After the 'Bijar' Bombings: How Hezbollah Rebuilt Its Communications Away from Israeli Surveillance

A Lebanese security source revealed that Hezbollah built during 2026 what can be described as a "rescue network," a multi-layered communications system combining a new Iranian wireless system, secret wired cables, old equipment, and even paper messages and couriers, in an effort to keep leadership and fighters beyond the reach of Israeli electronic surveillance.

The security source told Al-Araby News that Hezbollah recently acquired a sophisticated wireless communications system from Iran, introduced as part of a broader military infrastructure reconstruction severely damaged by war and Israeli penetrations.

According to the source, the system was designed to reduce reliance on Lebanese phone and internet networks and connect certain units into a more isolated internal network. However, Hezbollah did not rely solely on this system but instead worked in parallel to expand its terrestrial wired network, ensuring information transmission was distributed across multiple channels so that compromising one would not expose the entire network.

The source revealed that the recent cable extensions discovered in Beirut are part of this expansion effort, with the goal of establishing independent communication routes between areas where Hezbollah operates and its command centers, as far as possible from civilian infrastructure vulnerable to Israeli monitoring.

Cables Beneath Beirut Streets

These revelations coincide with a case that emerged in July, when Lebanese sources reported detecting communications cable extensions linked to Hezbollah running from the UNESCO area toward Bir Hassan, during electrical works carried out by a contractor under a project funded by an international foundation.

According to the security source, Lebanese security agencies launched an investigation to determine whether the company had carried out similar extensions in other areas, and the matter has now reached American intelligence authorities.

Reports described a dedicated network for Hezbollah cadres resembling its existing networks in the southern suburbs, Bekaa Valley, and the south.

But the wires are only one layer of a broader system. After the shock of penetrations, Hezbollah significantly reduced the use of phones and electronic communication devices at the most sensitive levels.

As the source noted, communications have returned in some cases to older methods, with certain leaders moving without phones or wireless devices, and messages being delivered by couriers on bicycles.

He also disclosed that some sensitive orders are now transmitted handwritten.

Cells That Don’t Know Each Other

The most significant shift was not in hardware alone, but in the architecture of the human network.

Reuters reported in March that Iran’s Revolutionary Guard sent officers to Lebanon to assist in rebuilding and restructuring Hezbollah, with one of the key changes being the replacement of part of the hierarchical structure with small, decentralized units, each possessing limited knowledge of the operations of other units.

This approach drastically reduces the number of required communications; if an individual, device, or communication channel is compromised, the amount of information that can be extracted remains limited, rather than exposing the entire command chain.

The source described this model as closer to a "defensive mosaic" based on small cells.

The importance of communications also surfaced in the Israeli target list.

On March 28, the Israeli army announced the killing of Ayoub Hussein Yaqub and Yasser Muhammad Mubarak, stating they were senior members of the communications unit responsible for maintaining connectivity and developing, maintaining, and operating Hezbollah’s systems.

Fiber Optics Evade Jamming

In the field, another technical path emerged. During the 2026 war, Hezbollah introduced FPV drones guided by fiber optics—technology allowing the drone to be connected to its operator via a thin wire instead of a wireless signal, making traditional electronic jamming less effective against them.

Israeli media documented their use against Israeli forces, noting these drones have become a challenge because the wired connection makes them practically immune to interference on the wireless control link.