Israel Expands Strikes and Ground Invasion in Lebanon as Iran Negotiations Stall

On Monday and Tuesday, Israel expanded its strikes and ground operations in Lebanon as the U.S.’s negotiations with Iran came to a standstill.

Overnight on Monday, Israel bombed areas in Southern Lebanon and in Bekaa Valley in Eastern Lebanon, and expanded its ground operation outside of the so-called “yellow line,” an Israeli-drawn line separating Israel’s current occupation of areas of the South from the rest of Lebanon. Israel also issued an evacuation warning on Tuesday for the city of Nabatieh, north of the Litani river.

Israel’s strikes on the Bekaa region Monday night killed 11 people, including two children, in the village of Mashghara. When asked about the strike in Mashghara, the Israeli military claimed that they had targeted “Hezbollah infrastructure sites.”

Israel’s expansion on Tuesday followed a statement by Netanyahu late on Monday that he had ordered the Israeli military to “increase the blows” and “increase the intensity” in its attacks on Lebanon.

On Tuesday, Netanyahu said that Israel had “large forces on the ground” in Southern Lebanon and that it was taking control of “strategic areas.”

This is despite the fact that Israel and Lebanon agreed to a 45-day extension of a ceasefire on May 15.

“I think it’s clear that we can read the escalation in Israeli airstrikes across the South and the Bekaa valley as an attempt by the Israeli government to derail the U.S.’s negotiations with Iran, which have been nearing a resolution,” journalist Lylla Younes told Truthout.

Israel has used bombing Lebanon in the past as a means to deter a deal. On April 8, shortly after a ceasefire was announced in the U.S. and Israel’s war on Iran, Israel launched massive attacks on Lebanon, killing at least 357 people — and pushing Iran to call negotiations “meaningless.”

Iran has repeatedly insisted that a deal must include Lebanon, while Israel has demanded otherwise.

According to reports, the Trump administration has suggested that it would support expanded Israeli attacks on Lebanon, as long as there were no attacks on the capital, Beirut.

But footage has shown residents fleeing the southern suburbs of Beirut on Monday, fearing additional attacks on the capital.

“There have been drones over the skies in Beirut, but there have been no airstrikes on Beirut since the ceasefire, except for one airstrike on the Southern suburbs which was announced in advance,” Younes said. “So Netanyahu’s renewed threats on this escalation north of the “yellow line” is basically creating unsettling conditions in the Southern suburbs. People are packing their bags again, they’re fleeing again, in anticipation of unannounced strikes happening there.”

Younes insisted that much of this “escalation” was not new, saying:

Since the ‘ceasefire’ went into effect last month, the Israeli military has continuously bombarded the South, killed hundreds of people, and caused widespread destruction, including the complete erasure of a number of villages on the Southern border…. the bloodshed has been ongoing, the attacks on medical personnel and journalists have been ongoing since the so-called ceasefire went into effect.

On Monday, UN forces in Lebanon reported extensive Israeli attacks, including “91 airspace violations — the highest number since the ceasefire came into effect on 17 April,” along with “399 firing incidents attributed to Israeli forces” and “11 trajectories of projectiles attributed to Hezbollah.”