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IN BRIEF
- Last week, Israel said it would seize southern Lebanon as far as Litani River.
- Israeli attacks have reportedly killed more than 1,100 people in Lebanon, including children and medics.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Monday that he has directed the military to intensify its operations in southern Lebanon.
Last week, Israel declared its intention to establish a “buffer zone” extending to the Litani River. It remains unclear whether Netanyahu’s latest directive pertains to this previously mentioned area or if it involves acquiring additional territory.
“I have now instructed to further expand the existing security zone in order to finally thwart the threat of invasion and to push the anti-tank missile fire away from our border,” Netanyahu stated in a video message recorded at the Israeli Northern Command.
Netanyahu’s office has not released further details on the expansion, and the security cabinet has yet to deliberate on this issue.
Previously, Defense Minister Israel Katz indicated that Israeli forces would take control of the remaining bridges and secure the zone up to the Litani River, which flows into the Mediterranean Sea approximately 30 kilometers north of Israel’s border.
Iran-backed Hezbollah started firing rockets into Israel after the United States and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February.
More than 400 fighters from Hezbollah have been killed since the Lebanese armed group launched the opening salvos of a new war with Israel on 2 March, sources familiar with Hezbollah’s count told Reuters news agency.
Israeli strikes and ground operations have killed more than 1,100 people in Lebanon, including children, women and medical personnel, according to the Lebanese health ministry.
The Israeli military has said four of its soldiers have been killed in fighting in southern Lebanon.
Jessica Genauer, associate professor of international relations at the University of NSW, said Israel’s objective to create a so-called “security buffer” in Lebanon dates back decades, “punctuated with moments of outright war” between the two countries.
Israeli troops occupied part of southern Lebanon for 18 years, from 1982 until 2000.
“The aim there from the Israeli side was to try to permanently occupy a security buffer zone, where they could guarantee that they would not see offensive action take place towards Israel from the southern part of Lebanon,” Genauer told SBS News.
“What happened in practice was Hezbollah, which formed in the early 80s with the backing of Iran, primarily to resist the existence of Israel in the region. From the very formation of Hezbollah, there has been ongoing conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, and that drags in the Lebanese state and the people of Lebanon as well.”
Netanyahu said the decision aimed to strengthen Israel’s security position along its northern frontier.
“We eliminated thousands of Hezbollah terrorists, and above all, we eliminated the immense threat of 150,000 missiles and rockets that were intended to destroy the cities of Israel,” he said.
“However, Hezbollah still has a residual capability to launch rockets at us … we are determined to fundamentally change the situation in the north.”
Israel and Hezbollah signed a ceasefire agreement in November 2024, which was brokered by the previous US government, though this served to lessen the strikes from both sides rather than end them completely.
As part of the agreement, the Lebanese army was going to regain control of its territory, and Hezbollah’s infrastructure in southern Lebanon would not be allowed to be rebuilt, while Israel would gradually withdraw its remaining forces from the region.
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