The question now ringing through Israel is whether it helps win the war. There is broad agreement that the deadly sabotage of Hezbollah’s electronic communications was a short-term tactical success that sent its foe into disarray and incapacitated thousands of its fighters.

The Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, did not say how his group would respond to attacks on hand-held devices, which killed dozens when pagers and walkie-talkies exploded.

The Israel Defense Forces are increasingly focused on the prospect of a large conflict developing with Hezbollah in northern Israel. The chances for a major war increased on September 17 when thousands of pagers used by Hezbollah members exploded in Lebanon,