High-level American diplomatic sources revealed that Washington rejected an Israeli request to carry out a large military operation in southern Lebanon, including the Ali al-Tahir Heights and its environs, at a time when Israeli operations are gradually escalating on more than one axis in the south.
The sources told “Erem News” that the US administration informed Israel of its refusal to go beyond what it described as the “strategic definition” of military operations in southern Lebanon, a framework that they said was agreed upon during the recent summit between US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington.
The American position, according to the sources, comes amid information about Israeli preparations to carry out a large and organized military operation against the Ali al-Taher Heights, coinciding with a gradual expansion of Israeli raids, bombardments, and military movements in southern Lebanon.
According to the sources, American officials warned the Israeli side that expanding the operations around Ali Al-Tahir to include additional villages and areas in the south may lead to the collapse of the negotiation process sponsored by Washington with Lebanon, and may also give Iran a justification to intervene militarily directly or through its allies in the region.
A high-ranking American diplomat close to the White House told Erem News that the US administration is conducting contacts at multiple levels with the Israeli side, including military officials and Netanyahu, with the aim of preventing violation of the understandings reached with Trump.
He explained that the understanding, according to the story conveyed by the source, allows Israel to continue pursuing Hezbollah and exhaust its capabilities through varying strikes, but it does not include moving to broad ground operations that would ignite the southern front on a larger scale.
Washington believes, according to the source, that any large-scale operation in Ali al-Taher carries risks that go beyond the Lebanese arena, as it could negatively affect negotiations with Iran and open the door to an additional front, at a time when the region is still witnessing activity by Tehran’s allies, especially in Yemen and Iraq.
The US administration asked Israel, according to the same sources, to keep its operations against Hezbollah positions in the Ali al-Taher area within the framework of air strikes and attrition operations, and not to expand them towards villages and populated areas in southern Lebanon.
This American pressure coincides with a gradual expansion of the Israeli target bank to the south, amid Israeli information about increasing interest in the Ali Al-Taher area and its environs, and allegations about the presence of military installations and infrastructure belonging to Hezbollah in the region.
Israel had announced the targeting of the military leader in Hezbollah’s “Badr” unit, Ali Fajr al-Din, known as “Abu Hassan Alaa,” and said that he was responsible for drone attacks targeting Israeli forces in the south.
Israel also carried out an operation targeting a leader in the “Al-Radwan” unit in the town of Ansar, as part of its policy of assassinations in southern Lebanon and outside it.
Ali Al-Tahir Heights has been emerging for days as one of the hottest points on the field scene, with the area exposed to raids, artillery shelling, and continuous sweeping operations, in conjunction with Israeli attempts to monitor the nature of the structures in its vicinity.
Erem News quoted a Lebanese military source as saying that the strategic importance of the region is not only linked to its high geographical location, but also to what is believed to be underground in terms of tunnels and military facilities.
According to the source, the heights overlook large areas of the Al-Tuffah and Nabatieh regions and the course of the Litani River towards the Western Bekaa, and also reveal areas inside Israel, which gives them special military importance.
The source claimed the presence of operations rooms and weapons and ammunition stores within a network of tunnels and underground facilities, in addition to the participation of experts and officers from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard along with leaders from Hezbollah, an information for which there was no independent confirmation.
The sensitivity of the region increases in light of Iranian officials talking about continued communication with fighters in Lebanon, in conjunction with Israeli accusations against Hezbollah of violating the existing understandings.
The nature of the recent Israeli operations around Ali Al-Taher indicates a clear focus on the vicinity of the highlands, through raids, artillery shelling, and attempts to uncover possible paths and entrances, without moving so far to a large ground operation.
Ali Al-Taher is located within a series of strategic highlands in southern Lebanon, and is adjacent to other points, including Dabsha Hill, which makes the region directly linked to Nabatieh, Iqlim Al-Tuffah, and several internal axes.
These developments come at a time when negotiations related to the situation in southern Lebanon continue, amid American efforts to maintain the political track and prevent it from turning into an open military confrontation.
It seems that the American administration is trying, according to what “Erem News” reported, to maintain a delicate equation based on not preventing Israel from carrying out limited strikes, in exchange for putting a ceiling on any large ground operation that might lead to the collapse of the negotiations and reignite the entire southern front.
As the escalation continues in Ali al-Tahir and its environs, the American position becomes an essential element in determining the boundaries of the next stage: either operations remain within the scope of strikes and attrition, or move to a broader confrontation in the event that Israel crosses the line that sources say Washington has drawn for it.
