Israel has broadened its ground invasion of Lebanon in the south of the country, while putting forward the possibility of holding on to the newly occupied Lebanese land.
Israel's military spokesman Lt Col Nadav Shoshani said such a move is “to be determined" and "depends on future planning and where things go from here". Israel’s military said earlier that the new manoeuvres in Lebanon aimed to expand a “forward defence area”.
It claimed it was doing so to destroy Hezbollah infrastructure and create "an additional layer of security" for its people – but its actions in Lebanon have not spared civilians, with strikes on areas outside Hezbollah's control and influence.
Israel declared a buffer zone on March 3 and has escalated attacks since Hezbollah joined Iran in the war against the US and Israel. At least 850 people have been killed and more than 2,100 injured in Israeli attacks on Lebanon, the Health Ministry said on Sunday.
The Lebanese state has taken unprecedented steps to disarm Hezbollah since a ceasefire in November 2024. In January, Lebanese army commander Gen Rodolphe Haykal said the army had cleared all Hezbollah military infrastructure south of the Litani River and sent thousands of Lebanese soldiers into the area.
Meanwhile, Israel has breached the truce thousands of times, striking Lebanon on a daily basis and killing dozens of civilians. Several sources told The National that Israel plans a long-term incursion in Lebanon, potentially lasting longer than the war with Iran.
“The belief is that the war in Lebanon, with its focus on Hezbollah, will take more time than the war in Iran, the reason being it is not only air strikes that are needed, but ground infiltration and holding on to key positions around the border,” an official briefed on the Israeli operation had said.
On Monday, Unifil peacekeepers said they were fired at by "non-state armed groups" on three occasions while carrying out patrols near their bases. Unifil did not specify which group it was referring to. Two patrols returned fire in "self-defence" and, after a brief exchange of fire, normal activities were resumed, it added.
"It is unacceptable that peacekeepers performing Security Council-mandated tasks be targeted," Unifil said in a statement. "Any attack on Unifil peacekeepers constitutes a grave violation of international humanitarian law and of Resolution 1701 and may amount to a war crime."
As the regional war rages, Israel is considering terminating the natural gas maritime border agreement with the Lebanese government owing to a "failure to thwart terrorist attacks carried out from its territory", Israeli Energy and Infrastructure Minister Eli Cohen said.
“It is a terrible, illegitimate agreement," he said. "Thus, I maintain that we should act to cancel the gas pact. This subject is also being discussed in the cabinet.
"This was no agreement. It was a letter of surrender because, from all of the allegedly disputed territory, the state of Israel didn’t receive anything. Lebanon gained everything on a vague condition that certainly didn’t materialise, regarding enhanced security [to Israel]."
