"Everyone said we were imagining it," said Sara and Zion Arbiv, longtime residents of Moshav Zar’it, located near Israel’s northern border, after the IDF uncovered a Hezbollah-built tunnel that ran dangerously close to their community on Tuesday. "We’ve stopped being the country’s human shield," they added.
Gabi Naaman, head of the Shlomi Local Council, is now demanding a full investigation into what he described as a severe security failure, questioning, "Who will be held accountable for this negligence?"
Possibility of armed terrorists infiltrating Israel from the north
The tunnel, dug by the Iran-backed Hezbollah terrorist group, had the potential to allow armed militants to infiltrate Israel. In recent years, Hezbollah has constructed numerous tunnels and amassed weapons near the Lebanese border as part of its strategy to launch attacks on Israeli communities. The IDF discovered the tunnel and neutralized it before it could be used, but the discovery has left residents deeply unsettled.
“This is no surprise to us,” Sara and Zion Arbiv told Walla News. "We’ve been warning the authorities for years. No one can claim we didn’t try to raise awareness—we reached out to local officials and even to the government."
The Arbivs, who have four children and four grandchildren, described the frustration of living under constant threat. "We were always told we didn’t understand or that we were imagining things."
For the residents of Zar’it, the discovery of the tunnel underscores the daily dangers they face. “Whoever thought that we would return home without the IDF providing an impenetrable barrier needs to reconsider,” the Arbivs added. "We will no longer serve as the state's human shield."
The couple also expressed relief that the tunnel was found before Hezbollah could carry out an attack, particularly in light of the coordinated assault from Gaza by Hamas on October 7. “It’s a miracle they didn’t invade from the north on the same day. Had they done so, the outcome could have been catastrophic.”
Shimon Guetta, head of the Ma’ale Yosef Regional Council, which oversees Zar’it, echoed these sentiments. "We warned in the past about suspicious noises and potential dangers, but the border remained exposed. While the discovery of the tunnel saved lives, it doesn’t erase the long-standing failure to secure this area."
The October 7 attack by Hamas has left residents of northern Israel fearful of a similar assault from Hezbollah. The Iran-backed group has a long history of threatening Israel’s northern border, and communities like Zar’it live in constant anxiety about future infiltrations.
Why is Israel fighting Hezbollah?
Hezbollah, designated as a terrorist organization by both Israel and the US, is a Shiite militant group based in southern Lebanon and supported by Iran.
The group’s construction of tunnels along Israel’s northern border is part of its strategy to conduct cross-border raids, similar to Hamas’s tactics in Gaza. These tunnels pose a direct threat to Israeli civilians living near the border.