Israeli occupation forces escalate targeting civilians in southern Lebanon

Israeli forces have intensified their military operations in southern Lebanon, launching airstrikes, artillery shelling, and gunfire targeting civilian areas. The escalation has led to significant casualties, with at least 11 people killed, including children and women, and 19 others injured across several towns. These attacks mark some of the deepest Israeli strikes into Lebanese territory in nearly two months, raising concerns about regional stability.

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what is happening in the south are not isolated military operations. This is part of a long-term Israeli strategy aimed at killing civilians, destroying homes, burning and bulldozing land, and rendering some towns uninhabitable, in preparation – according to his assessment – for establishing a buffer zone and a sustainable occupation.

Lebanon's Ministry of Health reported that an Israeli airstrike on the town of Ansar in Nabatieh district killed seven people, including three children and two women. Another strike in Deir al-Zahrani resulted in four deaths and 17 injuries. The assaults included targeting populated areas with phosphorus shelling and demolishing homes, particularly in Bint Jbeil and surrounding villages. The Israeli army claimed to have assassinated a commander identified as Abu-Hassan Alaa, a leader in the Badr Brigade, during a raid in Deir al-Zahrani.

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internal political calculations in Israel play a role in this escalation. As Israeli elections approach, security and war become part of the political battle, pushing Netanyahu to harden his stance and cling to his conditions, foremost among them the disarmament of Hezbollah and the imposition of a new geopolitical reality.

Hezbollah condemned the actions, holding Israel and the United States responsible for the escalation and urging Lebanese authorities to reassess their reliance on American mediation. Former Lebanese minister Faisal Karami described the attacks not as isolated incidents but as a deliberate Israeli strategy. He believes Israel aims to create a buffer zone and establish a sustainable occupation by killing civilians, destroying homes, and rendering towns uninhabitable. Karami suggested that internal Israeli political calculations, driven by upcoming elections, are pushing Prime Minister Netanyahu to harden his stance.

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Lebanon is no longer separate from the regional confrontation, stating that Iran, the Strait of Hormuz, and oil have become interconnected elements in a single conflict, and that any escalation in the south could have repercussions on Hormuz and global energy markets.

Karami also warned that the conflict in southern Lebanon is intertwined with broader regional confrontations involving Iran and the Strait of Hormuz. He called on Iran to exclude Lebanon from its regional conflicts, stating that Lebanon can no longer serve as a battleground or bargaining chip. Karami advocated for a state-to-state relationship between Lebanon and Tehran, allowing the Lebanese people to determine their own future independently of regional wars.

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Lebanon 'can no longer tolerate being a battleground or a bargaining chip,' and that its relationship with Tehran, like with other countries, must return to a state-to-state relationship, allowing the Lebanese people to decide their own future, free from the region’s wars.