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A new military escalation hit South Lebanon on Thursday 27 August in the afternoon. Israeli aircraft and drones carried out a series of raids against Arab Salim, Nabatiyah al-Fawqa, Kfar Rummana and the heights of Ali al-Taher, killing at least one and wounding several in Arab Salim on an initial assessment. Israel presents this wave of bombardments as a response to the launch, in the night, of two Hizbullah explosive drones against its soldiers deployed in Ali al-Taher, inside Lebanese territory. The Israeli army claims to have suffered no loss. This new confrontation comes at a time when the Israeli military presence in the South and operations around Ali al-Taher’s strategic position are already one of the main points of tension between Beirut and Israel.
Woman killed in Israeli strike in Arab Salim
Arab Salim suffered several Israeli strikes on Thursday afternoon. One of them touched a dwelling in the centre of the Nabatiyah District. A young woman was killed and several people were injured, according to initial reports from Lebanese media.
The victim was identified in local information asSaja Charara. The results were likely to change in the afternoon, with relief still coming after the bombings. Several strikes were reported successively against the locality, which increased concern for the inhabitants and complicated the immediate assessment of the damage.
The fact that a dwelling in the heart of Arab Salim was affected immediately places the issue of civilian casualties at the centre of this new sequence. Israel claims to have launched its operations in response to an attack on its forces, but the bombings have affected several inhabited areas of Nabatiyah District.
This new victim comes after several days of strikes, blasting and artillery fire in the South. Israeli military pressure had already intensified on 25 and 26 August in Tyre, Bint Jbeil, Marjayoun and Nabatiyah.
Three strikes on Nabatiyah al-Fawqa
Nabatiyah al-Fawqa was also targeted by a series of strikes. Three attacks by Israeli warplanes and drones were reported against the town and its environs during the afternoon.
The area is close to the heights of Ali al-Taher, which has become one of the main hotbeds of tension in the South. By Thursday morning, before the wave of afternoon raids, Israeli planes had already twice struck the Ali al-Taher forest on the eastern heights of Nabatiyah al-Fawqa.
A number of high-explosive missiles then caused a detonation heard in a large part of the region. A large smoke column was raised above the area. Another strike was reported during the night between Zawtar al-Sharqiya and Mayfadoun.
The new wave of the afternoon is therefore not the beginning of Israeli operations of the day. Rather, it marks a marked intensification of military activity undertaken several hours earlier around the same sector.
Kfar Rummane industrial area hit by a drone
At the same time, an Israeli drone struck the Kfar Rummane industrial area. The attack expanded the shelling perimeter beyond Arab Salim and Nabatiyah al-Fawqa and showed that several points in the Nabatiyah area were targeted almost simultaneously.
The first available information did not yet allow for a definitive human assessment for this strike. However, its location in an industrial area raises the issue of damage to local businesses, workshops and economic infrastructure.
Kfar Rummane had already been affected by military operations in previous months. The Dohat Kfar Rummane sector had, among other things, suffered drone strikes and attacks, including one targeting a vehicle this week.
The increase in attacks in a few hours reflects a change in intensity from the more dispersed operations observed in previous days. On Thursday afternoon, several Israeli aircraft were operating in a relatively concentrated area around Nabatiyah.
Intensive bombardments on the heights of Ali al-Taher
The heights of Ali al-Taher are the military heart of climbing. Particularly sustained Israeli bombings have been reported in this area, which dominates part of the Nabatiyah region and is strategically important because of its geographical location.
The area has become one of the main confrontations between Israel and Hezbollah in recent weeks. Israeli forces are deployed there as part of what Israel calls a « safe zone » within southern Lebanon. This presence remains at the heart of the dispute with Beirut, which calls for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from national territory.
The importance of this point is essential to understand the Israeli presentation of events. When the Israeli army claims that Hezbollah attacked its soldiers, it speaks of Israeli forcesdeployed in Ali al-Taher, Lebanonnot soldiers on the other side of the border on israeli territory.
This territorial distinction is central from the Lebanese perspective. Beirut considers the Israeli military presence in these areas an occupation of its territory and calls for its withdrawal under the arrangements negotiated since June.
Israel accuses Hezbollah of having launched two drones
The Israeli army claims that the immediate trigger of the new wave of strikes is a night-time attack by Hezbollah. According to his spokesman, two drones carrying explosives were launched against Israeli soldiers in the Ali al-Taher area.
The Israeli military reportedly opened fire on the aircraft and shot down one of them. Israel then claims to have lost contact with the second drone. No Israeli soldiers were reportedly killed or injured.
This version comes from the Israeli army. The information available in the afternoon did not provide independent confirmation to establish the exact circumstances of the launch of the two aircraft. It is therefore necessary to distinguish the existence of the Israeli strikes observed on Thursday from the attribution to Hezbollah of the night launch, which is based at this stage on Israeli statements.
