An investigation by the United Kingdom (UK) media claims that Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) operations in southern Lebanon are part of a plan to create a five-kilometer-deep “death zone” on the Lebanon-Israel border.
Satellite data was combined with research from the United States (U.S.) universities using satellites equipped with “synthetic aperture radars” to detect changes in buildings regardless of cloud cover.
Since the outbreak of war in October, Hezbollah has been firing on Israel, which has responded in kind. The report also states that more than 95.000 Lebanese and 60.000 Israelis have been displaced.
Moreover, it was reported that Israel had killed more Hezbollah commanders in this conflict than during the 2006 war. Hezbollah fighters quoted in the report dismissed the idea of withdrawing from southern Lebanon.
Lebanese officials appeared hopeful that a broader war could be averted through the creation of a buffer zone and a diplomatic solution.
The IDF has denied creating a buffer zone. The IDF claimed it is only repelling Hezbollah to prevent constant attacks on northern Israeli residents. Many Lebanese have been able to return to their villages only during funerals, which seem to be one of the few respites from airstrikes.
“Every day, the destruction is getting worse,” said Hasan Sheyyet, the mayor of Kfar Kila,
“The damage is enormous,” said Hashem Haidar, head of the Lebanese Southern Council.
“The type of weapons being used now is different from what we saw in 2006. Before, when a house was bombed, the damage was limited to the house and its immediate surroundings. Now, entire neighborhoods are affected by a single bombing,” Haidar noted.
A senior Israeli military official defending their stance said, “Hezbollah uses every third home in southern Lebanon for storing weapons, training, firing positions, and meeting places for potential cross-border attacks.”
Several residents of the targeted villages said they believe Israel targets the homes of people who returned to retrieve their belongings. Some noted that within two hours of returning for their things, the IDF attacked their house.
However, it was also reported that shortly after an airstrike they witnessed, Hezbollah fighters admitted to hiding and storing weapons in abandoned houses.
Questions have also been raised about Israeli tactics for clearing brush near the border, with several clips showing Israeli troops using unconventional methods, such as using trebuchets to launch flaming projectiles across the border, and even flaming arrows.
Furthermore, questions have also been raised about Israel’s use of white phosphorus in combat. Israel claims that its use of white phosphorus complies with international law and is strictly for smoke screens, not against fighters.
Local mayors claim that such use has contaminated agricultural land, potentially taking years to rectify, with some estimates of the damage exceeding 1.7 billion dollars, Klix.ba reports.
E.Dz.
