Military expert says Israel covering up true soldier death toll

Military and strategic expert, Brigadier General Elias Hanna, has stressed that Israel is concealing the true death toll among its soldiers as well as the circumstances surrounding how, where and when they died.

In his analysis of military developments in southern Lebanon, Hanna noted that the strategy employed by the Israeli occupation army accounts for the discrepancies between its reported figures and those claimed by Lebanese Hezbollah.

He pointed out that numerous Israeli special forces and infantry personnel have been killed in southern Lebanon, indicating that the Israeli army typically conducts reconnaissance missions before deploying armoured units.

Yesterday, Israeli media reported that seven soldiers were killed after a building collapsed in a village in southern Lebanon.

He emphasised that changes in the geographical landscape necessitate a shift in combat strategy, explaining that the Israeli 36th Division is currently engaged in advancing the battle against Hezbollah into the second line of Lebanese villages.

Hanna indicated that Aitaroun, Bint Jbeil and Ainata are pivotal points of interest and suggested that if the occupation army successfully reaches these areas, it would signify a transition to the second phase of its military operation in southern Lebanon, although control over the region would not be guaranteed.

READ: Another Israeli officer succumbs to injuries sustained in southern Lebanon