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Israeli aggression escalates in south Lebanon as US-brokered deal yields only concessions

Israeli heavy machinery bulldozes houses in Mansouri, as seen from Hinniyeh, Southern Lebanon, September 19, 2026. (Photo by Reuters)

The US-brokered ceasefire in Lebanon has yielded "zero benefits" for Beirut and only emboldened Israeli aggression, as occupation forces continue to humiliate the Lebanese Army, raze entire villages, and expose the hollowness of Washington's promises to restore national sovereignty, according to the Press TV correspondent.

Reporting from south Lebanon, Hadi Hoteit said that Israeli forces continued their relentless attacks on south Lebanon on Monday, with explosions and rising smoke reported from the Hojer Valley area.

The attacks focused on the center of the valley, known as Wadi Asluki, overlooked by the towns of Abrecha and Majdal Silim.

Israeli artillery shelling and airstrikes also hit the Kantara and Syrian areas a day earlier, despite these regions being labeled part of the so-called yellow zone.

"The Israeli army is not actually having any material presence on the ground there by its tanks or even its soldiers," Hoteit said. "The Israeli soldiers and tanks occupying south Lebanon are centered in some covered areas in the eastern sector."

Instead of sending troops, Israel is conducting airstrikes on areas it claims have no Israeli presence, revealing that it cannot claim complete control even over the "yellow zone", Hoteit added.

Terror tactics

Israeli forces also engaged in "terrorist actions" on Monday, burning civilian homes in the outskirts of Zotar Ashari, Hoteit reported.

In al-Mansouri, the occupation army has been conducting "unprecedented" demolitions over the past two weeks, "destroying entire villages without any kind of respect to any framework agreement with the Lebanese authorities."

The aggression extends to the Lebanese army itself. Just days ago, Israeli forces dealt with Lebanese army points in a Christian village in south Lebanon "in a very humiliating way," Hoteit said, despite American claims that the Lebanese army is conducting "good intervention" to disarm the resistance.

Zero benefits for Lebanon

Political actors in Lebanon who had supported the roles of Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and President Joseph Aoun in confronting Hezbollah and disarming the resistance are now "not very optimistic," Hoteit said.

"Every act that the Americans did since the start of the war till now, and since the American-brokered ceasefire agreement, is only leading to more concessions from the Lebanese side and more benefits for the Israeli side, with zero benefits for the Lebanese side," Hoteit reported.

He added that even Lebanese authorities who had backed American intervention now have nothing to show for it.

"The main enemy for the Lebanese people and the Lebanese army and the Lebanese government and everyone in Lebanon, not only the resistance, is the Israeli occupation and the Israeli aggressors who are continuing their expansion for the yellow zone."

Resistance is Lebanon's strength

Hoteit emphasized that the problems in Lebanon are not related to the weapons of the resistance or its political standpoint regarding the Israeli occupation.

"The problems in Lebanon need to be solved inside Lebanon, and the resistance is one of the main strength points of Lebanon in any political agreement or in any negotiations with any side in this international community," he said.

The economic situation remains dire across Lebanon, with the government failing to deliver on promises of development and prosperity.

Heavy Israeli drone activity continues unabated, with killer drones and surveillance aircraft focusing on the Tyre region and southern Lebanon.

"The entire South Lebanon is having killer drone activities and surveillance drone activity, but the main focus is the entire region and the south of the Tyre region," Hoteit said.

The ongoing aggression underscores the failure of the US-brokered ceasefire to deliver any benefits to Lebanon, while Israel continues its campaign of destruction and expansion in the south.


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