REPORTAGE. In Israel, Haifa, Hezbollah’s “main target”, is preparing for an escalation of the conflict

The closest metropolis to Lebanon, Haifa, is preparing to face Hezbollah’s strike force.

Will there be a war in Lebanon between Israel and Hezbollah? On Sunday, June 30, four Islamist militiamen were killed in Israeli attacks and 18 Israeli soldiers were injured, one seriously, in a drone attack on the Golan Heights. The diplomatic channel is blocked, and exchanges of rocket and drone fire are daily.

The border areas are, on both sides, emptied of their inhabitants and for the moment, no one is reducing the pressure. Hezbollah’s arsenal is estimated at 150,000 rockets and missiles, some of medium range, capable of reaching all of Israeli territory. So the metropolises are getting ready. This is the case of Haifa, the largest Israeli city closest to Lebanon.

There is vigilance but also dismay: “You never know. It could start at any moment. What can we do?” Sami has always lived in Haifa, he experienced the war in Lebanon in 1982, and more recently that of 2006 against Hezbollah: “In 2006, Hezbollah did not have the means it has today, no precise missiles. They could fall into the sea, into the mountains… Today, it’s a different situation. Shelters cannot help.”

Shelters that would therefore be useless to face the Hezbollah strike force. And yet, it is about fifteen meters underground that the authorities of the third largest city in the country have set up a crisis center. Yona Yahav is the immovable mayor of Haifa: “It’s open all the time. 24 hours a day. We’re the main target in Israel right now. Because of the concentration of chemical plants here, if it explodes… Do you know what ammonia is? If you breathe it for two minutes, you’re dead. And it can spread within a radius of 2,000 kilometers. You never know…” As a precaution, GPS signals are being jammed in Haifa and the city hall has set up nearly 300 public shelters, three times more than normal.