lebanon

Buffer Zone in Southern Lebanon: Israel’s Advance Raises Questions About Lasting Presence

As Israel ramps up its military campaign against Hezbollah, Israeli troops advanced into southern Lebanon on Tuesday morning and established a buffer zone described by Tel Aviv as a limited defensive maneuver aimed at protecting northern Israeli communities. However, security sources interviewed by This is Beirut said that the maneuver could be ...

Israel Continues Offensive in Lebanon as IDF Announces ‘Buffer’ Zone

Israel’s offensive against targets of Hezbollah and its allies continued into Tuesday afternoon and evening, while Israeli ground forces entered new sites in southern Lebanon to create a “buffer” zone. On Tuesday afternoon, Arabic spokesperson to the Israeli army Avichay Adraee issued an evacuation call to 112 towns in southern ...

Israel Signals Unwavering Resolve to Eliminate Hezbollah

Lebanon was drawn into the widening Middle East war on Monday after Hezbollah fired rockets toward Israel, saying the attack was in support of its backer Iran and in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. Israel responded with intense airstrikes, targeting Hezbollah strongholds in Beirut’s southern suburbs, the ...

UNIFIL Reports Israeli Incursion and Hezbollah Violations

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) revealed Tuesday that its peacekeepers observed Israeli troops crossing into Lebanese territory near the southern border towns of Markaba, al-Odaysse, Kfarkila and Ramia before returning to the Blue Line. In a press release, UNIFIL stated that since the last conflict and the cessation of ...

Aoun: State Monopoly on Arms “Irreversible”

President Joseph Aoun asserted on Tuesday that the Cabinet’s decision to prohibit illegal military and security activities is a sovereign and final measure that “cannot be reversed,” in reference to Hezbollah’s rocket fire toward Israel. Speaking during a meeting with the Quintet Committee, Aoun reiterated that the government’s ...

Time for Lebanon’s De-Hezbollahfication

Lebanon has tasted the nightmare Israel faced on October 7, 2023. Iran’s Islamist regime and its proxies, Hezbollah and Hamas, are irrational actors who cannot be trusted with a single bullet, let alone entire arsenals, regardless of the paper promises they sign. Israel recognized this existential threat and has since been taking preemptive ...

Escalation Intensifies as Israel Strikes and Hezbollah Drone Attacks Rock Lebanon

Israeli raids resumed on Tuesday across Beirut’s southern suburbs, southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley, marking a sharp escalation in tensions between Israel and Hezbollah. An additional Israeli strike hit Beirut’s southern suburbs on Tuesday morning, following a tense night of evacuation warnings and air raids. In southern Lebanon, ...

IDF Announces Forward Defensive Operation and New "Buffer Zone" in Southern Lebanon

The Israeli military says it has launched what it describes as a “forward defensive operation” to protect communities in northern Israel, confirming that forces are currently operating inside southern Lebanon. In a statement issued following what it called a situational assessment, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the operation is ...

Hezbollah Says Attack on Israel was 'Defensive Act'

Hezbollah said on Tuesday that its rocket and drone attack on Israel was a "defensive act" after more than a year of Israeli strikes despite a ceasefire. "For fifteen months, Israeli aggression against Lebanon has continued through killing, destruction, bulldozing, and all forms of criminal acts," a statement from the Iran-backed group said, ...

Israel Intensifies Campaign in Lebanon Against Hezbollah as Israeli Army Plans Next Steps

Over the course of Monday following Hezbollah’s strikes on Israel, the Israeli army stated that it struck around 70 targets in Lebanon within 24 hours. Israeli jets carried out attacks across Beirut’s southern suburbs, southern and eastern Lebanon. As of Monday evening, the Lebanese Ministry of Health reports that at least 52 were ...

Israeli Army Issues 18 Urgent Evacuation Warnings Across Lebanon

The Israeli army’s Arabic-language spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, announced on Monday that the military has issued 18 urgent evacuation warnings for buildings it says are used by Hezbollah across several areas in Lebanon. The warnings state that Israeli forces will soon strike what they describe as Hezbollah military infrastructure, ...