Former Israeli general warns of growing threat of war with Hezbollah amid rising tensions with Iran proxy
JERUSALEM – Retired Gen. Yaakov Amidror, the former national security adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, discussed with Fox News Digital the likelihood of an imminent full-blown war between the Jewish state and the Lebanon-based terrorist movement Hezbollah.
The Shiite Lebanese terrorist organization Hezbollah, which is the de facto ruler of Lebanon, according to experts on the country, fired some 50 rockets into northern Israel on Sunday. Shrapnel from a Hezbollah anti-tank missile hit an American citizen and two Israelis. The 31-year-old American is in critical condition. Since last week, Hezbollah has launched over 200 rockets and drones into Israel’s north.
‘We don’t expect the Americans to fight for us. That should be done by Israelis. This is a principle that we don’t want to change. What we need is American support by sending munitions of all kinds, and to do it in very high number, in a constant flow that will allow us to do the war with our constraints in our military and capabilities,’ Amidror, a distinguished fellow for the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA,) told Fox News Digital.
When asked if Israel is prepared for a war with Hezbollah, Amidror said, ‘It’s a question without an answer, because for such a war you are never fully prepared.’ He said the real question is if ‘Israel has enough to wage a war against Hezbollah in full. For that, the answer is yes. The more time that we will have after the war in Gaza, the better our situation will be, because we have to fulfill our stores and let the soldiers and the commanders rest, after nine months of war.’
Hezbollah’s ally, Hamas, invaded Israel on Oct. 7 and massacred nearly 1,200 people, including over 30 American citizens. Hezbollah has launched thousands of rocket attacks on Israel’s north following Hamas’ mass slaughter.
Amidror identified three main threats from Hezbollah. The first is the ‘huge number of rockets and missiles.’ He said many ‘are very precise. And this is a bigger threat for Israel.’ The second threat, he says, is ‘the anti-tank capability of Hezbollah, which launched more than 1,000 anti-tank missiles into Israel since the beginning of the war. It’s a huge threat to our ground forces.’ The third threat, he said, is drones. ‘We don’t have a full answer for that. And this is something that we are learning and becoming better at every day,’ he said.
Israel has fought two previous wars against Hezbollah, in 1982 and 2006, and Amidror said Israel is preparing for 100,000 Hezbollah rockets and missiles in the next war.
When questioned if Iran would join Hezbollah in a war against the Jewish state, Amidror said, ‘It’s more about deterring Iran and destroying part of its economic infrastructure and so on, if the Iranians will take part in this, in this war, it’s not 100%. The Iranians who make the calculation that they are not happy to risk Tehran for Beirut, but it is something that we cannot know in advance, and we have to make all the preparations to be ready.’
When asked if Hezbollah launches a war, would Israel’s response be to knock out Beirut’s water, sewage and electrical facilities, Amidror said this is an argument within the military system.
Amidror said there is a second school of thought that he subscribes to. He believes Israel should concentrate on Hezbollah and not the Lebanese state, noting that if a peace process is to happen it should be done ‘by weakening Hezbollah and not weakening the Lebanese system.’
The key Hezbollah stronghold is in south Beirut. Amidror stressed how Hezbollah uses civilian buildings as rocket launchers and storage for its armaments. Hamas and Hezbollah frequently commit war crimes by exploiting their civilian populations to advance their war goals. ‘In Lebanon it will be a devastating war,’ Amidror said about the possibility of a third Israel-Hezbollah war unfolding in 2024.
On a recent visit to the country’s north, Israel’s Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant told troops, ‘Your goal is to ensure your readiness and to erode the enemy’s [Hezbollah] capabilities.’
Gallant also noted, ‘Hezbollah and Palestinian terrorist organizations have lost 450 [fighters] – 15 commanders at the level of brigade commanders or above, were eliminated. This includes three division commanders and makes up for over 50% of Hezbollah’s total number of commanders in southern Lebanon. This is very significant.’
Fox News’ Peter Petroff contributed to this report.