Israel Destroys Hezbollah's Ali Taher Tunnel Network in Southern Lebanon

THE STRIKE

Israel said its military destroyed a major Hezbollah tunnel network beneath the Ali Taher ridge in southern Lebanon using roughly 1,100 tonnes of explosives, with the resulting blasts large enough to register as a 4.1-magnitude tremor. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz announced the operation in a joint statement. "Tonight we destroyed the largest Iranian outpost outside of Iran, the Ali Taher tunnels in Lebanon," Netanyahu said. "Completing the mission."

WHAT TROOPS FOUND

According to the Israeli military, the tunnel network was built over roughly two decades with Iranian funding and planning. The IDF's 36th Division began clearing Hezbollah personnel from the site in early September, describing a sprawling underground complex that included command and weapons rooms, generators, living quarters, showers and a kitchen. Troops who moved through the site before the demolition reported finding dozens of Iranian-made rockets, missiles and drones, along with machine guns, anti-tank missiles and hundreds of mines and explosive devices.

THE CONTEXT

Independent reporting from outlets including Al Jazeera and the Times of Israel confirmed the tunnels were a Hezbollah stronghold on the Ali Taher ridge near the Israeli-Lebanese border, used to store weapons and move fighters largely out of sight. Israel has described the operation as completing its declared security zone in southern Lebanon.

HOW IRAN HAS RESPONDED

Iran had reportedly warned that a full-scale Israeli operation on the ridge would draw a significant response. Since the demolition, a US official assessed that Iran appears to be seeking to preserve deterrence and protect the credibility of its regional network without embracing an escalation it cannot fully control, suggesting Tehran is calibrating its response rather than moving toward a broader confrontation for now.