In the early hours of the morning Israel launched its ground operations in Lebanon, prior to which talk shows brought us coverage of Israel’s preparations for the ground invasion amid intensified strikes on the Lebanon-Syria border. This comes as more than 1 mn people in Lebanon have been displaced by the conflict’s escalation and amid questions about the extent to which Hezbollah can repel the invasion.

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“The ground attack will not be extensive,” military strategist and commentator Samir Ragheb told El Hekaya’s Amr Adib (watch, runtime: 1:52), adding that attacks will likely focus on the areas where Hezbollah’s Nasr and Aziz units are stationed. Ragheb said (watch, runtime: 31:43) that neither Lebanon nor Hezbollah would be able to repel the ground incursion, especially given the Hezbollah leadership’s absence following Israel’s killing of Hassan Nasrallah and weak communication between members following the device explosions that rocked Hezbollah earlier this month.

Where things stand: In addition to the displacement of over 1 mn people, several sectors in Lebanon — including tourism, agriculture, and trade — have come to a screeching halt, Lebanese journalist Fadi Akoum told Ala Masouleety’s Ahmed Moussa (watch, runtime: 4:32). In addition, around 70-80% of commercial shops have closed their doors. The Lebanese government is currently responsible for about 100k displaced people, while the community and charitable organizations are caring for approximately 800k others, Akoum added.

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