The army is on high alert along the northern border following reports that Hizbullah has deployed 50,000 men in southern Lebanon after last week's assassination of arch-terrorist Imad Mughniyeh in Syria. Defense officials expressed skepticism over the reports, saying Hizbullah had only several thousand fighters in total. The officials also said there were no indications on the ground of an increase in the Islamist organization's forces in the area.
According to the Lebanese newspaper As-Safir, Hizbullah has
Last week, Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi ordered the Northern Command, air force and navy to raise their level of alert out of concern that Hizbullah will retaliate for the assassination of Mughniyeh by attacking in the North.