Herzog: Hezbollah 'doesn't understand what awaits it' — Israel determined to dismantle group 'once and for all'

Israeli President Isaac Herzog visited an air defense battery along Israel's northern border with Lebanon, delivering an unambiguous warning to Hezbollah. 'If Hezbollah even thinks about continuing to harass or threaten, it simply does not understand what awaits it,' Herzog warned. 'It certainly does not understand that Israel is determined to dismantle it once and for all.' Herzog's 'once and for all' language goes further than previous Israeli statements about Hezbollah — it is an explicit declaration that Israel will not accept a return to the pre-war status quo with Hezbollah intact as an armed force on its northern border. The statement aligns with the FT report that Israel is preparing international partners for a Lebanon campaign that could outlast the Iran air campaign. IDF ground forces have been deploying deeper in southern Lebanon, aiming to 'establish a forward defense that will create an additional security layer for the residents of the north.' Hezbollah has kept up rocket fire despite 70+ launcher destructions since the fighting resumed. IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin also said the IDF has 'identified that Hezbollah has been attempting to increase its rate of fire on Israel.'