The IDF said forces from the 551st Brigade eliminated seven Hezbollah operatives inside an underground route in southern Lebanon. Troops recovered Kalashnikov rifles and military equipment from the bodies, and destroyed launchers and weapons found near the shaft. In a parallel sweep, Division 36 forces found wall maps in the tunnel network beneath the Beaufort Ridge showing the network's view over northern Israeli communities.
The 551st Brigade's operation, detailed in an IDF statement at 20:47, saw troops eliminate seven Hezbollah operatives inside an underground route, retrieve Kalashnikov rifles and military equipment from the bodies, and destroy launchers and weapons found near the shaft — a continuation of the campaign to dismantle Hezbollah's cross-border attack infrastructure.
Minutes earlier, at 20:46, The Zioneer reported that Division 36 forces sweeping the large tunnel network beneath the Beaufort Ridge had found wall maps illustrating the network's observation and control over northern Israeli communities. The Beaufort Ridge tunnels, built with Iranian funding, are slated for demolition after the scan is completed. The find adds a layer of intelligence to the wider underground sweep, which has been reported in stages: at 18:24 The Zioneer reported the same brigade eliminated seven Hezbollah operatives in the same tunnel earlier in the afternoon; the initial IDF report on the elimination was first published at 17:26.
As The Zioneer reported over the past weeks, the IDF has described a systematic degradation of Hezbollah's southern capabilities. A bulletin at 15:04 noted the IDF struck more than 70 Hezbollah sites in southern Lebanon over the preceding 24 hours. At 01:10, the military said it had killed more than 1,300 Hezbollah operatives since the ceasefire took effect, including over 10 field commanders, and that some successors were killed within hours of replacing eliminated predecessors. On June 5, at 18:10, the IDF said it eliminated over 125 terrorists in Lebanon in one week and struck more than 650 Hezbollah targets. On June 10, at 16:25, it reported eliminating over 20 terrorists in southern Lebanon over two weeks.
It remains unclear whether the wall maps point to specific attack plans or broader surveillance capabilities, and no independent verification of the IDF's claims about the tunnel network's sophistication or demolition timeline has been published.
8 developments
- DevelopingIDF says over 1,300 Hezbollah operatives killed since ceasefire, reveals command chain decapitation
- DevelopingIDF strikes dozens of Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon overnight
- DevelopingIDF strikes 150 Hezbollah targets; officers wounded in ground encounters, drone incidents
- StrongLebanese Health Ministry: 15 killed, 70 wounded in IDF strikes on southern Lebanon yesterday
Source and signal
- Internal intake