Despite official Lebanese figures of 2,600 dead over two months of fighting with Israel, internal Hezbollah casualty reports point to vastly higher losses.By World Israel News StaffHezbollah has suffered heavy losses since reopening its war with Israel on March 2, with thousands of its terrorists killed, hundreds of thousands of its Shiite constituents displaced and Israeli troops now holding a buffer zone in southern Lebanon, according internal Hezbollah estimates cited in a report by Reuters.The war has also deepened pressure on the Iran-backed group inside Lebanon, where opponents say Hezbollah’s status as an armed faction has repeatedly exposed the country to devastating conflict with Israel.Despite the cost, more than a dozen Hezbollah officials told Reuters the group believes its role in the war could help force Lebanon onto the agenda of US-Iran talks.Hezbollah officials said they hope Iranian pressure can secure a stronger ceasefire than the one reached in November 2024.Hezbollah lawmaker Ibrahim al-Moussawi denied that the group resumed attacks on Israel at Iran’s request. He said Hezbollah saw an opportunity to “break this vicious cycle … where the Israelis can target, assassinate, bombard, kill, without any revenge.”He acknowledged the damage and losses in southern Lebanon, but said casualties could not be the only calculation when “pride and sovereignty and independence” were at stake.Hezbollah’s media office denied that several thousand of its fighters had been killed, calling the estimate false.Lebanon’s Health Ministry has reported more than 2,600 people killed since March 2. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.Three sources, including two Hezbollah officials, told Reuters the official toll does not include many Hezbollah casualties.In one case, a Hezbollah commander said terrorists sent to Bint Jbeil and Khiyam had gone there intending to fight to the death, and that some bodies had not yet been recovered.In Beirut’s Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs, Reuters reported that more than two dozen newly dug graves were quickly filled with terrorists’ bodies after an April 16 US-mediated ceasefire took effect. In the southern village of Yater, the local council recorded the deaths of 34 Hezbollah fighters.Israel says Hezbollah violated the previous ceasefire by firing on Israeli civilians on March 2. An Israeli government official said Israel would eliminate the threat to northern communities, adding that thousands of Hezbollah fighters had been killed and that Israel was steadily destroying the group’s infrastructure.The Israeli military says Hezbollah has fired hundreds of rockets and drones at Israel since March 2. Israel has announced the deaths of 17 soldiers in southern Lebanon and two civilians in northern Israel.Israel has maintained troops in a self-declared buffer zone in southern Lebanon, reaching as far as 10 kilometers into the country. Israeli officials say the zone is needed to protect northern Israel from Hezbollah attacks launched from civilian areas.The April ceasefire has reduced hostilities but has not ended the fighting. Hezbollah has called the truce meaningless and has continued to attack.Yezid Sayigh, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, said Hezbollah had “shown more resilience than many thought possible,” but added that this was “not a strategic gain in itself.”“The only thing that will contain Israel is a comprehensive US-Iran deal,” Sayigh said. “Without a deal, there’s going to be a lot of pain for everyone. At best, a hurting stalemate.”Tehran has demanded that Israel’s campaign against Hezbollah be included in any wider agreement with Washington. But President Donald Trump said last month that any US deal with Iran “is in no way subject to Lebanon.”Moussawi said Hezbollah has “full trust in Iran — that the Iranians will not sell their own friends.”Hezbollah has ruled out disarmament, saying its weapons should be discussed only through a Lebanese national dialogue. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam have pushed for the group’s peaceful disarmament, while the government banned Hezbollah military activity on March 2.Hezbollah has demanded that Beirut reverse that decision and end direct talks with Israel.Lebanese officials told Reuters they believe direct talks with Israel under US auspices offer the best chance of securing a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal, arguing that only Washington has enough leverage over Israel to deliver those outcomes.The post Casualty Cover-Up: Hezbollah suffered massive losses during war with Israel appeared first on World Israel News.