![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/78\/590x\/secondary\/israeli-forces-souther-lebanon-hezbollah-5004108.jpg?r=1696952430639\")
<\/p>\n
“What I see Hezbollah doing right now is very interesting,” said Avi Melamed, an Israeli Middle Eastern strategic intelligence analyst based in Tel Aviv.<\/p>\n
“Hezbollah is currently applying very interesting tactics, donating a very well calculated controlled, small scale escalation on the ground.<\/p>\n
“The first day they launched a couple of mortar shells at the Israeli army, then there were a couple of infiltration attempts that were intercepted by the Israeli army \u2014 but still, it was very controlled and carefully tactical by Hezbollah.”<\/p>\n
Mr Melamed believes the reasons for this are two-fold: “One is an attempt by Hezbollah to try and deter Israel from continuing its plan to eliminate Hamas.<\/p>\n
“The other thing it reflects is some sort of hesitation with Hezbollah and Iran whether to enter the war.”<\/p>\n
On Sunday, senior Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine said his group’s “guns and rockets” were with the Palestinian people, adding: “Our history, our guns and our rockets are with you. Everything we have is with you.”<\/p>\n
Don’t miss… <\/strong> We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info<\/p>\n Hezbollah said their strikes were targeted at three posts in Israel, including a so-called “radar site” in the Shebaa Farms region, which Lebanon views as being occupied by Israel.<\/p>\n Officials in Israel have warned Hezbollah against becoming involved in the war that it has declared on Hamas in the Gaza Strip, with military spokesman Richard Hecht telling reporters: “If they come, we are ready.”<\/p>\n Hamas has claimed that only a small number of top officials in the government knew about the impending surprise attacks and that the likes of Iran and Hezbollah did not help.<\/p>\n However, he added that those allies “will join the battle if Gaza is subjected to a war of annihilation.\u201d<\/p>\n Israel is believed to be preparing for a major escalation on the ground, having mobilised large parts of its military and reservists.<\/p>\n “We can definitely expect a very harsh, very extensive, very strong Israeli military response,”\u00a0Dr Tobias Borck, a Senior Research Fellow for Middle East Security Studies at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), told Express.co.uk.\u00a0<\/p>\n “It means that hundreds of thousands of civilians will be caught in the middle.”<\/p>\n Predicting various scenarios that all come with “a lot of violence, deaths, and destruction”, he said the conflict in and around Gaza could lead “groups like Hezbollah, like some of the militant factions in the West Bank, or other groupings around the Middle East, to join the conflict.”<\/p>\n “That’s when we could see a real expansion of the war for Israel, essentially a two-front war, especially with Hezbollah,” he added.<\/p>\n Hezbollah emerged with the help of Iran during the Israeli occupation of Lebanon in the early Eighties.<\/p>\n When the occupation ended in 2000, the group refused to disarm and grew as a military strength.<\/p>\n Soon, Hezbollah became a great force in the region and positioned itself as a power broker in Lebanon’s political system.<\/p>\n Many experts say it has essentially gained veto power in Lebanon’s government, and that its capabilities now exceed those of Lebanon’s traditional army.<\/p>\n
Israel refutes claim it ignored major intel from Egypt about Hamas terror plans[REPORT] <\/strong>
Hamas threatens to execute Israeli hostages and broadcast killings[LATEST] <\/strong>
Decision to stay another day cost photographer his life in Gaza terror attacks[INSIGHT] <\/strong><\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/78\/590x\/secondary\/lebanese-soldiers-checkpoint-israel-5004114.jpg?r=1696952430683\")
<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/78\/590x\/secondary\/israeli-soldiers-southern-israel-gaza-border-5004107.jpg?r=1696952430735\")
<\/p>\n