for combat.”
An offensive incursion into Lebanon would elevate the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, who have traded rocket fire over the border since the terror group began its assault against the Jewish State in solidarity with Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist attack.
The fighting has displaced tens of thousands in northern Israel and southern Lebanon, claiming the lives of nine civilians in the Jewish State and 40 in Lebanon, according to Israeli and Lebanese officials.
Eleven IDF soldiers have been killed in the attacks, along with more than 200 Hezbollah fighters, the Israeli military estimates.
As things heat up in the north, Halevi claimed there would be no changes to the fighting against Hamas in the south despite the IDF withdrawing all but one brigade from Gaza on Sunday.
“The war in Gaza continues, and we are far from stopping,” Halevi said, referencing the need to secure the hostages and locate Hamas’ senior command.
“We will get to them sooner or later. We are making progress, continuing to kill more terrorists and commanders and destroy more terror infrastructures,” he added.
The IDF’s readiness for war echoes the words of Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah, who said in a statement Friday that the terror group was “fully prepared” for war against Israel.
