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Latest news on Israel and Lebanon: war, ceasefire, Hezbollah, IDF, Beirut, southern Lebanon, peace talks, airstrikes and regional conflict.
The conflict between Israel and Lebanon escalated sharply from late 2023, when Iran-backed Hezbollah began launching rockets and drones into northern Israel in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. After a year of cross-border exchanges, Israel invaded southern Lebanon in October 2024 and assassinated Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah before a US-brokered ceasefire was reached in November 2024. That truce quickly frayed, with Israeli near-daily airstrikes continuing and Hezbollah rebuilding its military infrastructure in breach of the agreement's terms.
Full-scale hostilities resumed in early 2026, bound up with the broader regional conflict triggered by the US-Israeli war against Iran, Hezbollah's principal backer. Israel launched ground operations in southern Lebanon in March 2026, deploying five divisions, while Hezbollah fired thousands of rockets and drones into northern Israel. On 8 April 2026 — dubbed "Black Wednesday" by Lebanon — Israel carried out its heaviest strikes of the war, killing more than 350 people in attacks that drew international condemnation, including from the UN, EU, UK, and France. A fragile US-brokered ceasefire came into effect on 16 April 2026, subsequently extended by President Donald Trump, though Israeli forces remained deployed in southern Lebanon and exchanges of fire continued.
The central dispute is the future of Hezbollah's armed presence. Israel is demanding full disarmament as a condition for any lasting deal, while Hezbollah refuses to relinquish its weapons while Israeli troops remain on Lebanese soil. Direct peace negotiations between Israel and Lebanon — described as historic, being the first formal bilateral talks since the failed May 17 Agreement of 1983 — have opened under US mediation, with border demarcation and a comprehensive security agreement on the agenda. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam have backed diplomacy but insist Israel must fully honour the ceasefire before substantive talks can progress.
The humanitarian toll has been severe. More than 2,000 people were killed in Lebanon and over one million displaced during the 2026 escalation alone. Beirut's southern suburbs and the Beqaa Valley bore some of the heaviest strikes, and the destruction of bridges over the Litani River cut off much of the south from the rest of the country. Civilian areas, including busy commercial districts, were hit without prior warning on several occasions, prompting UN human rights officials to raise questions of international law. Displaced Lebanese families face an uncertain wait, with officials urging caution about returns to border areas while fighting continues.
The roots of the conflict run deep. Israel occupied southern Lebanon from 1982 to 2000 following the PLO's presence there; Hezbollah was founded in the same period as an armed resistance movement backed by Iran. The devastating 2006 war ended with UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which called for Hezbollah to withdraw north of the Litani River and for UNIFIL peacekeepers to monitor the border — terms that were never fully implemented. Decades of unresolved border demarcation, contested territory, and the enduring question of Hezbollah's arms have kept the two countries in a state of technical belligerency, with no formal peace treaty ever signed.
The Israel-Lebanon file sits at the heart of a wider regional reckoning: any durable settlement depends not only on bilateral negotiations but on the outcome of the broader Iran conflict and the future of Iran-backed armed groups across the Middle East. Our ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ feed on Israel and Lebanon brings together the latest reporting on ceasefire developments, IDF operations, Hezbollah, peace talks, humanitarian conditions, and political reactions — updated continuously to keep you informed as this critical story unfolds.