Israeli media reported that the Israeli security establishment is raising its level of preparedness in anticipation of a possible military operation against “Hezbollah” in Lebanon. This escalation comes against the backdrop of assessments that consider the recent Lebanese measures to be inconsistent with the terms of the ceasefire agreement. This coincides with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s preparation to return to Israel on Friday, amid uncertainty about the understandings he reached with US President “Donald Trump” regarding various fronts of confrontation in the region.
According to a report prepared by journalist “Avi Ashkenazi” and published by the Israeli website “Maariv” on the evening of December 31, 2025, the security services are preparing to present the “level of readiness” to Netanyahu and the political leadership. This comes in light of what Israel describes as the failure of the Lebanese state to complete the dismantling of the military structure of “Hezbollah” south and north of the Litani River.
The report indicates that the Lebanese government intends to announce in the coming hours or days the end of the operation carried out by the Lebanese army to disarm “Hezbollah” south of the Litani, without extending its scope to the north of the river. Israel considers this a direct violation of the terms of the ceasefire agreement.
Estimates within the Israeli security establishment indicate that this situation may push the Israeli army to intervene itself against “Hezbollah” if it considers that Lebanon is unable or unwilling to fulfill its obligations. According to military sources, Israel believes that “Hezbollah” has already begun attempts to rebuild its military capabilities, especially in the areas north of the Litani.
According to what “Ashkenazi” quoted from sources in the Israeli army, the most prominent thing currently being monitored is “Hezbollah’s” endeavor to restore precision missile systems, in addition to other offensive capabilities. In return, the Israeli Air Force has carried out raids during the past weeks that targeted, according to the Israeli narrative, training centers belonging to the “Radwan” forces inside Lebanese territory.
Israeli assessments confirm that “Hezbollah” is currently in a state of “operational weakness” and that its ability to respond will be limited in the event of an Israeli strike. The security establishment also believes that Iran, the main supporter of the party, is going through a stage of regional and international pressure that limits its ability to intervene directly or extensively.
In this context, the security services are preparing to present a set of military options to the political level, with the aim of weakening “Hezbollah” without sliding into a complete dismantling of the ceasefire agreement. According to the report, Israel seeks to implement “calculated” military steps that allow it to return later to the framework of the agreement, while exerting increasing international pressure on Lebanon to push it to deal more effectively with the issue of “Hezbollah’s” weapons.
Israel believes that any such move may ultimately strengthen the position of the Lebanese army and give it a greater role in field control, and hold it accountable for the responsibilities it pledged more than a year ago, at the conclusion of what Israel calls Operation “Northern Arrows.”
At the same time, the Israeli security establishment indicates that the current focus of the US administration is mainly on the Gaza Strip, where US President “Donald Trump” is showing interest in launching a reconstruction track, starting from the Rafah area, which Washington is clearly requesting in its contacts with Israel, according to the report.
