Video Shows Israel Using Trebuchet to Fire Flaming Projectile at Hezbollah

Israeli soldiers on the northern border have been seen using a medieval catapult-like weapon to shoot flaming projectiles into Lebanon, igniting plantations to prevent Hezbollah fighters from infiltrating into the south.

Footage widely shared on social media shows the soldiers loading a trebuchet and flinging fireballs into Lebanese territory. "This is a local initiative and not a tool that is widely used," the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement, denying that this is a widely adopted tactic by the forces.

A trebuchet is essentially a more advanced version of the catapult that was prominent in Europe during the Middle Ages for sieging castles and other fortified locations, which fell out of use with the advent of gunpowder artillery.

The IDF said that the terrain along the northern border is rife with boulders, thickets, and dense vegetation, posing significant challenges to troops. The aim of the incendiary attacks is to clear these areas of vegetation that Hezbollah, an Iran-backed ally of the Palestinian Hamas group, might use for cover.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week said the IDF is "prepared for an extremely powerful action in the north," suggesting Israel may widen its offensive in Gaza to its border with Lebanon.

Israeli troops have been training for a possible incursion into southern Lebanon for several months, some being withdrawn from combat in Gaza to prepare for potential war on the northern front.

The use of a trebuchet follows recent heightened tensions in northern Israel.

On Wednesday, the Lebanese militia vowed to intensify its attacks along the Lebanon-Israel border to avenge the recent killing of Sami Taleb Abdullah, its most senior military commander who was killed in an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon.

This was followed by Hezbollah firing a heavy barrage of around 250 rockets into northern Israel, marking the largest single-day attack since the current conflict began, and the first-time rockets reached as far south as Tiberias.

In response, Netanyahu ordered airstrikes targeting Hezbollah military structures in southern Lebanon. These actions are part of a broader strategy to counter the frequent rocket and drone attacks from the Lebanese group, which have caused significant disruption and danger to northern Israeli communities.

According to Israeli officials who spoke to Newsweek, some 60,000 Israelis and 100,000 Lebanese residents have been displaced from both sides of the border since October 7.

Israel is still reeling from the unprecedented attack led by Hamas that took the nation by surprise eight months ago, sparking what has become the longest and deadliest war in Gaza.

Attention is increasingly being drawn to the escalating battle in the north between the IDF and Hezbollah, which has dramatically improved its arsenal since the last full-scale war fought 18 years ago.

The Alma Institute, a research organization focused on security threats in the Middle East, has estimated that Hezbollah possesses a substantial arsenal, including 150,000 mortars, 65,000 rockets with a range of up to 50 miles, and 2,500 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

The U.S. on Wednesday urged a de-escalation along the Israel-Lebanon border. "We don't want to see a wider regional conflict and we do want to see a de-escalation of tensions in the region," Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant—who may end up the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant linked to IDF conduct inside Gaza—discussed the issue in a call this week, Singh said.