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Twenty years on: IDF reveals orders to begin Second Lebanon War, expand operations towards Litani

From Jerusalem Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • The IDF released classified documents marking the 20th anniversary of the Second Lebanon War, detailing initial orders and mid-war operational expansions.
  • The war began on July 12, 2006, following a Hezbollah attack that killed Israeli soldiers and civilians and involved rocket fire into northern Israel.
  • One document outlines the order to expand IDF operations towards the Litani River, aiming to reduce rocket launches and damage Hezbollah's capabilities.

On the 20th anniversary of the Second Lebanon War, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has declassified two key documents outlining the initial orders and mid-war operational directives. The war, which lasted 34 days, commenced on July 12, 2006, after a coordinated Hezbollah attack targeted both IDF soldiers and Israeli civilians in northern Israel.

The first document, codenamed "Operation Just Remission," details the general staff's orders to launch IDF operations in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip. The attack involved Hezbollah ambushing an IDF patrol near the border, resulting in the kidnapping of two soldiers, Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser. The order also notes that eight soldiers were killed and several others wounded during the initial assault, alongside a barrage of rockets fired at Israeli communities that killed six civilians.

The second declassified document is an IDF spokesperson's statement from August 12, 2006, announcing the cabinet's decision to expand ground operations in Lebanon towards the Litani River. This expansion, coordinated with the Air Force and Navy, aimed to target areas from which rockets were launched, reduce firing on Israeli civilians, and degrade Hezbollah's operational capacity.

A senior IDF official commented on the current threat landscape, stating, "Today we believe in the threat - much more than we believed then. Today there is no such thing as no response." This sentiment underscores the ongoing strategic considerations and perceived threats from Hezbollah.

Today we believe in the threat - much more than we believed then. Today there is no such thing as no response.

— Senior IDF officialReflecting on the current threat perception from Hezbollah, twenty years after the Second Lebanon War.
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Originally published by Jerusalem Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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