Israel Blows Up Major Hezbollah Tunnel Network Beneath Ali Taher Ridge, Triggering 4.1-Magnitude Tremor, as Rome Talks Loom

September 10, 2026 — The IDF destroyed what it called a major Hezbollah tunnel network beneath the Ali Taher ridge in southern Lebanon using more than 1,100 tonnes of explosives, an operation Israeli officials said completed a 'security zone' along the ridge; the US Geological Survey recorded a 4.1-magnitude tremor from the blast. Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a joint statement the tunnel complex — spanning over two kilometers and functioning as the 'nerve center' of Hezbollah's Badr regional division — held Iranian-made rockets, missiles, drones, anti-tank weapons and mines, and was intended to support a possible incursion into Israel's Galilee. The strike lands days before the next round of US-brokered Israel-Lebanon talks, tentatively set for Rome next week (Tuesday or Wednesday, per an Israeli official), where the disputed Hezbollah-disarmament 'pilot zones' issue is set to stall until after Israel's October elections. A US State Department official separately urged Lebanon to 'formulate a plan for disarmament in all Lebanese territory,' welcoming south Lebanese communities' calls for their government to assert sovereignty over Hezbollah weapons storage.