Where Is the IDF Positioned in Lebanon and Why - A Lesson We Couldn’t Ignore

On October 8th, 2023, less than 24 hours after Israel woke up to the horrors of the massacre carried out by Hamas, the Hezbollah terrorist organization began its attack on Israel.

Rockets, missiles, and UAVs were launched toward Israeli communities in the north, towns that sit only minutes from the border.

Families who had just watched the events of the previous day unfold suddenly realized they could be next.

Within weeks, more than 60,000 Israelis were forced to evacuate their homes, many for over a year.

Entire communities emptied almost overnight.

And the truth is: the rocket fire was only part of Hezbollah’s plan. They had been preparing something far worse.

They called it the “Conquer the Galilee” plan.

The “Conquer the Galilee” Plan

For years, Hezbollah had been planning its “Conquer the Galilee” invasion plan, an October 7th-style attack on a much larger scale.

Imagine: More terrorists. More weapons.

And even closer to the Israeli communities than Hamas had been.

Hezbollah’s Radwan forces — its elite commando units — were training for a large-scale cross-border assault into northern Israel, similar to the October 7 attack, but potentially even larger.

They studied Israeli communities along the border.

They mapped streets and neighborhoods.

They prepared routes of attack.

And like Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah built an underground tunnel network near the border designed to allow fighters to move quickly toward Israeli towns.

The goal was not just to fire rockets.

The goal was to enter Israeli communities, massacre civilians and take hostages.

In other words: to bring the horrors of October 7 to northern Israel.

Why That Plan Didn’t Happen

Hezbollah didn’t abandon the plan.

The plan was disrupted.

Israeli troops acted before Hezbollah could launch the attack. But disrupting a plan does not mean the threat disappears.

And after October 7, Israel could no longer afford to ignore threats building just across its borders.

The Geography That Explains Everything

To understand the current situation on the northern border, you need to understand the terrain.

Many Israeli communities in the north sit directly below elevated terrain in southern Lebanon.

From those hills and mountains, Hezbollah fighters have a clear line of sight into Israeli towns.

On October 8, Hezbollah fighters rushed to those vantage points.

From there, they fired directly into Israeli communities below.

The geography meant Hezbollah could threaten Israeli civilians within minutes.

And for months, that is exactly what they did.

You can see it clearly in these images:

Action Replay: Hezbollah Joins in Again

Now, Hezbollah has escalated its attacks once again. On March 2nd, Hezbollah decided to join the war against Israel alongside Iran, to the detriment of the Lebanese people and the benefit of their sponsor, Iran.

Over the past few days, hundreds of missile launches have been carried out by Hezbollah toward Israel, placing millions of Israeli civilians at risk.

But this time we came prepared. We learned our lesson from October 7th and understood the possibility of another Hezbollah assault on our people.

And this time, it’s different.

Israel cannot allow terrorist forces to sit on its border preparing the next attack. We will not allow Hezbollah to once again fire freely into our towns.

We will not allow tens of thousands of families to be forced from their homes while a terror army sits just across the border preparing its next attack.

Why IDF Troops Are Positioned in Southern Lebanon

This is why Israeli troops are currently positioned at strategic vantage points along the border inside southern Lebanon.

These are forward defensive positions. This move was not a ground maneuver, and not an incursion.

From these strategic locations, Israeli troops can prevent Hezbollah fighters from returning to the same firing points and staging areas they used to attack Israeli communities.

In simple terms:

Instead of Hezbollah standing above Israeli towns with a clear line of fire —

Israeli soldiers now stand between Hezbollah and those communities.

These positions create distance between Hezbollah’s forces and Israeli civilians.

And they ensure that if Hezbollah chooses to attack again, they will face Israeli soldiers first.

The Lesson Israel Refuses to Ignore

October 7 changed the way Israel understands threats on its borders.

The idea that terrorist armies can sit meters away from civilian communities — studying them, preparing to attack them — is no longer something Israel can tolerate.

Forward defense is not about expanding conflict.

It is about preventing the next massacre.

At the end of the day, the mission of the IDF is straightforward: to ensure Israeli civilians can live safely in their homes.

And that is exactly what these positions are meant to guarantee.

Until next time,
LTC Nadav Shoshani

IDF Spokesperson for the International Media