Israeli defence minister declares troops will remain in southern Lebanon as hostilities ease but do not cease.
An Israeli drone strike in southern Lebanon has killed at least two people, even as the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah has recently eased following joint ceasefire calls from the United States and Iran.
Officials from Israel and Lebanon are meeting in Washington for a third round of talks aimed at ending the fighting between the two neighbours.
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The fatal attack on Wednesday targeted a vehicle on Tallat al-Dabsha road near Kfar Reman in the Nabatieh district, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA). Shortly after, Israel’s military fired artillery shells at the outskirts of Yater in the Bint Jbeil area, the NNA added.
These attacks represent the latest breach of a renewed ceasefire reached last week after an agreement brokered by the US and Iran to deescalate the wider Middle East conflict.
The Israeli army said it was targeting Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon on Wednesday.
Israel’s continued presence in Lebanese territory has sparked debate and tension while Washington’s negotiations continue. Lebanese authorities emphasise that Israeli withdrawal and a halt to attacks are essential for the ceasefire to hold. Israel, however, maintains that withdrawal will only occur once Hezbollah is completely disarmed.
Defence Minister Israel Katz stated that the military will not withdraw from Lebanon “even if there is an American demand.”
He added, “200,000 residents will not return,” speaking to The Times of Israel about those displaced from southern Lebanon.
“What happened in the past when there was a civilian population was roadside bombs and attacks against Israeli soldiers, and therefore we will not allow that,” Katz said. “We are not withdrawing.”
‘Reduction, not cessation’
“What we are seeing is a reduction, but not a cessation, of Israeli military activity here in southern Lebanon,” said Al Jazeera’s Heidi Pett, reporting from Tyre.
“The Israeli military has continued to conduct operations, though they have been much more limited than the violence we observed over the weekend,” Pett added.
Many residents originally from southern Lebanon have begun returning home, she noted, despite the ongoing threat of attacks. In Abbasiyeh, near Tyre, an estimated 80% of the population has returned in recent days, according to the local mayor.
“In Abbasiyeh, there is water, electricity, and local medical services. That is not the case for many towns and villages,” Pett said.
Meanwhile, Al Jazeera’s Rosiland Jordan in Washington, DC, mentioned that the latest Israel-Lebanon talks are likely to include a military-to-military component.
“There is a proposal, perhaps, to allow Lebanese forces to replace those Israeli forces, provided they have been vetted by the United States as having no links to Hezbollah,” Jordan said.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun told a visiting British delegation on Wednesday that his government will deploy the Lebanese army in the south after the Israeli military withdraws. He added that reconstruction of destroyed areas will follow and that the Lebanon-Israel talks in Washington are separate from US-Iran negotiations.
Hezbollah has condemned the Lebanon‑Israel talks in the US, demanding the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon first.