Israel's army has conducted more than 500 operations across southern Lebanon in the two months since it agreed a ceasefire with Hezbollah, with local residents bracing for more destruction as Israeli forces plan to delay their withdrawal.
Israel has conducted regular attacks since a ceasefire with the Lebanese armed group took effect on November 27 after more than a year of conflict.
The non-profit group ACLED counted 515 operations from the beginning of the ceasefire through January 17. These include air and drone strikes, as well as more than 206 cases of property destruction in 39 villages. At least 37 people were killed, according to a Financial Times tally.
According to Al-Hinds, Israel was scheduled to exit by Sunday to withdraw its forces Lebanon Hezbollah had to move its weapons north of the Litiani River, which extends 30 km from the actual border, to be replaced by the Lebanese Armed Forces. But Israel's government said on Friday that its forces would remain in Lebanon beyond the deadline, with officials discussing a 30-day extension.
For residents of Lebanese border communities – many of whom have not been able to return – the prospect of continued Israeli occupation leaves them unsure of when they can return home, and what they will find when they do.
“They took advantage of the opportunity provided by the ceasefire,” Mohamed Sorour, the mayor of Aita Chap, said of the Israeli destruction in his border village. “Before the ceasefire they were standing with artillery and air strikes. But after the ceasefire they entered the village on the ground and the bulk of the destruction came after that.”
Some villagers are losing patience and thinking of returning on Sunday regardless of the risks. “Whatever happens, happens,” said Najib Hussein Halawi, a local official in Kfar Kila, another displaced community. “There's a lot of danger but what can you do? Sit there and shut up?”
Israeli officials say their actions are consistent with the ceasefire agreement, and they are continuing to act because Hezbollah still has operatives and infrastructure in the area, while the LAF has not yet deployed in sufficient numbers to sustain detractors.
Unable to return to his village, Srour took refuge north, but was in contact with family and friends who returned to survey the damage.
“Aita is a disaster,” he said of the village that remains under Israeli occupation near the border, the “blue line” that separates countries. He said most homes had been damaged, infrastructure had been hollowed out and everything from houses of worship to schools wiped off the map.
Hezbollah has warned Israel not to test its “patience,” and last month fired rockets toward Israeli positions in disputed Shebaa Farms territory over what it called “repeated violations.”
Lebanon's new president, Joseph Aoun, said this month that “the bombing of homes and the destruction of border villages completely contradicts the ceasefire.” The UN peacekeeping force this month cited Israeli bulldozing of a LAF watchtower and a UN border marker as a “flagrant violation.”
The Israeli army did not respond to a request for comment on its operations since the ceasefire. But on Thursday he said Hezbollah had used Aita “to store weapons and as a base to launch hundreds of rockets and anti-tank missiles into Israel” and that forces carried out operations to “remove threats.” He said they found more than 30 weapon caches, with weapons stored in “residential buildings, courtyards, kindergartens, and basements.”
Local residents say Israeli demolitions are a daily reality. Photos taken by people around Nuqra, another border village, in December and early January show Israeli bulldozers apparently tearing apart homes.
LAF entered a click January 7 But Abbas Awalada, the mayor, said residents were waiting for the army to announce that it had removed all unseparated munitions before returning.
Before a ceasefire could be agreed upon, Israeli forces were already in place Systematically destroyed buildings Near the border. While they have withdrawn from more than a dozen villages along the western and central border, they remain in most of the eastern section.
Local business owner Musa Hayuk lost his home, along with a chicken farm and lumber yard, in Aita shortly after the ceasefire began. Having already fled the city to Beirut's southern suburbs, he saw the destruction via photographs from other residents who returned briefly to inspect the village.
Israel's operation amounted to collective punishment of the population regardless of whether it was linked to Hizballah. “Their goals are well known, and we understand them,” Hayouk said.
The conflict began after Hezbollah began firing at Israel following an October 7, 2023 Hamas attack in southern Israel. A year of cross-border fires escalated dramatically when Israel launched a land invasion and devastating offensive against Hizballah in October last year.
More than 4,000 people in Lebanon and 140 Israelis were killed in the conflict. About 1 million people were displaced in Lebanon and 60,000 in Israel.
Ramsay Kayes, a researcher at Human Rights Watch, said the presence of military infrastructure did not justify many of Israel's actions under international law.
“Even if there were military targets in those villages, such as tunnels used by Hezbollah, there are serious questions raised as to whether that level of destruction was necessary,” he said. “Entire border villages, contrary to what some Israeli officials like to claim, cannot be considered military targets.”
Some of the most intense demolitions were in Halawi village, Kfar Kila. “There are explosions every day,” Halloway said. It was estimated that a lot of damage was done after the ceasefire. He said Israel was “crossing a lot of borders.”
