IDF releases footage of Hezbollah infrastructure below Ali al-Taher ridge after destroying tunnels

The IDF released footage from its operation to destroy Hezbollah's underground infrastructure on the Ali al-Taher ridge in southern Lebanon. The military detonated 14 tunnel routes stretching 5.4 km using 1,100 tons of explosives, eliminating what it described as Hezbollah's last and most significant line of defense. Around 50 terrorists were entrenched inside; most were killed. The IDF said no Iranians were found at the site.

The IDF released new footage and details on Friday from its latest operation in southern Lebanon, in which it secured and destroyed Hezbollah's underground infrastructure on the Ali al-Taher ridge. The military released body camera footage from a Yahalom Unit soldier inside one of the tunnels, drone footage from inside the tunnels, and a video of two terrorists being killed. The IDF said that what remains of the Ali al-Taher ridge, beneath which Iran spent two decades building Hezbollah's last and most significant line of defense in southern Lebanon, is "nothing more than a sandbox." The operation to capture the ridge lasted months, as dozens of terrorists, estimated to number around 50, were entrenched inside the tunnels. The destruction of the 14 tunnel routes on the ridge, stretching about 5.4 kilometers in total, was given the IDF codename "Chisel of Flames." The commander of the 36th Division, Brig.-Gen. Yiftach Norkin, told troops shortly before the tunnels were detonated on Thursday that the operation was one of the most complex ever carried out. After the tunnels were destroyed using 1,100 tons of explosives, a senior military official said the strategic infrastructure built over more than 20 years had been eliminated and that Hezbollah's ability to command and control the area had been dramatically damaged. The official said the compound served as a "nerve center" for the Badr Unit. The IDF said the operation was also conducted while attempting to prevent a broader escalation. According to the official, Hezbollah repeatedly called on Iran to assist it, but the latest appeal by Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem to Iran last week received a cold response from Tehran. The IDF has not identified an operational Iranian move in response at this stage. Despite completing the destruction of the infrastructure, the IDF clarified that it does not intend to leave the area of the Yellow Line.