By David Israel • September 11, 2026
Jerusalem, 11 September, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israeli military officials said on Friday that Hezbollah no longer has any infrastructure remaining in Southern Lebanon. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said the operation against Ali Taher ridge “completed the establishment of the Security Zone in Southern Lebanon.” The IDF said its goal was to “definitively neutralize Hezbollah’s ability to use this infrastructure to plan and carry out terror attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers.”
The assessment came hours after the IDF completed demolishing Hezbollah’s underground terror tunnels in the Ali Taher ridge during the large-scale “Operation Hewing Flames.” IDF spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said, “All the terrorists who were in the infrastructure were killed or fled.” He added that Hezbollah had vowed to defend the site “at any cost” but failed and “even abandoned its men to die inside.” Netanyahu and Katz said the complex had been built as a Hezbollah base for conquering the Galilee, with observation and fire-control capabilities overlooking Metula and Kiryat Shmona.
Hezbollah disputes Israel’s assessment. Its paramilitary wing Islamic Resistance initially denied that Israeli forces had taken the ridge, claiming it remained completely free of Israeli troops and that its fighters were still deployed there. Hezbollah-affiliated media later sought to minimize the loss, accusing Israel of exaggerating the site’s importance and claiming the destroyed infrastructure consisted mainly of administrative and logistical facilities rather than critical tactical assets.
The IDF said the destruction of the complex followed four months of fighting by the 36th Division and effectively dismantled Hezbollah’s largest, most strategic and central infrastructure in southern Lebanon. Netanyahu and Katz said Israeli forces would remain in the security zone, continue destroying terrorist infrastructure and prevent Hezbollah from rebuilding, warning that attacks on Israeli civilians or troops would be met with force.
Israeli forces have now established themselves along the “Yellow Line,” which Katz described as a “security zone” inside Lebanese territory. Established with the ceasefire, the line extends roughly 3 to 10 kilometers into Lebanon and encompasses about 55 villages whose residents are barred from returning. Its main purpose is to prevent direct anti-tank fire against Israeli border communities by maintaining control of strategic high ground. It also gives the IDF freedom to destroy Hezbollah infrastructure and prevents the group from returning to the contact line, while helping push back drone-launching areas.
