A resident walks among the rubble of houses and shops completely destroyed by Israel in the village of Bir al-Salasil, southern Lebanon, on June 24, 2026. (Credit: Fadel Itani/AFP)
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz expressed "regret" at the Iran-Lebanon link, saying: "The connection between the Iran and Lebanon fronts is an American interest; if there had been no connection between the fronts, Hezbollah would have collapsed." According to the Defense Minister, the change in Trump's position came after a conversation between him and Netanyahu in which Katz was not on the line.
Katz stated that the Israeli army had then moved on to "Plan B," which he defined as "pushing deeper into the 'Yellow Line' zone in southern Lebanon" — that is, the area occupied by the Israeli army, which extends nearly 10 kilometers into Lebanon.
In the second half of June, Israeli occupation forces advanced towards Nabatieh, with particularly fighting taking place along the well-known Ali Taher Hill, south of the town, before yet another "cease-fire" last week brought Israel's incessant offensive to a halt. According to the Israeli minister, Trump “exerted pressure” on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and held five telephone calls “in the run-up to the signing of the memorandum of understanding.”
“I was not present during the fifth conversation. The President exerted pressure, and it was following that exchange that the link between the two fronts was established. From that moment on, residents returned to southern Lebanon and Hezbollah also strengthened its presence in that region,” he said.
Israel has shown no appetite for respecting "cease-fires," whether in Lebanon or in Gaza. In Lebanon, multiple agreements have been signed with cessation of hostility clauses that Israel simply ignored.
Israel is also doubling down on its refusal to withdraw militarily from the territory it occupies in southern Lebanon. According to the U.S.-brokered framework agreement signed Friday night in Washington between Lebanon and Israel, Israel is expected to withdraw from Lebanon once Hezbollah has been disarmed by the Lebanese Army with U.S. approval. This effectively gives Israel free reign to continue its occupation until Hezbollah agrees to disarm, which it is saying it won't.
In Gaza, Israel has killed more than 1,000 Palestinians since the cease-fire went into rigor in October 2025, with new killings on a near-daily basis in the occupied and besieged Strip.
