A soldier of the Israeli army stands on a Merkava tank deployed in northern Israel, near the Lebanese border, on March 9, 2026. (Credit: Jalaa Marey / AFP)
BEIRUT — Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed Tuesday that the Israeli army will continue to occupy southern Lebanon up to the Litani River, about 30 kilometers north of the border, after the ongoing war and Israeli invasion of southern Lebanon, during which all homes in border villages are expected to be demolished.
The announcement came as Israel continued air and artillery strikes south and north of the Litani, including a Tuesday attack on a water treatment plant in the Marjayoun area, while attempting to advance along multiple axes of the border strip.
In a video released by his office, Katz said that following the “operations” in southern Lebanon, the army will remain deployed in a “security zone to defend against anti-tank missiles and maintain control of the area south of the Litani River.”
He reiterated that Israel plans to “demolish all homes in Lebanese villages near the Israeli border, as it has done in Rafah and Beit Hanoun in Gaza,” to “permanently eliminate threats near the border” to northern Israeli residents. Katz added that the more than 600,000 Lebanese displaced from southern Lebanon by Israeli attacks and threats “will not be allowed to return” until the safety and security of northern residents are guaranteed.
Katz has repeatedly issued bellicose statements toward Lebanon and the Lebanese. On Sunday, Human Rights Watch said it had written to him expressing “serious concerns about recent comments by Israeli officials” that undermine international humanitarian law and suggest a disregard for it.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a post honoring four soldiers killed in southern Lebanon, said Israel “will continue to strike its enemies with force to ensure the security of residents in the north and all Israeli citizens.”
Israeli soldiers killed, Hezbollah member captured
As the Israeli army expands its invasion of southern Lebanon amid clashes with Hezbollah, it announced Tuesday morning that four soldiers from the Nahal reconnaissance battalion were killed "in an exchange of fire."
The statement added that two others were wounded, without specifying a location. During the evacuation of the dead soldiers, the Israeli troops were targeted by an "anti-tank missile."
Israeli newspaper Maariv indicated that the soldiers had been ambushed by Hezbollah fighters near Beit Lif, west of Bint Jbeil. According to the Israeli army, 10 of its soldiers have been killed in southern Lebanon since March 2.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah said it targeted a Merkava tank at 11 p.m. Monday on the Qantara-Taybeh road (Marjayoun) "with a guided missile." The vehicle "was seen burning, which required the intervention of a force to evacuate the wounded and tow the tank under thick smoke and phosphorous shell fire."
Israeli army Arabic-speaking spokesperson Avichay Adraee claimed that the 36th division killed "dozens" of Hezbollah members "spotted attempting to set up ambushes in southern Lebanon" over the past 24 hours, and that a fighter was "transferred for interrogation" after being captured.
Israeli strikes on Sour and Nabatieh districts
In southern Lebanon, Tuesday morning's Israeli attacks mainly targeted the Sour district, killing two in Deir Kifa. Other strikes hit Qleileh twice, Mansouri, and Majdal Zoun, according to L’Orient Today’s correspondent in the area. An Israeli drone strike on a van along the Qasmieh road killed two people.
In other areas, an Israeli airstrike targeted Zawtar Gharbieh (Nabatieh), while Israeli artillery fire targeted Ghandourieh (Sour) and Touline (Marjayoun). Overnight, an airstrike hit Deir Zahrani (Nabatieh), and another targeted the Sammouqa area between Aaba and Jibsheet, killing one person.
Another strike on Jibsheet injured four, while a strike on an area between Debbine and Khiam (Marjayoun) injured four others. At dawn, Israeli airstrikes hit Braasheet (Bint Jbeil).
Israeli strikes repeatedly hit Bint Jbeil and surrounding areas, including Aita al-Shaab and Braasheet. In Nabatieh district, north of the Litani, an Israeli air strike targeted the Ali Taher area on the outskirts of Nabatieh Fawqa, which has seen repeated attacks even during cease-fires.
An Israeli air strike on Jibsheet killed two people: a pregnant woman, Alaa Hamad, and her husband, Akram Ibrahim.
The Lebanese Army has begun withdrawing from several southern villages, including the Christian-majority towns of Dibil, Ain Ibl, and Rmeish, as well as Braasheet, Tiri, and Beit Yahoun in Bint Jbeil district, a move criticized by local officials and residents.
On Tuesday morning, the Israeli army issued a new forced evacuation order for residents still present south of the Zahrani River, ordering them to head north, according to Adraee’s post on X.
West Bekaa
The head of Hezbollah's Islamic Health Committee center in Sohmor received a call after midnight from a foreign number asking him to evacuate the center, L’Orient Today’s correspondent reported. Israeli strikes blocked multiple roads connecting West Bekaa to southern Lebanon after intensifying Monday night.
UN emergency meeting
On the diplomatic front, the United Nations will hold an emergency Security Council meeting on Tuesday at 5 p.m. (Beirut time, 2 p.m. GMT) after three Indonesian UNIFIL peacekeepers were killed since Sunday in "explosions of unknown origin." These "very serious incidents" were "condemned in the strongest terms" by France, which requested the meeting.
One peacekeeper was killed Sunday in Adsheet al-Qusayr, a village in Marjayoun district in the eastern border sector recently advanced into by the Israeli army, and the other two in Beni Hayan, five kilometers further south in the same district. Indonesia called on all parties in the Middle East "to respect international humanitarian law."
"The safety of peacekeeping forces must be the top priority. All parties to the conflict are strongly urged to respect international humanitarian law and ensure the safety of peacekeeping personnel," said Rico Ricardo Sirait, spokesperson for the Indonesian Defense Ministry.
Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed more than 1,240 people, including 87 women and 124 children, and injured 3,680, according to the latest figures from the Health Ministry, published Monday.
Targeted Israeli strike in Mansourieh
Local media reports indicate a targeted Israeli strike in Mansourieh. The municipality confirmed the report to L’Orient-Le Jour, stating that the strike hit a car dealership.
According to the MTV news channel, the strike targeted a ground-floor apartment in a building in the Mar Roukoz area near Mansourieh, close to a parking lot.
Additional reporting by Muntasser Abdallah.
