Isr@-el launched heavy airstrikes on southern Leb@-non on Thursday, targeting what it claimed were Hezbollah’s rebuilding military sites, despite a ceasefire agreement signed a year ago to end prolonged hostilities between the two sides.
According to Lebanese authorities, one person was killed and another injured in the latest round of bombings. The strikes followed multiple evacuation orders issued by the Israeli military for several villages, including Aita al-Jabal, Al-Tayyiba, and Tayr Debba, urging residents to maintain a 500-meter distance from marked areas.
Thick clouds of smoke filled the skies soon after the air raids began, spreading fear among residents already anxious about the potential return of full-scale warfare. “We are in a very dangerous situation… no one knows where this could lead,” said Farid Nahnouh, mayor of Tayr Debba.
The Israeli military justified the actions by accusing Hezbollah of attempting to restore its lost strength following the 2023–24 conflict. “Israel will continue defending its borders and enforce the ceasefire terms,” said government spokesperson Shosh Bedrosian, adding that Tel Aviv would not allow Hezbollah to regain its military capacity.
In response, Hezbollah reaffirmed its adherence to the ceasefire but maintained its “legitimate right” to resist Israeli aggression. The group has not fired on Israel since the truce took effect last year, though it refuses full disarmament.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) condemned Israel’s latest strikes, labeling them a “clear violation” of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which calls for peace along the Lebanon-Israel border. UNIFIL urged both parties to de escalate and avoid actions that could reignite conflict.
The Lebanese army denounced the airstrikes, calling them an “enemy attempt to destabilize Lebanon and expand destruction in the south.” The attacks coincided with a cabinet meeting in Beirut where army commander Rodolphe Haykal updated officials on efforts to seize Hezbollah’s weapons caches in southern regions.
Despite these efforts, Thursday’s airstrikes demolished several structures, including an ironworks shop in the town of Abbasiyeh. “This shop supported six families,” said its owner Ahmad al-Kayyal. “I only made doors, windows, and furniture how could this be a threat?”The renewed Israeli assault on southern Lebanon has reignited fears of a broader regional conflict, undermining fragile peace efforts and threatening the stability of Lebanon’s southern border despite ongoing disarmament operations by its military.
