Israelis panic buying power generators amid fears of full-scale war with Lebanon's Hezbollah

Fearing a full-scale war with Lebanon's Hezbollah, Israelis are reportedly panic-buying power generators and other emergency lighting tools they can use in the event of nationwide power cuts.

The fear of border hostilities with Hezbollah developing into a greater conflict has prompted Israelis to rush to stores and buy emergency products, including generators, flashlights, wireless night lamps, and backup batteries, Maariv reported on Friday.

Hezbollah has been engaged in cross-border clashes with the Israeli army since the start of the Gaza war in support of the Palestinians.

A report last month on The New Arab's sister site, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, said Hezbollah could target Israel's electricity infrastructure in an upcoming war, causing prolonged outages and impacting hospitals.

Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, has warned that his group was capable of striking any position in Israel, even as far as the country’s southernmost city, Eilat.

Israel has held unpublicised emergency meetings recently to survey contingency plans that include backup generators, according to the report, particularly in communities near the border with Lebanon.

The Hamilton Group, which imports electrical and technological products to Israel, told Maariv that there has been a particularly high demand for portable chargers and home generators that can charge up to five devices at the same time.

The company’s CEO said they were speeding up the supply of additional stocks of products that Israelis could use in emergencies, such as a war scenario.

Another person who works in the electricity domain in Israel told Maariv that panic buying was not limited to individuals, but also bigger corporations, especially in the high-tech sector.

Analysis: Israel's attacks on Lebanon are growing more aggressive and indiscriminate, signalling that its rules of engagement with Hezbollah could be changing

What's driving Israel's escalation in south Lebanon? 👇

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— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) February 21, 2024

Liron Katz told the publication that it was "almost impossible to meet demand," adding that "everyone is going crazy" if they’re unable to find emergency lighting tools.

In its report, Maariv listed several essentials it said Israelis should have in the event of a wider conflagration on the northern front.

The fighting between Hezbollah and Israel has killed close to 300 people in Lebanon, most of them Hezbollah fighters and around 50 civilians, including three journalists.

Israeli says 10 of its soldiers and six civilians have been killed, but Hezbollah says the number is higher.

Tens of thousands of people have been displaced on both sides of the border, and many south Lebanese villages have been reduced to rubble from Israeli airstrikes.