Tony Karon

A group of Israeli soldiers filmed themselves looting homes in Lebanon – like they did in Gaza. Israel’s assault on Lebanon has forcibly displaced over 1 million Lebanese people in less than 3 weeks.

CNBC: "Did Israel pull America into the war on Iran?" ADL's Greenblatt: "Let's talk about antisemitism." Greenblatt's deflection is the oldest trick in the book: when criticized, cry antisemitism. It used to work. But the book is closed now.

Hezbollah has completely shifted its tactics from previous rounds of combat with Israel. This has led to a very different confrontation this time: 1) They moved from a a centralized model, with large weapons depots that allowed them to quickly mass-coordinate massive rocket barrages to wide dispersal. 2) There are now hundreds of small hiding spots across villages and homes are exponentially harder to map and monitor than a handful of large depots. This means that destroying one cache no longer cripples a whole sector's firing capability. 3) This structure has allowed them to maintain a steady volume of attacks, often executing dozens of "waves" per day. This suggests they have pre-positioned "fire-and-forget" kits that allow even small cells to maintain pressure without constant restocking from central hubs. 4) The downside for them is that coordinating a simultaneous large barrage from dozens of dispersed locations is logistically very complex. Communication and coordination between scattered cells creates more exposure points. 5) To counter Israel’s electronic surveillance and previous infiltration of communication networks (like the 2024 pager explosions), Hezbollah has reverted to guerrilla-style communication. This includes banning mobile phones in the field and using human couriers or closed, hard-wired systems to minimize their digital footprint. 6) Dispersing weapons into private homes in Shia villages is a well-documented Hezbollah tactic going back years, but doing it at this scale is notable. It complicates Israeli targeting legally and politically, and puts Lebanese civilians in genuine danger. 7) Beyond rockets, Hezbollah is increasingly relying on UAVs for both reconnaissance and suicide strikes. These are harder to intercept than standard rockets and allow for "loitering" threats that complicate Israeli air defense calculations. All of these elements leave the IDF feeling like they are hunting for ghosts. The IDF Intelligence Directorate have admitted that this decentralized model creates "operational gaps," particularly in tracking small, mobile anti-tank teams and low-flying drone units that slip past traditional radar.