Israel's army has advanced beyond the Litani River in Lebanon for the first time since 2006.
Israel's army has advanced beyond the Litani River in southern Lebanon for the first time since 2006 and appears set to encircle the main city of Nabatieh.
Senior Lebanese military sources told Turkish state news agency Anadolu on Saturday that Israeli forces had crossed the Litani River, which Israel has declared the perimeter of its unofficial buffer zone.
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Israeli forces are now on the outskirts of Nabatieh, a key city for southern Lebanon's economy and a cultural center for the region. If the Shiite-majority city fell, it would mark a significant advance in the war against Lebanon, which began in October 2023, and the subsequent official ceasefire.
Many Lebanese see Nabatieh as a symbol of resistance due to his historic role on the front lines of Israeli attacks.
Al Jazeera's Obaida Hitto, reporting from the southern city of Tyre, said Israel was expanding its air campaign in southern Lebanon and surrounding Nabatieh in preparation for a possible assault on the city.
“It appears that Israel is trying to make this last-ditch effort to encircle Nabatieh, breaking through Hezbollah's second and third lines of defense and isolating the western Bekaa valley from the south of the country,” Hitto said.
Israel has issued evacuation orders for at least 10 villages in southern Lebanon as it expands its invasion, despite engaging in ongoing peace talks with Lebanese officials.
The Israeli army's Arab spokesman, Avichay Adraee, ordered residents of several Lebanese villages to evacuate immediately, warning that they could die if they stayed.
The order came a day after officials from both countries met in Washington to discuss permanently ending the war. It began in early March, when Iran-backed Hezbollah began attacking Israel following the assassination of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Hitto said people fleeing their homes have few options, as more than 20 percent of the population (about 1.2 million people) has been displaced by the fighting.
“Those options are basically becoming people living with family members if they have that option, or people living in makeshift camps in parks and public spaces. I've seen a lot of families living in their vehicles for long periods of time,” Hitto said.
“Some of these families have been continuously displaced since 2023,” Hitto added.
The latest forced displacement orders are further evidence of the nominal “ceasefire” in place since mid-April and repeatedly violated by Israel. He justifies his actions by saying that he is attacking Hezbollah as part of his efforts to disarm the group.
On Friday, at least 14 people were killed in Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon.
Lebanese officials are working to disarm Hezbollah, but the task has proven extremely difficult.
Lebanese and Israeli officials are currently engaged in negotiations to end the war, marking the first time the two sides have spoken directly in decades.
The talks are being facilitated by the United States and a new round is expected in Washington next week.
Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun met with Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Saturday to discuss the security situation and ongoing negotiations with Israel. According to the state-run National News Agency, they agreed to step up efforts to end the war, which has sparked a humanitarian crisis.
Aoun also spoke by phone with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and stressed the importance of Israel respecting the current ceasefire.
