Israeli soldiers at the site of an explosion near Yiftah, in northern Israel near the border with Lebanon, on Oct. 12, 2026. (Credit: Jalaa Marley/AFP)
BEIRUT — The Israeli army raised its alert level over the weekend amid concerns of a possible escalation on multiple fronts, deploying two divisions in the Golan Heights and southern Lebanon, Israeli daily Maariv reported Saturday.
In an article by military correspondent Avi Ashkenazi, Maariv reported that the Israeli army had placed the 36th and 91st divisions on what it described as "an extremely high state of operational alert."
According to the newspaper, sources in Lebanon said "Hezbollah had received a green light from Iran to raise its readiness and prepare for a possible confrontation with Israel." The report also claimed that "Hezbollah was recruiting members and strengthening its defensive positions in the Bekaa Valley, along the coast and in Beirut’s southern suburbs."
The report comes amid Israeli concerns that Iran could seek to disrupt Israel’s election campaign. Maariv said this remained a "working assumption within Israel’s security establishment," adding that there was "no specific intelligence indicating an Iranian effort to interfere in the election."
The newspaper cited an Israeli military source as saying that "Israel was raising its alert level to prepare for a prolonged period of heightened readiness," arguing that Iran was seeking to create "a regional crisis involving multiple fronts."
On Wednesday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened to empty and strike the southern suburb of Beirut and to expand Israeli occupation into southern Lebanon if Hezbollah joins Iran in attacking Israel amid rising tensions in the region.
Update at 2 p.m.: Aoun announces new tripartite talks in Florida, hundreds arrested in France, Raggi calls on Iran and its allies to stop attacking Gulf countries