On October 8, 2023, Hezbollah initiated an unprovoked and sustained war of attrition against Israel, purportedly in support of Palestinian militant factions in the Gaza Strip. This conflict has fluctuated in intensity, frequency, and scope. It began with border skirmishes and progressively expanded over the following months. Hezbollah has increasingly targeted areas farther from the Blue Line, the de facto frontier line with Israel, evolving from a tit-for-tat exchange to a broader confrontation
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This is a conflict that should never have erupted. After the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1701 “to address urgently the causes that have given rise to the current crisis.” As a preliminary step, the resolution obligated Lebanon to “establish … between the Blue Line and the Litani river … an area free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon and of UNIFIL,” i.e., to remove Hezbollah approximately 40km from the Blue Line. The resolution further “require[s] the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon, so that … there will be no weapons or authority in Lebanon other than that of the Lebanese State”; Prohibits the presence of “foreign forces in Lebanon without the consent of its Government”; and prohibits “sales or supply of arms and related materiel to Lebanon except as authorized by its Government.”



Lebanon failed to act meaningfully or to restrain Hezbollah in any manner, bringing matters to the current moment.
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Hezbollah's sustained and unprovoked hostility has finally, after nearly a year, led Israel to launch a large-scale operation. This offensive has significantly dismantled Hezbollah’s military command structure, culminating in the elimination of its secretary-general, Hassan Nasrallah. The goal appears to be two-fold: degrading Hezbollah’s capabilities and returning an estimated 150,000 citizens safely to their homes in the northern communities.
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What follows is a detailed timeline of the war of attrition from its onset on October 8, 2023, through the commencement of Operation Northern Arrows on September 23, 2024. An interactive dashboard and map are provided to complement the timeline.