At around 12:20 AM Friday Israeli time (2:20 PM PST / 5:20 PM EST Thursday), Hezbollah used an attack drone to kill the commander of the 52nd Battalion of the 401st Armored Brigade and three other soldiers. A few hours later, at around 4:00 AM Friday Israeli time (6:00 PM PST / 9:00 PM EST Thursday), five additional IDF soldiers, four officers, and an NCO, were wounded in the same area by another Hezbollah attack drone.
Immediately after the attack, Hezbollah reached out to Qatar and the United States, demanding that the ceasefire with Israel be renewed. Michael Leiter, Israel's ambassador to the United States, said, "Hezbollah attacked, took a beating and ran to ask for the ceasefire to be renewed." Over the last several weeks, each time a ceasefire has been announced between Israel and Hezbollah, the announcements have come from the United States and Qatar and not from Israel.
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The IDF maintains that its position in Lebanon has not changed. An IDF source is quoted as saying "[there is] nothing new in the ceasefire." The IDF will continue destroying Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon. Netanyahu has relayed to Trump that requesting that the IDF withdraw from southern Lebanon is a red line and that Israel will never agree to it. In response to the attacks, the IDF struck 150 Hezbollah targets across Lebanon. However, Netanyahu refrained from targeting Beirut to prevent Iran from attacking Israel.
Today, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem released the following statement:
"We are going through the most dangerous stage of our lives in Lebanon. The plan being implemented against us today aims to end the resistance and its people and to completely eliminate its presence in Lebanon. They want to implement their plan through the Israeli war in Lebanon, which ignores all rules. The project to eliminate Hezbollah and establish the occupation has failed, and the Israelis will withdraw from every last centimeter of our land."
Hezbollah lawmaker Ihab Hamadeh added: "Israel is trying to undermine the efforts for calm through its strikes. Iran is determined to attack northern Israel in response to the Israeli violations. The equation of unity of the arenas will have the final say regarding the efforts for calm."
Hezbollah's attacks took place near the Lebanese village of Kfartebnit, which is about 5 miles north of the northernmost point of Israel. The town of Kfartebnit is the last underground Hezbollah area north of Beaufort Castle, which was used by the IDF as a base from 1982 to 2000 when they occupied southern Lebanon. Beaufort Castle sits atop a cliff about 1,000 feet high in southern Lebanon with excellent views of the Litani River. The cliff drops nearly vertically toward the east, making Beaufort a highly valued strategic military target. When the IDF pulled out of Lebanon in 2000, they destroyed the physical castle, but the cliff was taken over by Hezbollah shortly thereafter. The IDF recaptured Beaufort Castle in May 2026 and holds it to this day.
The IDF has two divisions deeply deployed into Lebanon up to the Litani River and even north of it in some places. The IDF has destroyed all the bridges over the Litani River, and Hezbollah forces are trapped in the area south of the river with no means of escape. Israel is determined to wipe out Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
According to Israeli media, Iranian officials are reluctant to begin talks with JD Vance in Switzerland because the IDF is still engaged in southern Lebanon with Hezbollah. Iran's Foreign Ministry released a statement today saying that, now that the MOU with the United States was signed digitally, there is no urgency to meet with the US in Switzerland. The statement continued: "In the army and the Revolutionary Guards, we stand shoulder to shoulder, alert and ready for action. We await the orders of the supreme commander. Our sons will improve their combat capabilities and will be prepared to sacrifice their lives if the enemy violates any agreement."
It is important to remember the exact text of the 10th point of the Israel-Iran MOU. Emphasis mine.
"10. The United States undertakes that immediately after the signing of this Memorandum of Understanding, and until the date of the lifting of sanctions, the United States Treasury Department will issue waivers for exports of Iranian crude oil, petrochemical products and their derivatives, and all related services, including banking, insurance, transportation, and the like."
The events described in this column are what happens when you give a known Islamic terrorist regime the ability to immediately sell oil for profit with only the promise that in sixty days it will reach a final agreement. Do not hold your breath.
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