Beirut, Lebanon. The Israeli military said Hezbollah fired rockets at Israeli troops in southern Lebanon on Tuesday, accusing the Iran-backed group of violating a ceasefire ahead of US-mediated talks between the Israeli and Lebanese governments this week. Hezbollah issued no immediate comment.
Rocket fire and Israeli response
The Israeli military said it struck the launcher from which the rockets were fired. Hezbollah has said it has the “right to resist” Israeli forces occupying southern Lebanon.
Ceasefire and troop deployments
A ten-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah mediated by Washington came into effect last Thursday, but Israeli forces remain deployed in a belt of Lebanese land 5-10 km deep along the entire border. Israel has said it aims to create a buffer zone to shield northern Israel from attacks by Hezbollah.
Planned talks and political warnings
The United States is set to host ambassador-level talks between Israel and Lebanon on Thursday. Lebanon was dragged into war on March 2 when Hezbollah opened fire in support of Tehran in the regional conflict.
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Lebanon’s most senior Shi’ite statesman and a Hezbollah ally, told Lebanese newspaper al-Joumhouria that Israeli forces occupying parts of the south would face resistance if they did not withdraw. “If Israel maintains its occupation, whether of areas, positions, or by drawing yellow lines, it will smell the scent of resistance every day,” said Berri, leader of the Shi’ite Amal Movement.
Disputed lines and ongoing operations
The Israeli military and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu both referred to Israel’s deployment line in Lebanon as the “Yellow Line” last week, the same term used by Israel for its deployment line in Gaza. Israeli officials have since refrained from describing it in those terms, instead calling it a “forward defence line” that was marked in red in a military map published on Sunday that included a “naval forward defence area” extending from Lebanon’s coast into the sea.
The Israeli military has been carrying out demolitions in southern villages since the ceasefire, saying it is acting against infrastructure embedded by Hezbollah in civilian areas. Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) on Tuesday reported new Israeli detonations in at least eight villages and Israeli artillery shelling in several areas.
What impact do you expect the planned US-hosted talks to have on the ceasefire and troop deployments?
