The Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, openly admitted for the first time that he approved an operation against Hezbollah militants, supported by Iran, in September. This resulted in multiple explosions of pagers and walkie-talkies across Lebanon and parts of Syria, leading to numerous casualties.

In a weekly cabinet meeting held on Sunday, Netanyahu remarked that the attacks, along with Israel’s targeted killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah during an airstrike in Beirut the same month, were executed “in spite of opposition” from certain Israeli officials. These comments were later disclosed to the Times of Israel.

Netanyahu made these remarks following his dismissal of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Tuesday, which marked the peak of ongoing conflicts between the two regarding Israel’s military strategies in Gaza and Lebanon. He mentioned a “crisis of trust” had arisen between them. Now, Foreign Minister Israel Katz has been appointed as Gallant’s replacement.

Gallant had a close working relationship with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, and they frequently communicated. His removal, coinciding with the U.S. election day, was perceived by some analysts as Netanyahu’s attempt to eliminate dissent within his government. A U.S. official expressed concern about this development.

The pager explosions marked an escalation in Israel’s confrontations with Hezbollah. A few days later, Israel significantly increased its airstrike frequency in Lebanon, primarily targeting areas in the south and the southern suburbs of Beirut. Israeli forces also conducted ground operations in Lebanon for the first time since 2006.

Recent Israeli strikes in Lebanon on Saturday resulted in 53 fatalities, bringing the total death toll in the region to 3,186, as reported by local officials.

Hezbollah has maintained a near-daily onslaught of rocket attacks targeting northern Israel for over a year, starting from October 7, 2023, when its ally Hamas, also backed by Iran, launched a surprise attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and took over 200 hostages. In retaliation, Israel initiated a continuous siege of Gaza, which has led to at least 43,000 Palestinian fatalities, according to the health ministry run by Hamas. This situation has resulted in a deepening humanitarian crisis within the densely populated area.

Hezbollah and Hamas are part of a network of militias supported by Iran known as the “axis of resistance.”