Israel expands ground campaign in southern Lebanon
Israel has moved into new areas of southern Lebanon, deploying troops to target Hezbollah positions as it intensifies its campaign against the Iran-backed militant group.
Israeli military spokesman Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani told reporters at a briefing that the troops were in “new locations where our troops did not operate yesterday.”
He described the latest ground operations as “limited and targeted”, declining to say how deep into Lebanon the troops would advance, or if soldiers would take up new positions.
The Israeli army, which has occupied five positions in southern Lebanon since a ceasefire with Hezbollah in November 2024, sent additional forces to the country after Hezbollah fired a salvo of rockets on March 2, plunging Lebanon into an expanding regional war.
Hezbollah said the attack was in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s religious leader on February 28, the first day of the US-Israeli war against Iran. Israel responded with an intense bombing campaign against Lebanon.
More than 800 people were killed in Lebanon and more than 800,000 were driven from their homes, mostly from the south and areas close to the capital Beirut.
Over the weekend, Israeli troops surrounded the key southern Lebanese town of Khiyam, located about 6 km north of the Israeli border, Lebanese security sources told Reuters.
Sources said Israeli forces have effectively taken control of the town and are now advancing west towards the Litani River, a move that could leave large parts of southern Lebanon both under Israeli control and cut off from the rest of the country.
The military framed the ground offensive, launched after March 2, as a defensive measure aimed at protecting Israel from Hezbollah attacks, which it said averaged 100 rockets and drones a day. In the current campaign, two Israeli soldiers were killed in combat in southern Lebanon.
Israel and Lebanon are expected to hold talks in the coming days to establish a permanent ceasefire that would enable Hezbollah to disarm, two Israeli officials said on Sunday.
Beirut began assembling a delegation for possible talks last week, but Lebanese officials told Reuters over the weekend they had not received confirmation that a meeting would go ahead.
According to the ceasefire agreement in November 2024, in exchange for Israel ending its bombardment of Lebanon, Hezbollah would withdraw from southern Lebanon and the Lebanese army would take over.
Israel says Lebanon has never fulfilled its part of the agreement and continues to launch almost daily airstrikes on what it says are Hezbollah positions and weapons.
