As the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire nears its one-year anniversary, Israeli attacks continue apace, with the UN Human Rights Office reporting today that Israel has killed at least 114 civilians since the ceasefire began in November of 2024.
The spokesman for the UN office noted that they continue to monitor Israeli strikes on buildings in southern villages, and said that strikes imperiling civilians must end, noting that southern Lebanese have lived in a state of constant danger for the past two years. He called for absolute adherence to the ceasefire agreement.
That adherence seems unlikely, as Israel continues to carry out attacks daily on southern Lebanon. A flurry of strikes were reported again today, including an attack on Toul that injured one unidentified person.
Fruit truck destroyed by IDF airstrike on southern Lebanon | Image from X
The Israeli escalation is raising fear they intend to launch another war against Lebanon, or realistically, the same war as in 2024, since they never really stopped attacking then. Nominally this escalation is about punishing Lebanon for a slow rate of disarming Hezbollah, though analysts note that where the Lebanese Army has fallen short of expectations, it is largely because Israel has been uncooperative and rendered the south unsafe for them to operate within.
Hezbollah’s political bloc, the Loyalty to the Resistance bloc, has issued a statement on the situation, criticizing the US efforts to obstruct financing for post-war reconstruction, and saying that the government should make protecting civilians from Israeli aggression the top priority.
The bloc’s leader, MP Mohammad Read, also warned the government’s leadership against any attempt to delay elections, and called on them to ensure ex-patriots could vote. Lebanon is due for a parliamentary election in May, at which time all 128 seats are meant to be contested.
