Two soldiers from Unit 504, part of the Military Intelligence Directorate, were injured on Tuesday – one moderately, the other seriously – likely from an explosion during a clash with Hezbollah terrorists in the western sector of southern Lebanon. These are the first casualties from the unit in the ground operation against Hezbollah.
As with the Gaza incursion, the IDF has deployed prisoner interrogators from Unit 504 alongside combat battalions operating in Lebanese territory. Their mission is to gather as much intelligence as possible from battle zones and military positions of Hezbollah's Radwan forces, to analyze enemy tactics in real-time, and, when possible, to interrogate captured Hezbollah terrorists or Lebanese civilians.
So far, after nine days of ground operations, the IDF has not disclosed whether any Hezbollah terrorists have been captured. However, reports suggest that close encounters with Hezbollah have resulted in their deaths, contrasting with the capture and interrogation of thousands of Hamas terrorists in Gaza over the past year, which provided valuable intelligence, including on the issue of Israeli hostages.
Although the IDF's ground operation in Lebanon is currently limited to Radwan’s border villages, Unit 504 is still working to extract human intelligence from the field in real time. The unit’s interrogators are trained in battlefield questioning, including extracting information from wounded Hezbollah terrorists on the verge of death, which could prove invaluable for ongoing operations.
Unit 504 has not been as active in Gaza in recent years, where the Shin Bet and the Intelligence Directorate’s technological capabilities have led efforts against Hamas. However, the unit has maintained a presence in southern Lebanon and the Syrian Golan, even after the IDF's withdrawal from the security zone in May 2000. Over the years, it has managed to recruit agents and informants against Hezbollah without setting foot on Lebanese soil, helping to build a comprehensive intelligence picture of the Shiite terror army.
Meanwhile, Major Roy Ofir, commander of the 71st Armored Battalion Tactical Command Post, described the fighting in southern Lebanon. "We just returned from one of the villages. We hit Hezbollah hard, destroyed their infrastructure, and neutralized several of their forces and enemy squads. We found a lot of weapons, some of which we've brought back for research in Israel. We crushed anyone who confronted us. We are here to protect our people," he said.
"We're coming in with significant force," Ofir added. "Hezbollah can't even lift its head. They’re taking hit after hit. The IDF has prepared for this. Ask any soldier in the last few years, and they'll tell you – we’ve been preparing for Lebanon and Hezbollah."
IDF footage inside Radwan Force terror tunnel
(קרדיט: IDF Spokesperson's Unit)
Ofir, who began the war in the Gaza sector, continued: "In the end, we are dismantling the stranglehold Iran has built around us, piece by piece. That is our mission – and we will be on the frontlines despite the difficulties. Those challenges pale in comparison to the larger purpose we’re fulfilling this year."
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