Israel’s operational control of the strategic Ali al-Taher Heights could mark the beginning of a broader effort to reshape the battlefield in southern Lebanon, with potential Israeli moves aimed at cutting links between Hezbollah positions in the south, the Jezzine Heights and the Bekaa, according to sources cited by Asas Media.

The focus is now shifting beyond Ali al-Taher, which lies north of the Litani River, to the network of roads, hills and underground facilities that connect southern Lebanon with the Bekaa and Jezzine areas.

Israel announced on September 4 that it had established operational control over Ali al-Taher and cleared Hezbollah fighters from tunnels beneath the ridge. Hezbollah has not publicly provided a detailed account of what happened inside the position.

According to Asas Media, the evacuation of Ali al-Taher by Hezbollah was particularly significant because the group chose to leave the strategic heights under Israeli control rather than hand them over to the Lebanese army.

A source close to Hezbollah said handing the position to the Lebanese army could have deprived the militia of its justification for maintaining a military presence north of the Litani and potentially opened the door to similar arrangements elsewhere, particularly in the Rihan Heights and the eastern and northern Bekaa, where the source said more important, deeper and larger military facilities are located.

The evacuation therefore formed part of a tactical redeployment intended to allow Hezbollah to continue justifying its weapons under the banner of confronting the Israeli occupation, while keeping the issue tied to regional negotiations and a stalled U.S.-Iranian memorandum, according to the report.

From Ali al-Taher to the Bekaa

The sources cited by Asas Media said Israel’s plans extend beyond destroying the underground infrastructure around Ali al-Taher.

Israeli intelligence has reportedly identified more than 15 tunnels stretching across the area from Yahmor and Kfar Tebnit through Arnoun to Ali al-Taher, with plans for extensive demolitions to destroy the network.

But the report said the Israeli military objective could go further: to create a new geographic reality by disrupting Hezbollah’s ability to move between southern Lebanon, the Jezzine Heights and the Bekaa.

One of the most significant potential moves would be from the western Bekaa, where Israeli forces could seek to cut the Midoun road leading toward the strategic Jezzine Heights.

The road provides access to a chain of elevated positions including Rihan, Sujoud and Kfarhouna. Cutting it would isolate geographic sectors and restrict the movement of supplies and personnel between the south and the Bekaa, according to the sources.

The report presents those heights as particularly important because of their strategic depth and their connection to a wider network of Hezbollah positions beyond Ali al-Taher.

The eastern and northern Bekaa could also become more important in the next phase. According to a source close to Hezbollah, the area contains military infrastructure that is larger, deeper and more significant than the facilities around Ali al-Taher.

That raises the possibility that the loss of Ali al-Taher could shift the confrontation toward positions farther from the immediate front line and deeper into Hezbollah’s wider military network.

The report said Hezbollah has already begun responding to the expected Israeli advance by reinforcing the Mifadoun-Shwakeen axis.

The reinforcements include Lebanese fighters and Syrian Shiite fighters transferred from the Bekaa region. They have been deployed along the axis to establish a defensive line and try to prevent a new Israeli advance.

Mifadoun and Shwakeen have emerged as important positions following Hezbollah’s withdrawal from the hills around Ali al-Taher, according to Israeli assessments cited by Asas Media.

The area is particularly significant because of its location between the southern front and the routes leading toward the interior.

Any Israeli attempt to push beyond Ali al-Taher could therefore turn the Mifadoun-Shwakeen area into a key defensive line, while simultaneously placing greater pressure on the routes connecting the south to the Bekaa and Jezzine.

The Jezzine Heights could become one of the most important areas in the next phase of the confrontation, the report noted.

Rihan, Sujoud and Kfarhouna form a chain of elevated positions that provides strategic depth and overlooks routes linking different parts of southern Lebanon.

According to the sources, Israel’s reported intention to cut access to these positions is aimed not simply at controlling individual roads, but at preventing Hezbollah from maintaining a continuous logistical and operational link between its southern positions and the Bekaa.

The implications would extend beyond the immediate battlefield around Ali al-Taher. Cutting those routes could fragment Hezbollah’s positions geographically and make it harder for the group to move fighters, equipment and supplies between its areas of operation.

This is why the report portrays the battle for Ali al-Taher as part of a much wider struggle over the geography of southern Lebanon rather than an isolated fight over a single hill.

The potential Israeli operation could also extend toward Wadi Zibqin in the Tyre district, where Israeli forces could target fortified positions and tunnels, according to the sources.

The report links the intense demolitions in the area to a broader effort to bring locations including Mansouri and Mazraat Beit al-Sayyad into the security zone associated with the so-called Yellow Line.

Taken together, the reported plans would amount to an attempt to expand the area of Israeli operational control while severing Hezbollah’s internal lines of communication.

The key question, according to the report, is whether Washington will intervene to restrain Israel or allow the military campaign to expand beyond Ali al-Taher.

For Hezbollah, meanwhile, the loss of the ridge has increased the importance of the deeper positions in the Jezzine Heights and Bekaa, where the group can seek to preserve its military infrastructure and maintain alternative routes for movement and supply.

The battle is therefore no longer only about who controls Ali al-Taher. It is increasingly about whether Israel can use control of the strategic ridge to disrupt the wider network linking southern Lebanon to the Bekaa and Jezzine, and whether Hezbollah can establish new defensive lines before that network is cut.