Israeli strikes kill at least four in southern Lebanon amid ceasefire talks
Multiple Israeli strikes have killed at least four people in southern Lebanon's Nabatieh governorate, according to Lebanon's National News Agency, in a fresh escalation despite a ceasefire and a recent understanding between the United States and Iran. The attacks hit vehicles in separate locations on Tuesday, including two vehicles in Mayfadoun and a third vehicle in Shoukin. The strikes add to uncertainty over whether the wider diplomatic effort can restrain fighting on Lebanon's southern front.
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Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said on Tuesday that there could be no full end to the war without Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory. In a separate phone call, Iran's top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, urged Lebanon's parliament speaker, Nabih Berri, to press the US to compel Israel to stop its attacks, halt home demolitions and withdraw from occupied areas. The prime minister of Pakistan, which is acting as one of the mediators, said on Monday that the agreement envisaged an immediate halt to military operations "on all fronts, including Lebanon".
The reported deaths come against the backdrop of a conflict that has already caused heavy losses in Lebanon. Since fighting resumed on March 2, at least 3,826 people have been killed and 11,851 wounded by Israeli attacks in Lebanon, according to the country's health ministry. The latest strikes therefore matter not only as a local security incident, but also as a test of whether the ceasefire framework can hold in practice.
They also underline the continuing vulnerability of communities in the south, where vehicle strikes and cross-border attacks have remained a major source of disruption. The political stakes are high because Lebanon has become one of the central fronts in the wider confrontation involving Israel, Hezbollah and Iran. The supplied material says the ceasefire understanding has not been made public, leaving its enforcement and scope unclear.
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It also says Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel will continue to occupy southern Lebanon, a position that appears to clash with Iranian demands for withdrawal. Hezbollah, which has received assurances from Iran that the issue of Israeli troop withdrawal will be raised in the next phase of talks, remains a key actor in the dispute. The latest strikes also fit into a broader pattern of fragile negotiations being shadowed by continued military action.
Iranian officials have repeatedly said any ceasefire arrangement would need to include an end to Israeli attacks on Lebanon. That makes the attacks in Nabatieh significant beyond the immediate casualties, because they may affect confidence in the diplomatic process and the willingness of local actors to accept any deal. For residents in the south, the immediate question is whether the violence will continue despite the announced understanding.
What remains unclear is whether the strikes will prompt any change in the talks or lead to further retaliation. It is also not yet known whether the dead were civilians or combatants, or whether there were additional injuries beyond the four confirmed deaths. The next developments to watch are any official response from Lebanon, Israel or the mediators, and whether the ceasefire language is clarified to cover attacks in southern Lebanon more explicitly.
Families displaced by the war in southern Lebanon have begun returning home after the announcement of a ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran. The move has raised hopes that fighting between Israel and the Iranian-backed armed group Hezbollah may ease, but the situation on the ground remains uncertain. Residents were seen heading back to villages in the south even as authorities warned it was still unsafe in some areas.
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The agreement has not been made public, and its terms for Lebanon remain unclear. Iran and Pakistan, which acted as mediator, have said the deal includes a ceasefire in Lebanon, which had been a key Iranian demand in the talks. The truce comes after more than three months of conflict, and there were still reports of attacks by Israel and Hezbollah over the past day.
In one widely shared video, a village street was blocked by an Israeli armoured vehicle as people arrived home. The return of displaced families highlights both the scale of the disruption and the uncertainty over whether the lull will hold. One man returning to Jebchit in the Nabatieh area said his family had come back "with caution", while another heading to Aadshit near Marjayoun described the destruction as extremely hard to face.
The conflict has left heavily damaged buildings in parts of southern Lebanon, and many residents remain unsure whether they can safely stay. The authorities' warnings underline that the ceasefire has not yet translated into a full end to insecurity. The development matters because Lebanon has become one of the central fronts in the wider confrontation involving Israel, Hezbollah and Iran.
Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel in March, after the killing of the Iranian supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, at the start of the US-Israel war against Iran, according to the supplied material. Israel then responded with a bombing campaign across Lebanon and a new invasion of the south. Any ceasefire that includes Lebanon could therefore affect not only local security but also the balance of influence between Tehran, Hezbollah and their opponents.
Iran's role is significant because it has financed, trained and armed Hezbollah since the group was created in the 1980s. The supplied material says including Lebanon in the truce was important for Tehran's standing among Hezbollah supporters, many of whom have been deeply affected by the conflict. Hezbollah itself is not only an armed group but also a political party and social movement with a role in providing services, which makes the impact of any ceasefire broader than the battlefield alone.
The fact that the agreement has not been published leaves open questions about enforcement and whether all sides will interpret it in the same way. What remains unclear is how durable the ceasefire will be and whether it will cover all areas affected by the fighting. It is also not yet known what commitments, if any, were made specifically for Lebanon or how violations would be handled.
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