Published On 5/26/2026
The Israeli occupation aircraft launched violent and intense raids targeting large areas in southern and eastern Lebanon, resulting in dozens of deaths and injuries, coinciding with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s announcement of the intensification of military operations with the aim of “crushing” Hezbollah.
Official and media sources reported that Israeli occupation aircraft carried out dozens of raids since the early morning hours on Monday.
The official Lebanese News Agency announced that the town of Mashghara in the Western Bekaa (east of the country) was subjected to 8 successive raids that formed a “belt of fire” around the town, killing 5 people and wounding others.
This escalation came after the Israeli occupation army announced the expansion of its operations to include the Bekaa Valley, under the pretext of targeting Hezbollah infrastructure.
In southern Lebanon, the city of Nabatieh was subjected to a similar “belt of fire,” and the raids included the towns of Kafr Rumman, Arabsalem, Shahhour, Yater, Hadada, and the Butm Mountains, in addition to artillery shelling targeting the towns of Srifa and Burj Qalawiya.
According to the latest updates of the Lebanese Ministry of Health and monitoring of field data, 17 Lebanese citizens were killed as a result of Monday’s raids, including 4 people in the town of Kafr Rumman, and a citizen and his wife who were killed after their home was destroyed in the town of Arabsalim, in addition to 3 deaths who were killed in raids launched by Israeli drones that targeted cars and motorcycles on main roads linking the Nabatieh and the South governorates.
In parallel with the bombing, Israeli occupation army spokesman Avichai Adraee issued an “urgent warning” to the residents of 10 villages and towns in the Nabatieh, South, and Bekaa governorates (including Nabatieh al-Tahta, Ain Qana, Harouf, Zibdin, al-Duwair, Adshit al-Shaqif, Sajad, al-Louizeh, and Maidoun), and demanded that they evacuate their homes immediately and move away at least a thousand meters toward open lands, which prompted With new waves of displacement, especially from the southern suburb of Beirut, whose residents fled for fear of renewed bombing following Israeli threats.
Hezbollah responds
On the other hand, Hezbollah – in separate statements – claimed responsibility for carrying out “precise attacks” against sites and gatherings of the Israeli occupation army.
The party confirmed that it targeted a gathering of occupation vehicles and soldiers in the Khiam detention center with two assault marches. It also targeted the “Avivim” barracks with two other assault marches, and a force from the Israeli Military Assembly Unit at the Shomera barracks.
The party added that it targeted with artillery shells – in two successive batches – a gathering of occupation vehicles and soldiers at the Metulla site, in addition to targeting another gathering in the “Misgav Am” settlement in northern Israel using the “Ababil” attack helicopter.
The Israeli occupation army officially announced the killing of one of its soldiers in the ongoing battles in southern Lebanon, bringing the officially announced death toll since the start of the expanded attack to 24.
Israeli reports indicate that Hezbollah’s new attack drones have become the most prominent and deadly challenge to the occupation forces due to the inability to monitor them via traditional radars.
Netanyahu threatens
Politically, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared – in a video clip broadcast by Israeli media – confirming his orders to the army to increase the speed and pace of military operations, and to intensify and force strikes to “crush Hezbollah.”
Netanyahu acknowledged the challenge posed by the party’s marches, saying: “It is true that they are shooting at us with fiber-equipped drones, but we have a special team working on that and we will solve this problem.”
Netanyahu also indicated that he agreed with US President Donald Trump that Israel reserves “the right to confront threats on all fronts.”
In a related context, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced his approval of a special budget worth two billion shekels (about 692 million dollars) to develop anti-drone systems, inciting the destruction of the Lebanese capital by saying, “For every explosive drone, 10 buildings must fall in Beirut.”
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir also called for “cutting off electricity to Lebanon, seizing the Zahrani River, and resuming intense fighting.”
On the other hand, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority reported that Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir and the Northern Command presented at the political level new operational plans to expand attacks in Lebanon and “break the equation” in front of Hezbollah, in preparation for discussing them in a high-level security meeting.
Faltering calm
These bloody developments come despite the truce concluded with American mediation, and at a time when Lebanon and Israel are preparing to hold a fourth round of direct negotiations under the auspices of Washington on June 2 and 3, which will be preceded by a meeting of military delegations at the end of this May.
In this regard, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun stressed that “Israel’s complete withdrawal from the south is a national demand that cannot be conceded,” stressing that the negotiation will not be a surrender, but rather an affirmation of Lebanon’s sovereignty and the exclusivity of weapons in the hands of the army and the legitimate forces.
In a statement published Monday on the Telegram platform, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs renewed its support for Lebanon.
The statement indicated that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi reiterated – in two separate letters to Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem – “Iran’s continued support for Lebanon’s independence, guaranteeing its sovereignty and territorial integrity, and its resistance to the Israeli occupation.”
Since the Israeli occupation began its expanded attack on Lebanon on March 2, the death toll in Lebanon has risen to 3,185 dead and 9,633 wounded, in addition to the displacement of more than a million people from their homes, according to official data from the Lebanese Ministry of Health.
