Special to WorldTribune.com

TEL AVIV — Israel’s military has detected a redeployment of the
Iranian-sponsored Hizbullah amid heightened fears of war.

Officials said the military determined that Hizbullah stationed troops
as well as assets along the Lebanese border with Israel. They said the
Hizbullah redeployment, amid its military intervention in neighboring Syria,
was meant to facilitate any surprise attack on the Jewish state.

“Hizbullah’s involvement in the war in Syria has not disrupted its preparedness for a war with Israel,” Israel Army Col. Yaron Formosa said.

Formosa, chief artillery officer of the Army’s Northern Command, said Hizbullah has improved its military capability amid the civil war in Syria. He said Hizbullah gunners have gained proficiency in Syria and could now
strike Israeli main battle tanks and other assets.

“We saw them marking the positions of our artillery guns so they can target them in a war,” Formosa told Israel’s news website Ynet. “As a counter-measure we are building embankments to protect the weapons and ammunition.”

Officials said Hizbullah has formed at least five battalions trained to
attack Israel. They said the Sunni revolt in Syria marked the first major
test of Hizbullah’s infantry battalions and special operations forces.

“Hizbullah’s weak point has always been its infantry,” an official said.
“The war in Syria has changed all that, and Hizbullah now can launch
battalion-sized operations.”

Hizbullah was said to have also brought rockets and missiles closer to
the Israeli border. Officials said the Iranian proxy possessed up to 70,000
missiles and rockets, including those with a range of up to 300 kilometers.
This could enable Hizbullah to fire up to 1,500 missiles and rockets per day
into Israel.

“They are continuing to prepare for a war against us, and an isolated
incident on the border can lead to collapse,” Formosa said. “We are prepared
to go to war even tomorrow morning.”

One scenario envisioned by the Israeli military was a Hizbullah missile
attack from towns and villages throughout southern Lebanon.

Officials said Hizbullah could also use human shields to stop any Israel
Army advance.

“Hizbullah may purposely prevent the civilians from fleeing to the
north,” Formosa said.

  Col. Yaron Formosa, Hizbullah capable of battalion-sized operations, Hizbullah’s war experience in Syria seen increasing its military threat to Israel, human shields, improved military capability