REFILE: FILE: Israeli plan for Lebanon 'buffer zone' follows long past of invasions, occupation

Record ID: 2370673

  • Title: REFILE: FILE: Israeli plan for Lebanon 'buffer zone' follows long past of invasions, occupation
  • Date: 26th March 2026
  • Summary: NORTHERN ISRAEL (FILE - MARCH 2, 2026) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF ISRAELI TANKS SEEN AT BORDER AREA WITH LEBANON ISRAELI FORCES ON TANK TANK AT BORDER AREA MILITARY VEHICLE DRIVING AS SEEN FROM ISRAEL SIDON, LEBANON (FILE - MARCH 2, 2026) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF TRAFFIC JAM AS PEOPLE FLED SOUTHERN LEBANON FOLLOWING RECENT ESCALATION BETWEEN HEZBOLLAH AND ISRAEL VEHICLES, CARRYING
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: HEZBOLLAH ISRAEL LEBANON LITANI RIVER SOUTH LEBANON
  • Location: VARIOUS
  • City: VARIOUS
  • Country: Lebanon
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Middle East
  • Reuters ID: LVA001762426032026RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Israel has said it will seize a chunk of southern Lebanon to create a "buffer zone" against Hezbollah militants, stoking fears among Lebanese of Israeli military occupation that could deepen instability and stoke further displacement.
    Israel on March 4, ordered all residents south of Lebanon's Litani River to leave the area, two days after Hezbollah joined the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran by firing rockets at Israel. The river runs east from the Mediterranean about 30 km (19 miles) north of the border with Israel. About 8% of Lebanese territory lies south of the river. Israel views the area as a stronghold for the Iran-backed Shi'ite militia, but the south has historically been a diverse region with Christian and Sunni villages as well.
    Marking an escalation of Israel's plans, Defence Minister Israel Katz said on March 24 that Israel had destroyed five bridges over the river and that the military would "control the remaining bridges and the security zone up to the Litani." He said troops would remain there as long as there is "terrorism and missiles."
    Hezbollah said on March 24 it would fight to prevent Israeli troops occupying the south, calling such a move an "existential threat" to Lebanon.
    Lebanon's government has not yet made any public comments on Israel's plans.
    Israeli troops have invaded south Lebanon before, in a decades-old cycle.
    In 1978, Israel invaded south Lebanon and set up a narrow occupation zone in an operation against Palestinian guerrillas after a militant attack near Tel Aviv.
    Four years later, Israel invaded Lebanon all the way to Beirut in an offensive that followed tit-for-tat cross-border fire. It pulled back from central Lebanon in 1983 but retained forces in the south.
    In 2006, Hezbollah crossed the border into Israel, kidnapping two Israeli soldiers and killing others, leading to a five-week war involving heavy Israeli strikes on both Hezbollah strongholds and national infrastructure.
    (Production: Dina Sakr)
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