"We are absolutely confident that God will grant us victory in this battle," a senior Ansar Allah official told Newsweek.

JERUSALEM — Israel has been preparing for its next war against Hezbollah for nearly a decade, and a full-scale conflict has seemed increasingly inevitable with each passing month since Oct. 7. Now, with Hamas diminished in Gaza, Israel is putting its battle plan in motion.

Israel said on Tuesday it was intensifying its bombing campaign in Lebanon as two days of airstrikes targeting the Shiite Hezbollah militia sent the death toll above 550 and forced tens of thousands of people from their homes.