IDF troops have dismantled two additional underground tunnel routes in southern Lebanon, the military said Thursday, describing the area as a heavily fortified Hezbollah stronghold built to support attacks on Israel.
The IDF said troops from the 551st Brigade and the elite Yahalom combat engineering unit destroyed the tunnels near the village of Majdal Zoun, inside the security zone. The announcement came nearly two weeks after the military said it had uncovered and destroyed a larger tunnel network in the same area.
Underground Hezbollah tunnels located and demolished by IDF troops in the Majdal Zoun sector, southern Lebanon
(Video: IDF)
According to the military, the newly destroyed tunnels stretched a combined 200 meters (656 feet) and reached a depth of about 20 meters (66 feet). Inside, troops found living quarters, dozens of weapons and three rocket launch shafts aimed toward Israeli territory.
The military said additional searches uncovered caches of mortars, launchers and RPG rockets. It also said brigade troops killed an armed Hezbollah terrorist near one of the tunnel routes last week.
Security officials said the discoveries point to Hezbollah's extensive preparations in the village, which they said had been transformed into a forward operating base for future combat with Israel.
According to the officials, the underground infrastructure consisted of two main components: fortified command centers designed to allow Hezbollah operatives to direct fighting while remaining underground, and a network of defensive tunnels intended to enable fighters to emerge unexpectedly, control access routes into the village and attack advancing Israeli troops.
The IDF said the tunnel discoveries are the result of continuing search operations across southern Lebanon.
Weapons located by IDF troops inside an underground tunnel route in the Majdal Zoun sector, southern Lebanon
(Photo: IDF)
Security officials also said troops are increasingly encountering what they describe as "trapped terrorists" — small groups of Hezbollah fighters believed to have remained behind in areas already captured by Israeli forces or become isolated after infiltrating the area.
The officials said the fighters, cut off from supply lines and escape routes, have launched sporadic attacks from underground positions or from within the rubble of destroyed buildings.
One such encounter occurred last Saturday near Majdal Zoun, when 551st Brigade troops killed an armed Hezbollah terrorist near one of the tunnel entrances, the military said. It said the incident was similar to another encounter involving the 679th Brigade near Bint Jbeil earlier this week.
Security officials said the volume of weapons found in Majdal Zoun underscores the scale of Hezbollah's military preparations in the village.
"This was a terrorist base where weapons are found in every second or third house," one security official said, adding that troops have also found Kornet anti-tank missiles abandoned in orchards and between homes.
The officials said Hezbollah invested heavily in fortifying the village, believing Israeli forces would not advance as far as 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) into Lebanese territory.