Israeli ground forces on 9 February crossed into southern Lebanon's Al-Koub area and captured a Lebanese man described by Israel as an ally of Hamas, Lebanese and Israeli sources said. Lebanon's National News Agency reported that Israeli infantry entered a town in the area and abducted a Lebanese male citizen, while the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the operation was an "intelligence-based targeted action" that netted a member of a Sunni political party allied with Hamas who was taken into Israel for questioning.
The Sunni party to which the detainee belongs condemned the abduction as an illegal border incursion and an infringement of Lebanese sovereignty, calling on Beirut to intervene. The party has been portrayed by Israel as coordinating with Palestinian militants; the Associated Press noted that the United States designated the party a terrorist organisation last month. Since the outbreak of the Israel–Hamas war in October 2023, fighters affiliated with the group have reportedly fired rockets into Israel alongside Hezbollah.
Lebanese media also reported that an Israeli drone attack in the south on the same day struck a civilian vehicle, killing three people including a child; Israel has not publicly responded to that specific claim. Lebanon's public health ministry said Israeli air raids across several southern towns the same day injured 19 people, among them journalists, underscoring the toll on civilians and press freedom in border communities.
The operation illustrates the continuing volatility along the Israel–Lebanon frontier despite a ceasefire that came into effect on 27 November. Israel has not fully withdrawn its forces from parts of southern Lebanon and cites Hezbollah's alleged attempts to rebuild military capacity as justification for ongoing strikes and cross-border operations. Beirut and its allies, by contrast, decry what they see as persistent violations of Lebanese sovereignty.
The capture highlights several fault lines. For Israel, the operation is framed as a narrow, intelligence-driven attempt to gather information and degrade militant networks linked to Hamas. For Lebanon, it is a demonstration of the state's limited ability to protect its territory from foreign incursions and a reminder of the complex web of armed groups operating inside its borders. For external actors, including the United States and the UN peacekeeping mission (UNIFIL), it raises questions about enforcement of the ceasefire and the durability of a cold, tense calm along the Blue Line.
What happens next is uncertain. The seized individual's party has already demanded government action, heightening domestic pressure in Lebanon. Hezbollah — which has been careful to avoid a full-scale return to all-out confrontation while continuing tit-for-tat exchanges since October — will calculate responses based on internal political considerations and perceived thresholds of Israeli provocation. Meanwhile, targeted captures and strikes carry the twin objectives of intelligence-gathering and deterrence for Israel, yet they also run the risk of widening the conflict if they inspire retaliation or miscalculation.