What We Know About the Israeli Forces Fighting in Lebanon

The Israeli military has sent troops from four divisions across the border into Lebanon, but has not publicly disclosed how many.

Tanks fill an open area lined with trees.

The Israeli military announced on Tuesday that a new division of soldiers, the 146th, was operating in southern Lebanon, signaling that it could be ramping up the ground invasion of its neighbor.

Since beginning the invasion on Sept. 30 to target the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, the military has announced the involvement of three other divisions, but released few details about the number of troops deployed in Lebanon and their activities there.

Here’s what we know about the Israeli forces engaged in the ground operation.

How many Israeli troops are in Lebanon?

The Israeli military has said that its 36th, 98th, 91st, and 146th divisions have sent troops across the border into Lebanon, though it has not publicly disclosed how many soldiers are involved in the invasion or how many each division has contributed.

A complete division in Israel, as in the United States, usually comprises 10,000 to 15,000 soldiers, with roughly a third being combat troops and the remainder playing supporting roles, including in logistics and intelligence.

The Israeli military has declined to specify how many soldiers from the Israeli divisions have entered Lebanon since the invasion began, arguing that they do not want to publicize information that could benefit Hezbollah. Analysts estimate that they number in the thousands.

Gershon HaCohen, a retired Israeli major general who served as a reservist in Israel’s northern command in the last year, said that the number of Israeli troops fighting in Lebanon was in the lower range of that in 2006, during the last full-scale war between Israel and Hezbollah. Prior reports in The Times put that figure at an estimated 10,000 to 30,000, depending on the phase of the 34-day war.