Occupation Escalates in Southern Lebanon: Evacuation Orders for 9 Villages and Attempts to Isolate Nabatieh District

Israeli warplanes resumed their intense aerial raids on various areas in southern Lebanon this Saturday morning, coinciding with the issuance of immediate forced evacuation orders for residents of nine southern villages. Field sources reported that the occupation army targeted a civilian car with a drone on the Kfardajal road in the Nabatieh district, resulting in injuries and significant material damage in the area.

The aerial bombardment was accompanied by intense artillery shelling that targeted the towns of Zawtar Al-Gharbiya, Zawtar Al-Sharqiya, and Mayfadoun, in addition to a raid on the town of Adsheet. Field data indicates that the occupation is pursuing a strategy aimed at completely isolating the Nabatieh district from its surroundings, and transforming the area extending from the international border to the Litani River into a buffer zone devoid of inhabitants.

The urgent evacuation warnings issued by the occupation army included the towns of Qa'qa'iyat al-Jisr, Adsheet al-Shaqif, Jibshit, Abba, Kfarjouz, Harouf, Douair, Deir al-Zahrani, and Haboush. This step raises widespread fears of Israeli preparations to expand the scope of ground and military operations in the coming hours, amid the continued policy of systematic destruction of residential areas.

Regarding human casualties, the Lebanese Ministry of Health confirmed that the death toll from the ongoing aggression since last March has risen to 2,618 martyrs and 8,094 injured. The past twenty-four hours saw the martyrdom of 23 people and the injury of dozens as a result of 41 aerial and ground attacks, despite a supposed truce agreement that was extended until mid-this month.

Aerial raids in recent hours focused on towns belonging to the districts of Nabatieh, Tyre, and Bint Jbeil, where the occupation committed a massacre in the town of Haboush, claiming the lives of 8 martyrs, including a child and two women. Four citizens were also martyred in the town of Zararia, while rescue teams continue to retrieve the bodies of victims from under the rubble of destroyed buildings in Nabatieh al-Fawqa and Deir Qanoun Ras al-Ain.

Warplanes and drones carried out more than 34 aerial raids in a short period, coinciding with intense low-altitude reconnaissance flights over the south and the southern suburbs of Beirut. This aerial escalation aims to paralyze movement in the vital arteries connecting the southern villages to each other, and to reinforce the siege imposed on major population centers.

As part of the scorched-earth policy, Israeli forces carried out extensive demolition and destruction operations that affected entire residential neighborhoods and infrastructure in several border towns. Among the most prominent facilities that were completely destroyed were the monastery and school of the Salvatorian Sisters in the town of Yaroun, a prominent educational and historical institution in the Bint Jbeil district, representing a severe blow to the educational and social sectors.

For its part, Hezbollah announced the execution of 10 qualitative military operations targeting occupation army positions, gatherings, and military vehicles along the border line. The party's statements confirmed targeting 7 military gatherings with missile weapons and attack drones, in addition to destroying a Merkava tank that was participating in shelling operations on Lebanese villages.

The Israeli army officially admitted that two of its soldiers were injured as a result of an attack carried out by an explosive drone that targeted a military site, amid Hebrew reports speaking of increasing concern about the accuracy of the drones used by the party. Israeli defense systems face increasing challenges in intercepting these aircraft, which have become a direct threat to military movements in the northern region.

These developments come amid a deteriorating humanitarian situation, as displaced persons from the targeted villages suffer difficult conditions with the continued closure of roads and targeting of ambulances. Medical sources confirm that targeting public facilities, educational and religious institutions is part of a plan to permanently displace residents and prevent them from returning to their villages in the near future.

On the political level, the truce that began last April appears very fragile and incapable of curbing daily Israeli violations, which Tel Aviv justifies as 'self-defense.' The Lebanese side believes that the continued ground incursions and systematic demolition of homes undermine any real opportunities for achieving a sustainable calm, and open the door to a comprehensive confrontation.

Amid this escalation, Lebanese and international circles are awaiting the outcome of the situation in the Nabatieh district, which represents a significant demographic and administrative weight in the south. With the continuation of evacuation orders, fears are growing that the cities and villages of the south will turn into completely abandoned and destroyed areas, in the absence of any real international pressure to stop the ongoing aggression.

The occupation army is trying to isolate Nabatieh from the rest of the areas, and make the area from the border to the Litani River devoid of inhabitants.