The Israeli army also claims that several drone attacks targeted its forces in Ali al-Taher over the past month. It presents its bombings as a response to what it considers to be Hezbollah’s repeated attempts to attack its soldiers.
The central question of the Israeli presence in Lebanon
The Israeli formulation that its forces were attacked in a « security zone » masks an essential element from the Beirut perspective: this area is within Lebanese borders.
Israel established a military presence in several sectors of the South following its new offensive launched in March. The framework agreement concluded on 26 June under United States mediation provides for a gradual Israeli withdrawal, alongside the deployment of the Lebanese army and the settlement of the issue of armed groups.
However, implementation remains incomplete. Two months after the agreement, Israeli forces remained present in parts of the territory and continued ground and air operations. Dynamiting of houses and infrastructure was reported again this week.
Ali al-Taher’s situation crystallises these contradictions. Israel considers the sector to be indispensable for the protection of its forces and borders. On the Lebanese side, the first question remains that of the presence of the same forces in a territory whose return Beirut demands.
Israeli « reaction » in Lebanese territory
Israel presents Thursday’s bombings as a response to the two drones attributed to Hezbollah. This notion of « reaction » must, however, be seen in the geography of the conflict: the incident invoked by Israel and the subsequent strikes both take place inside Lebanon.
This situation distinguishes the current episode from a classic exchange of fire across an international border. The soldiers whom Hezbollah is accused of having targeted were themselves at the heights of Ali al-Taher, where Israel maintains its forces.
The Lebanese Government maintains that stabilization begins with the implementation of the provisions for Israeli withdrawal and the deployment of the Lebanese army. Israel, for its part, links its withdrawal to the security guarantees and disarmament of armed groups, primarily Hezbollah.
This divergence feeds a particularly dangerous cycle. The Israeli presence creates direct contact points with Hizbullah within Lebanese territory. Any attack on these positions can then serve as a justification for further, deeper Israeli strikes against southern localities.
Ali al-Taher becomes a major confrontation point
The tension around Ali al-Taher does not date from Thursday. Israel has increased operations in this area over the past few weeks, with drone strikes, bombardments and operations against facilities attributed to Hezbollah.
The area has strategic value because of its altitude and position east of Nabatiyah. Israel states, inter alia, that Hezbollah has underground infrastructure and that fighters could still find it. Not all of these Israeli claims can be independently verified under the current conditions of access to the ground.
The pressure around the hill has increased in recent days. Information released this week already mentioned the possibility that Israel might gradually consolidate its presence in the area, while Hizbullah would reject any evacuation of its positions.
The drone incident, if confirmed in the circumstances described by Israel, shows that this confrontation is likely to rapidly shift from territorial tension to direct military exchanges.
A more serious escalation than previous days’ operations
The day of 27 August marks a worrying development compared to the operations observed since the beginning of the week. On 25 and 26 August, numerous bombardments, blastings, house fires and armoured movements had already occurred. However, operations remained spread over much of the border band.
On Thursday, the confrontation focused on a clearly identified military issue: Ali al-Taher. It then overflowed into several localities in Nabatiyah, with strikes on Arab Salim, Nabatiyah al-Fawqa and Kfar Rummane.
The death of a young woman in Arab Salim adds an immediate human dimension to this escalation. It recalls that the operations presented as targeting military objectives have direct consequences for populations living around confrontational zones.
The next few hours will determine whether Israel considers its wave of strikes to be over or whether the bombings will continue. The possible reaction of Hezbollah is the other major unknown, while no de-escalation was visible on Thursday afternoon.
The June agreement submitted to a new test
This confrontation occurred two months after the framework agreement of 26 June. The negotiations supported by the United States were intended to gradually organize the Israeli withdrawal and redeployment of the Lebanese army. The proliferation of incidents, however, shows the fragility of the process.
The Israeli presence in Ali al-Taher now appears to be one of the issues that could lead to a wider resumption of fighting. If the attacks against Israeli forces in the area are repeated and if Israel responds with strikes against inhabited localities, the de-escalation mechanism may quickly lose its effectiveness.
For Beirut, the immediate challenge is to prevent the South from returning to an open confrontation while maintaining the Israeli withdrawal requirement. The Government also faces the civilian consequences of operations, while several villages are already suffering destruction, restrictions on movement and agricultural losses.
On Thursday, 27 August, at the end of the afternoon, the bombings on Ali al-Taher, Arab Salim, Nabatiyeh al-Fawqa and Kfar Rummane placed the Nabatiyah District at the centre of the crisis. The human impact of Arab Salim and the possible continuation of Israeli strikes remain the two immediate elements to be monitored.
