Israel-Lebanon Deal Tested as Israel Launches New Strikes in Southern Lebanon

Israel and Lebanon signed a U.S.-brokered framework in Washington on June 26, pledging a conditional Israeli withdrawal from two pilot zones in southern Lebanon after Hezbollah’s disarmament. The agreement, announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and welcomed by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, would see the Lebanese Armed Forces take over the areas north and south of the Litani River.

Hezbollah rejected the deal, calling it a surrender of sovereignty, and its supporters protested in Beirut. Despite the cease‑fire, Israeli airstrikes resumed on Sunday, targeting Hezbollah positions in the south; the Lebanese National News Agency reported one civilian death, the first since the agreement. Israeli forces also reported the death of Captain David Hazutt, a Golani Brigade officer, and a second soldier was lightly wounded.

The United States has asked Israel to add two amendments: the withdrawal of forces from a village currently under occupation and an explicit statement that such a pull‑back would mark the first phase of a wider redeployment. Israel has signaled it will stay in the buffer zone as long as Hezbollah retains its weapons, while Israeli officials say the deal is a “massive blow to Iran.”

The fragile framework faces immediate challenges from Hezbollah’s opposition, ongoing Israeli strikes, and divergent interpretations of the withdrawal conditions, leaving the prospect of lasting peace in the border region uncertain.