ISRAELI FORCES RAZING SOUTH LEBANON VILLAGES ‘JUST LIKE’ IN GAZA: REPORTS

Wed 15 April 2026:

Israeli soldiers have told the Haaretz newspaper that the Israeli military is demolishing villages in southern Lebanon in “methods similar to those used in the Gaza Strip”.

“We’re behaving just like we did in Gaza,” one army source told Haaretz. “There’s a list of homes to be demolished, and we measure success based on the number of buildings destroyed in a day.”

Bulldozers “raze villages near the border fence to clear space” for building new military outposts, Haaretz added, with one combat soldier saying the new buildings appear to be “permanent”.

Haaretz also reported that Israeli soldiers have “advanced to the third line of villages from the border, roughly 20 kilometres south” of Lebanon’s Litani River.

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Canada, Australia, UK and others call for ‘urgent end to hostilities in Lebanon’

Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, Jordan, Sierra Leone, and Switzerland have issued a joint statement, expressing deep concern about “the worsening humanitarian situation and displacement crisis in Lebanon”.

Welcoming the ceasefire between the US, Israel and Iran, the countries called for “an urgent end to hostilities in Lebanon”, too.

“Civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected from the effects of hostilities. Humanitarian personnel, who dedicate themselves to protecting and assisting the most vulnerable, must be respected and protected,” the statement said

“Attacks that threaten the safety and security of humanitarian personnel must stop. International humanitarian law must be upheld by all parties to the conflict in all circumstances,” it added.

The countries also condemned “in the strongest terms actions that have killed UN peacekeepers and significantly increased the risks faced by humanitarian personnel in southern Lebanon”.

Israel, Lebanon agree to hold more talks

By Mike Hanna reporting from Washington DC, US

It was the first time there was direct diplomatic contact between Lebanon and Israel in more than three decades. This was what was described as a preliminary meeting.

It was at the ambassadorial level. The discussions were intended to lay a base for future discussions, which may be held at a far higher level. The meeting was chaired by the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio.

Israel’s ambassador to the United States sounded optimistic when the meeting ended.

The Lebanese ambassador to the US, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, issued a statement on social media describing this meeting as constructive.

She said that she called for a ceasefire and the return of displaced persons to their homes. She said she also urged concrete steps to alleviate the severe humanitarian crisis her country continues to face.

There has been a joint statement issued as well, saying that the date and venue of the next meeting will be announced at a later time.

So, there is no full confirmation that there will be a follow-up meeting, but every implication that there will be, but the date and the location are still to be announced.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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