Israel is on high alert, as evidenced by a video released by the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit on Saturday showing Israeli Air Force Commander Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar said forces are at “the highest level of readiness.” Estimations in Jerusalem say Hezbollah will retaliate following the elimination of its senior commanders and hundreds of operatives in Lebanon as soon as Sunday.
Israeli Air Force fighter jets eliminated thousands of Hezbollah munition launchers across southern Lebanon earlier on Saturday, strengthening officials’ estimations a major attack is set to take place against Israel.
Security sources estimate that an attack may take place within the next 24 hours, warning that "we're entering a tense 24 hours." IDF Home Front Command guidelines in the north are also expected to change on Saturday.
"The changes are relevant for the following areas: the Lower Galilee, the Upper Galilee, the Haifa Bay, the Central Galilee, and some of the communities in the southern Golan Heights (Emek Hayarden) in accordance with the situational assessment," the IDF Spokesperson's Unit said in a statement.
The new guidelines prompted northern cities so far untouched by Hezbollah fire or IDF guidelines to change their instruction to residents including Haifa and Acre.
Haifa will hold schools in limited frontal learning “that will allow students to reach a safe room within one minute.” Other schools and classes will be taught remotely according to the municipality.
Acre on the other hand has instructed schools to be shut down for the next 24 hours and will be moving to remote learning exclusively. “We prefer to take severe measures and not to risk students,” the municipality said in a statement.
The guidelines also include communities such as Mateh Asher, Kiryat Ata, Kiryat Motzkin, Nesher and the Kinneret Cities Association who decided to limit studies in schools for the foreseeable period.
The coming days are expected to significantly shape the trajectory of the conflict with Hezbollah and determine its potential expansion to an all-out war. Israel believes Hezbollah will escalate the scope of its attacks in the next 24 hours and could possibly use even harsher measures following so.
On the other hand, the IDF has taken a different approach in the north in recent days. Israel has been eliminating Hezbollah’s short- and medium-range rocket launchers in its waves of strikes. These strikes aim to diminish Hezbollah's ability to retaliate against Israel but also serve as an opportunity to degrade the terror group’s overall operational capacity.
Israel has developed an impressive intelligence capability against Hezbollah since the Second Lebanon War in 2006. Billions of shekels have been invested in these capabilities and Israel is now reaping the benefits. The northern front has been recently prioritized over progress in Gaza due to the more significant threat posed by Hezbollah.