The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has intensified its encirclement of Hezbollah terrorists holed up inside an underground tunnel network in southern Lebanon, recent Israeli and Lebanese news reports indicate.
The Israeli military closed in on the strategic terrorist tunnel complex in June, but halted its advance following a 15-point memorandum endorsed by President Donald Trump. According to Lebanese media reports, the terrorists have since used the U.S.-backed ceasefire as cover to smuggle in weapons and supplies.
The Ali al-Taher ridge tunnel network, located near the Crusader-era Beaufort Castle, is widely regarded as Hezbollah’s “nerve center” in southern Lebanon. The Israeli security think tank, Alma Center, describes the tunnel complex as “a major center of power that Hezbollah invested significant efforts over time to preserve and defend.”
This “massive strategic underground infrastructure complex,” believed to be built with Iranian and North Korean expertise, acts “as the main headquarters of the Badr Unit,” Hezbollah’s main terrorist formation operating in southern Lebanon, the Alma Center noted in a report published in June 2026.
The IDF continues to uncover Hezbollah weapons, intended for use by the Iran-backed terror group to murder Israelis, inside the security zone in southern Lebanon. pic.twitter.com/xMDm1bHvsa
— Israel War Room (@IsraelWarRoom) August 13, 2026
Israel’s Ynetnews reported details of the IDF operation on Tuesday:
IDF forces are tightening pressure on dozens of Hezbollah terrorists believed to be trapped inside an underground complex in southern Lebanon’s strategic Ali Taher ridge, cutting water supply lines and seeking to prevent supplies from reaching them, according to Lebanese reports Tuesday.
The Hezbollah operatives remain barricaded inside the underground infrastructure and have not been defeated or forced to surrender, the reports said. They have reportedly attempted to bring equipment and supplies into the complex using drones as Israeli forces work to isolate the site.
The military has not publicly commented on the operation and has referred questions about it to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office.
Israeli forces are seeking to block attempts to smuggle supplies into the complex as they maintain surveillance and fire control over large parts of the area, according to information about the operation.
In some sections, Israel is exercising control through observation and the ability to strike targets rather than through the physical presence of ground troops. That allows the military to use airstrikes against parts of the complex while limiting the exposure of IDF soldiers operating on the ground.
Netanyahu: IDF conducting “a very important operation” against Hezbollah in Ali Taher ridge, elsewhere
On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu disclosed that the IDF was currently carrying out “a very important operation” against Hezbollah terrorists in the Ali Taher ridge and elsewhere in Lebanon.
“In recent days, Israel has acted with force in Lebanon, eliminating terrorists, including on the Ali Taher ridge,” he said. “I cannot elaborate on this. We are in the midst of a very important operation.”
“We are working prudently and wisely—with both determination and wisdom, alongside the Israel Defense Forces—and eliminating threats,” he added.
IDF troops preparing for combat operations in Lebanon
Meanwhile, IDF troops are training for a possible combat operation against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. In a separate report, Ynetnews revealed on Thursday that “soldiers of Nahal Brigade’s 931st Battalion … completed a two-day intensive exercise in the Kana Stream area designed to simulate combat in the dense, mountainous terrain of southern Lebanon.”
“In a special interview, the battalion commander, Lt. Col. N., described the sharp transition from daily counterterrorism operations in the West Bank to preparing for the next war in the north,” the news website added.
IDF artillery fire reported near Kfar Reman in southern Lebanon, at the foot of the Ali al-Taher ridge in the Nabatieh district, per Lebanese channels. pic.twitter.com/kwRvk5yEZQ
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) August 11, 2026
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