The Israeli army chief General Herzo Halevi has told his troops that jets have been “striking all day” and that their boots “will enter enemy territory.”
On Wednesday afternoon the Israeli military called up two additional reserve brigades who will be sent to the northern border with Lebanon and will conduct “operational missions.”
The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) said in a statement, “This will enable the continuation of combat against the Hezbollah terrorist organisation, the defence of the State of Israel, and create the conditions to enable the residents of northern Israel to return to their homes.”
Sky News reported that General Halvi told Israeli troops, “You hear the jets overhead; we have been striking all day.
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“This is both to prepare the ground for your possible entry and to continue degrading Hezbollah.”
“The goal is very clear – to safely return the residents of the north,” he added, in reference to the tens of thousands of Israelis who have been evacuated from areas near the border.
“To achieve that, we are preparing the process of a manoeuvre, which means your military boots, your manoeuvring boots, will enter enemy territory, enter villages that Hezbollah has prepared as large military outposts, with underground infrastructure, staging points, and launchpads into our territory and carry out attacks on Israeli civilians.”
He added: “You will go in, destroy the enemy there, and decisively destroy their infrastructure.
“These are the things that will allow us to safely return the residents of the north afterward.”
The Jerusalem Post reported the IDF Northern Commander Major General Uri Gordon told his forces on Wednesday “we need to be very ready to go into action and to invade” Lebanon.
Maj Gen DF Northern Commander told his forces on Wednesday “we need to be very ready to go into action and to invade.
“The operation began with very harsh strikes against Hezbollah’s capabilities, with an emphasis on its [long-range] firepower, as well as significant harm to its commanders and operatives.”
