Israeli forces detonate homes in Zawtar Sharqieh, set fires in Bekaa as south Lebanon escalation continues

SOUTH LEBANON —Israeli forces carried out detonations in Zawtar Sharqieh and several other southern towns overnight into Sunday, while Israeli drones dropped incendiary materials that sparked widespread fires across forested areas and mountains in the western Bekaa.

The escalation comes as Lebanon weighs whether to join the next round of direct negotiations with Israel, with Beirut reportedly making its participation conditional on Israel accepting its demands.

Overnight Saturday-Sunday, Israeli artillery shelled the area between Zawtar Sharqieh and Mayfadoun, both in the Nabatieh district, while Israeli forces carried out a large-scale detonation in Zawtar Sharqieh, according to L’Orient Today’s correspondent in south Lebanon.

The Israeli army also carried out a large explosion in Qantara, in the Marjayoun district, with the blast heard as far as villages in the Sour district.

In Mansouri, in the Sour district, Israeli artillery targeted the al-Mashaa neighborhood, while several homes in the area were demolished after midnight. Artillery fire also continued to target the Ali al-Taher heights, where Israeli drones dropped explosive canisters. After 2 a.m., Israeli forces carried out two further powerful detonations, one near Zawtar Sharqieh and another in Haddatha, in the Bint Jbeil district.

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According to L’Orient Today’s correspondent in south Lebanon, the previous day’s Israeli attacks included a drone strike on Mayfadoun, the dropping of explosive barrels over the Ali Taher heights and concentrated artillery fire targeting six southern towns. Demolition and detonation operations also targeted homes and infrastructure in five towns.

An Israeli force also opened machine-gun fire on a Lebanese Army vehicle near the Khiam-Dibbin-Hammam triangle in the Marjayoun district. The vehicle was damaged, but no soldiers were injured.

In Froun, Nabatieh district, Mayor Hassan Adel Baz appealed to Prime Minister Nawaf Salam to provide prefabricated homes for displaced families and residents whose houses were destroyed. The request comes as a school currently sheltering displaced families is expected to be vacated with the start of the academic year.

In Mansouri, residents called for a protest under the slogan “Mansouri is not occupied,” scheduled for Monday near a Lebanese Army checkpoint in the Amiriya area. They are protesting an evacuation order and demanding the right to remain in the town after rebuilding their homes and resuming their work.

Incendiary materials spark fires in Bekaa

Separately, Israeli drones dropped incendiary projectiles and materials over areas of the Western Bekaa, causing widespread fires across forested areas and mountainous terrain, according to L’Orient Today’s correspondent in the Bekaa.

The fires come amid continued Israeli military activity across Lebanon despite the cease-fire framework. The escalation comes as Lebanon and Israel continue to navigate direct negotiations over the cease-fire and the next phase of arrangements between the two countries.

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A source close to the leadership of the Lebanese delegation said Saturday that Lebanon will not take part in the next round of talks, expected in early September, unless Israel accepts Beirut’s conditions. The exact date has not yet been set.

“There will be no new negotiations unless Israel accepts Lebanon’s conditions, which also include a full cease-fire and an end to the destruction and earthworks being carried out by the Israeli army,” the source said.

Lebanon is also maintaining its demand for new “pilot zones,” continuing to propose Khiam and Bint Jbeil as areas where the Lebanese Armed Forces would assume responsibility. Lt. Gen. Joseph Clearfield, chairman of the US-led Lebanon-Israel cease-fire monitoring mechanism, is expected to visit Beirut to discuss expanding the zones, according to local media reports.

Divide in Lebanon over negotiations with Israel

Sayyed Ali Fadlallah, speaking at a dialogue session at the Islamic Cultural Center in Haret Hreik on Sunday, said negotiations should be judged by their results, particularly “the liberation of the land, the return of residents, the return of prisoners and the launch of reconstruction.” He said Lebanon should not make concessions or submit to conditions and called for national unity.

Also on Sunday, Hezbollah MP Hussein Hajj Hassan, head of the Baalbek-Hermel Parliamentary Bloc, criticized the direct negotiations while speaking at the inauguration of a solar-powered drinking-water well in Shmustar, in the Bekaa.

Hajj Hassan said the seven rounds of talks had produced no tangible results and accused the Lebanese delegation of complying with “American and Israeli dictates.”

“The results must be measured by what is actually achieved on the ground,” he said, pointing to US and Israeli political and electoral interests in the talks. He warned that continuing negotiations could lead to concessions under pressure.

On the other side of the divide, Lebanese Forces MP Nazih Matta, speaking on the “Sunday Meeting” program on Sawt Kol Lebnan radio, said “Israel won the war and is now in a position to impose its conditions,” leaving Lebanon “obliged to follow a specific path.”

Matta called for greater support for the Lebanese Army and accused Hezbollah of failing to cooperate with it. “If my house were in the south, I would tell the Lebanese Army: Search my house,” he said.

Reporting contributed by our correspondent in the south Muntasser Abdallah, and our correspondent in the Bekaa Sara Abdallah