ZIBQIN VALLEY, Lebanon (AP) — The Lebanese army has stepped up its efforts in areas along the border with Israel, in the volatile area that has seen the 14-month war between Israel and the militant group Hezbollah.
Parts of the area south of the Litani River and north of the border with Israel were previously a Hezbollah stronghold, off limits to the Lebanese national army and UN peacekeepers deployed in the area.
But since a ceasefire ended the Israel-Hezbollah war a year ago, Lebanon’s army has increased its presence along the border to nearly 10,000 troops, closed 11 crossings used for smuggling along the Litani River, and is dealing with large amounts of unexploded ordnance, according to several senior army officials.
The army took dozens of journalists from local and international media outlets on Friday on a tour of the rugged area along the border. Its troops could be seen in places where Hezbollah once had a strong military presence.
Israel has carried out airstrikes almost every day since the November 2024 ceasefire, mainly targeting Hezbollah members but also killing 127 civilians, according to the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Hezbollah only claimed responsibility for an attack on an Israeli military post last November. The group claims it no longer has an armed presence south of the Litani River, close to the border.
Hezbollah rejected the disarmament plan
Hezbollah refuses to discuss full disarmament across Lebanon until Israel stops its attacks and withdraws from five hilltop positions it captured during the war and still holds.
The latest Israel-Hezbollah war began on October 8, 2023, a day after Hamas attacked southern Israel, after Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel in solidarity with Hamas. Israel launched a two-month long bombardment of Lebanon last year that severely weakened Hezbollah, followed by a ground invasion.
In August, the Lebanese government voted in favor of a US-backed plan to disarm Hezbollah. Hezbollah rejected the plan.
In recent weeks, Israel has said that Hezbollah is working to rebuild its capabilities in southern Lebanon.
“The Lebanese army is making tremendous efforts during this critical period in the history of the region,” said Brig. Gen. Nicolas Thabet, commander of the Lebanese army in the sector south of the Litani River.
Journalists were taken Friday to Zibqin Valley, where Hezbollah once had rocket launchers, tunnels and hideouts in the bush region. There was no presence of the militant group and its previous locations were either hit or now controlled by Lebanese troops.
A nearly 100-meter (328-foot) tunnel inside a mountain, used by Hezbollah in the past, contained what appeared to be a small medical clinic, a ventilation system, power cables, water tankers and large amounts of canned food.
Zibqin Valley is where in August ammunition exploded in a weapons depot, killing six army experts who were dismantling them.
“We will not abandon our goals no matter what the difficulties are,” Thabet said, adding that “the army is making great sacrifices” in one of the “most dangerous parts of the Middle East.”
Weapons and mines discovered
Army officials told reporters there had been 5,198 violations by Israel of the ceasefire, including 657 airstrikes. They added that 13,981 housing units were destroyed by the war, in addition to the damage done to the infrastructure in the border villages.
They said that some of the weapons and articles they found were dismantled or exploded while others were put in storage. The weapons that can be used are taken from the army, they said.
The officials added that the army now has 200 posts south of the Litani River, in addition to 29 fixed checkpoints, and operates patrols around the clock.
On September 5, the army stepped up its efforts in the region following the government’s decision to disarm Hezbollah. Since then, troops have discovered 74 mines, 175 rocket launchers and 58 missiles.
Thabet said that the army does not enter houses to search them without a judicial order and only does so if it witnesses illegal activities while they are taking place.