BEIRUT — Speaking by phone because meeting in person would be too risky, a Hezbollah field commander recounted how he was wounded during Israel’s recent heavy bombardment of Beirut and described how the militia has adapted its operations since 2024.
Using the nom de guerre “Jihad,” the man said he is 62, joined Hezbollah’s military wing in 2001 and holds a rank he likened to a two‑star officer. He declined to give a formal title that might reveal his identity. He said he splits his time between Beirut’s southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, and positions in southern Lebanon where he directs fighters confronting Israeli forces.
He described a missile strike in the southern Beirut suburbs that exploded next to the building where he had been sheltering. Flying glass and debris lacerated his arms and legs, and two people nearby were killed, he said. Despite the injuries, he was back on his feet the following day.
“I have an enemy occupying my land,” he told the reporter. “Where am I supposed to be?”
He spoke at length about the fighting, the group’s command changes and how Hezbollah has tried to blunt Israeli surveillance and targeting. He said the latest flare‑ups followed a U.S. and Israeli strike on Iran on Feb. 28 and Hezbollah’s rocket response from Lebanon on March 2. The group briefly paused attacks when reports of a U.S.–Iran ceasefire suggested a possible lull that might extend to Lebanon; once Israel denied that and launched what Hezbollah called its largest assault since the war resumed, the group returned to rocket fire.
“We’re facing an enemy with the newest weapons and highest technology, but we’re holding our ground,” he said, adding that discipline and patience are central to how they operate.
Hezbollah’s willingness to discuss internal changes provided a rare window into the group’s adjustments after a violent 2024 that included setbacks and losses. Jihad acknowledged “mistakes” that year that contributed to Israel killing Hezbollah’s then‑leader, Hassan Nasrallah, and said the organization has since reorganized and rearmed.
After the September 2024 incident in which thousands of pagers and walkie‑talkies used by Hezbollah were destroyed — an operation that killed dozens — the group largely abandoned modern consumer electronics for battlefield communications, he said. Distrust of devices sold through covert channels has led fighters to rely on older radios and simple transmitters, and some orders now travel on handwritten notes carried by couriers on motorcycles.
Leadership and command
Jihad described a shift in leadership after Nasrallah’s death, with founding member Naim Qassem taking a more decentralized approach. He said Qassem has returned the group to a celllike structure associated with past leaders, splitting forces into semi‑autonomous units that minimize communications and knowledge of the broader plan. That compartmentalization, he said, reduces the risk of detection and capture.
“Elaborate specialization” is how he characterized the new setup: units with narrowly defined roles — some focused on firing, others on reconnaissance or logistics — that carry out specific tasks without understanding the full scope of operations. He also said the organization has strengthened ties to Iran while tightening operational security internally.
Ceasefire, disarmament claims and rearmament
The commander disputed the notion that Hezbollah disarmed under a November 2024 ceasefire that called for the Lebanese army to remove weapons from the south. He said the group deliberately presented the army with old, unusable stockpiles and surrendered items that were no longer operational, while keeping functional arms hidden.
“We showed them disused or damaged caches,” he said, asserting that the group retained more capability than outsiders believed. He added that Hezbollah has replenished its arsenal through a combination of imports and locally manufactured items, and that the group continues to use networks of underground tunnels and caverns to conceal materiel. Some entrances were destroyed in 2024, he acknowledged, but he said many remain intact.
Observers have long pointed to Iran as a primary supplier, typically routing weapons through Syria. After the fall of Syrian President Bashar al‑Assad in December 2024, some analysts warned that the supply line was severed; Jihad rejected that view, saying certain types of weapons continue to be moved through Syria.
Political context
The U.S., Israel and many other governments designate Hezbollah a terrorist organization, while the group also participates in Lebanese politics, with 14 members serving in parliament. Hezbollah has opposed planned talks in Washington between the Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors — the first official talks between the two countries since 1983.
The commander framed the fighting as resistance to an occupying force and defended the group’s choices in the face of intense Israeli strikes that Lebanese authorities say have killed hundreds of civilians in recent operations. He said Hezbollah has learned from past errors and retooled its tactics to be harder to detect and strike.
An abrupt end
After about 40 minutes, with Israeli drones and aircraft audible in the background, Jihad said he had to move and quickly ended the call.
“We need to change our position,” he said, then hung up.