Southern Lebanon explosion caused by Hezbollah weapons smugglers, not IAF strike, Adraee confirms
Hezbollah weapons, a photo shared by the IDF, November 13, 2025. (photo credit: IDF SPOKESMAN)
The IDF confirmed that the explosion in southern Lebanon was caused by a Hezbollah smuggling operation and not an Israeli airstrike, as Lebanon reports suggested early Thursday.
IDF Arabic spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee confirmed Thursday that the explosion in southern Lebanon was not caused by an IDF attack but by a car exploding as Hezbollah terrorists tried to smuggle weapons.
Adraee responded to “false Lebanese reports” that the Israeli Air Force had carried out an airstrike near Toula in southern Lebanon.
Israel has launched air strikes against Hezbollah terrorists in the region in recent weeks.
The military announced early Thursday morning that the Israeli Armed Forces conducted intelligence-based air strikes on Hezbollah’s infrastructure, including its weapons storage facility and underground facility in southern Lebanon.
According to the IDF, these areas were located near civilian areas.
IDF graphic showing area in Lebanon where the military struck a Hezbollah storage facility and other underground terrorist infrastructure. November 13, 2025. (Source: IDF SPOKESPERSON UNIT)
“These terrorist infrastructure facilities were located in close proximity to civilian populations, representing another example of Hezbollah cynically using Lebanese civilians as human shields in operations conducted from civilian areas,” the military said.
The military also killed three Hezbollah terrorists in multiple airstrikes in southern Lebanon earlier this week.
Hezbollah leader Naim Kasım: ‘Israeli attacks cannot continue, everything has a limit’
Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Kasim threatened Israel in his speech on Tuesday.
“Israeli attacks cannot continue, everything has a limit. We will not give up our weapons,” he said.
Kasim stated that the latest arrangement, which included the deployment of the Lebanese army to the south of the Litani River, was seen as a victory by Hezbollah, and described it as a positive step towards protecting and strengthening Lebanon’s national interests.
Kasim’s comments came on the first anniversary of the November 10 ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah terrorists.
IDF unveils Hezbollah reconstruction map targeting key terrorist centers in Lebanon
The IDF Intelligence Directorate has mapped Hezbollah’s operations in southern Lebanon and found that Nabatiya, in particular, has become a strategic focal point for rearmament and reconstruction, the military said on Tuesday.
Six confirmed Israeli attacks on Hezbollah terrorists in Nabatieh last month indicate that the military has dismantled Hezbollah’s high command and central logistics in the region, understanding that these are the hubs from which reconstruction efforts are being directed.
The military found that IDF attacks near Tire also indicated damage to the nerve center of Hezbollah’s ability to rebuild its terrorist infrastructure. This suggests that rather than simply killing terrorist commanders and agents, the IDF is dismantling the terrorist group’s infrastructure capabilities.
The IDF noted that Hezbollah terrorists in Tire are trying to rebuild underground systems, shelters and positions for terrorists to settle.
IDF attacks on small villages in southern Lebanon show that the military is conveying a message of tight intelligence monitoring and precision targeting across the region.
However, the presence of terrorists in Southern Lebanon indicates concerns within the security ranks that the Shiite population, which forms a significant majority in the region, does not oppose the terrorist group’s attempts to rebuild its infrastructure and continue its terrorist activities despite the devastation caused by IDF attacks.
Amir Bohbot contributed to this report.
