Netanyahu expands ground campaign deeper into Lebanon zones

Netanyahu ordered Israeli troops deeper into Lebanon, widening operations against Hezbollah despite a mid-April ceasefire that has largely failed to hold.

Ground push widens after heavy fire

Israeli forces took the 900-year-old Beaufort Castle and a nearby strategic ridge in the south, the military said. The move followed one of the heaviest days of Hezbollah rocket and drone fire toward northern Israel since the April pause, triggering school closures and movement limits.

The prime minister said he directed the army to expand its ground maneuvers in Lebanon. Commanders are pressing beyond positions held up to the Litani River, seeking to reach the Zaharani River roughly 10 km farther north.

Israel issued a new evacuation warning for residents living south of the Zaharani. Lebanon’s state news agency reported eight people killed when overnight airstrikes on Saturday hit the southern village of Deir El Zahrani.

Casualties and displacement on both sides

Lebanese authorities say more than 3,370 people have been killed since the incursion began. Israel reports 24 soldiers and four civilians dead over the same period.

The fighting has become the widest overflow linked to the Iran conflict, uprooting more than 1.2 million people in Lebanon through strikes and evacuation orders since March 2. Tens of thousands of Israelis near the border have also fled repeated Hezbollah rocket and drone attacks.

Hezbollah has leaned on cheap, improvised one-way attack drones that are difficult to intercept and have killed several Israeli troops in southern Lebanon, according to the Israeli military. Exchanges of fire have persisted despite the mid-April ceasefire, keeping communities on both sides on edge.

Diplomacy and politics tighten the screws

As violence escalated, France called for an emergency United Nations Security Council meeting on Monday. Paris framed the session as a bid to contain the front and reinforce international obligations.

Netanyahu said the objective is to deepen and broaden control in areas formerly dominated by Hezbollah. His rival Naftali Bennett, eyeing upcoming elections, urged harsher action that could extend to Beirut’s suburbs.

The capture of hilltop positions like Beaufort Castle, overlooking key approaches, suggests a push to pressure Hezbollah lines south of the Zaharani. With schools closing across northern Israel and new evacuation zones inside Lebanon, the humanitarian and security strains are mounting.

What comes next will hinge on whether the Security Council can shape de-escalation and if Israel advances toward the Zaharani in force. Any further expansion could drive fresh displacement and increase the chances of a wider confrontation.