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To stop the fire in Lebanon that began on April 16 is escalating, Israel and Hezbollah are attacking each other.
The cease-fire came after six weeks of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. But the next day, the Lebanese army reported several violations by the Israeli army. Since then, Israel and Hezbollah have continued to attack.
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Is even the pretense of ceasing the fighting over? What can happen?
Here’s what we know:
What are Israel’s latest weapons?
Since Israel began its war in Lebanon on March 2, at least 2,846 people have been killed and more than a million displaced.
The Israeli offensive will include a major ground attack and occupation of southern Lebanon. On Sunday, the Ministry of Health of Lebanon he said Israeli attacks across the country killed 51 people, including two medical workers.
“The enemy of Israel continues to violate international and social law, adding more cases to surgical patients, as they directly targeted the two points of the Health Authority in Qalawiya and Tibnin, in the province of Bint Jbeil, in two groups,” said the ministry.
Since Israel’s war in Lebanon began on March 2, the United Nations says at least 103 Lebanese medical workers have been killed and 230 injured in more than 130 attacks on Israel.
“We are in danger every second, every day,” Ali Safiuddin, head of the Lebanese Civil Defense in Tire in southern Lebanon, told Al Jazeera on Sunday. “We wonder if we will survive or if we will die, we know that we have already lost our lives because of working here.
Al Jazeera’s Obaida Hitto, reporting from Turo, said on Sunday that “international humanitarian law is clear: medical workers and first responders, such as the Lebanese Civil Defense, must be protected during armed conflicts, but in this line, the question is not whether another hit is coming.
Dr Tahir Mohammed, a military surgeon and aid worker who works in Gaza and Lebanon, told Al Jazeera that he sees similarities in what Israel is doing in both areas.
“We used to see our friends in Gaza coming to the door all the time. I’ve had friends, nurses, medical students killed by Israeli weapons, so to see the same process of targeting medical workers in Lebanon… it’s normal,” he said.
“If Israel had their way, they would have all the southern areas of Lebanon, and they will do it tomorrow. They don’t care about life. I have seen it with my own eyes,” said Mohammed.
Israeli attacks continued on Monday.
Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reported that an Israeli airstrike in the town of Abba killed two people and wounded five. Warplanes resumed their attack on the town of Kfar Remman again less than an hour later, NNA added.
The Israeli army issued a new warning in southern Lebanon, telling residents of nine areas to flee before Israel strikes. These areas are: Ar-Rihan (Jezzine), Jarjouaa, Kfar Reman, al-Numairiyah, Arab Salim, al-Jumayjimah, Machghara, Qlayaa (Western Bekaa) and Harouf.
Israel has repeatedly said it is targeting Hezbollah infrastructure, mainly in southern Lebanon. But last week, Israel bombed areas south of Beirut for the first time since the ceasefire began.
What has Hezbollah attacked?
The Lebanese army has continued to attack the Israeli army.
Earlier on Monday, Hezbollah said it had carried out 24 attacks against Israeli forces, soldiers and military vehicles in southern Lebanon in the past 24 hours.
The targets included Israeli army units, Merkava tanks, artillery, artillery and newly established command posts in several border areas, including Khiam, Deir Seryan, Tayr Harfa, Bayyada, Rashaf and Naqoura.
The operation included explosive devices, rocket launchers, artillery shells and guided missiles, with Hezbollah claiming “certain hits” in several attacks.
Israel’s military says it intercepted a “suspicious plane” in southern Lebanon in reference to a plane launched by Hezbollah.
The Jerusalem Post reports that the Israeli military is struggling to respond to the First Person View (FPV) drones launched by Hezbollah.
The newspaper said Hezbollah is using fiber optic cables to control drones and avoid Israeli wireless recording equipment.
The Jerusalem Post reported that Hezbollah released a video of an FPV drone striking the Iron Dome battery on the northern border on Sunday.
During their visit to southern Lebanon last week, Israeli senior officials “explained the new pilot programs to be familiar with FPV shooting”, but added that “the army is trying to work in real time”.
On Monday, Hezbollah said its fighters were fighting Israeli forces in a building in Baydar al-Faqani in the town of Taybeh, forcing them to flee. Fighters attacked the site three times until an Israeli helicopter intervened to evacuate the wounded, the group said.
The Israeli military has yet to confirm the attack, but said three soldiers were injured in a booby-trap explosion in southern Lebanon.
The military announced earlier that a soldier had been killed by a Hezbollah fighter jet near the Lebanese border.
So is the ban just a pretense?
In theory, the end of the war between Israel and Hezbollah is in place, but both warring factions have been on the offensive since it began.
The cease-fire followed earlier, apparently in effect from November 27, 2024. Since then, the United Nations has counted more than 10,000 violations of the ceasefire by Israel and hundreds of Lebanese deaths.
“I don’t think the pretense of a compromise was still there, but I think Israel can continue (the attacks) as long as it signs the peace agreement,” Israeli expert Ori Goldberg told Al Jazeera.
“Israel does not really care and will do what it is told. Until now, the IDF (Israeli army) wants to win and the opportunity to use its power, but this can change in a heartbeat,” he said.
Israel has repeatedly told the Lebanese government that Hezbollah must be disarmed in order for any conflict to end.
Hezbollah has long been seen as the most powerful armed group in Lebanon, despite being weakened by the war with Israel, and the assassination of many of its leaders. Despite this, it retains the support of the Shia movement in Lebanon, where it originated.
Hezbollah has said Israel must withdraw from southern Lebanon, which was part of a ceasefire agreement reached in 2024. Fighting broke out in October 2023 after Hezbollah bombed Israel in cooperation with the Palestinians in Gaza. At least 3,768 Lebanese were killed and 1.2 million displaced during the Israeli offensive during that time.
Government leaders in Beirut have long been concerned about Hezbollah’s influence in Lebanon. Last December, government he said it was about to finish disarming Hezbollah south of the Litani River before the end of the year as part of the 2024 ceasefire agreement with Israel.
At the beginning of the latest conflict, the Lebanese government banned the Hezbollah militia.
But in January, Israel he said Hezbollah is still close to the border and is rebuilding its military strength “faster than the (Lebanon) army is crushing (them)”.
“What will happen between Israel and Lebanon depends on the US and the EU. If they force Israel’s hand, even peace can happen,” said Goldberg.
“There is no doubt that Israel will continue to bomb as the talks continue, but it will be forced to stop at some point,” he added.
So what?
The US State Department is planning two days of intensive negotiations between the governments of Israel and Lebanon on May 14 and 15.
“Discussions in Washington, DC will advance” the peace and security cooperation that has a significant impact on the two countries’ issues, the department said.
On May 8, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun received former Ambassador Simon Karam, who is leading the Lebanese delegation in the negotiations, and gave him “advice before going to Washington”.
Hezbollah will not be included in the discussion and criticism of what is being done.
In an interview with Al Jazeera on April 17, Hezbollah politician Ali Fayyad said that the group would approach the ban “carefully and vigilantly”, and warned that any look at the sites of Lebanon and the Israeli army would violate it.
David Wood, the senior expert on Lebanon at the International Crisis Group, told Al Jazeera that, in the long run, much will depend on the talks between the Lebanese and Israeli delegations later this week.
“These negotiations could also lead to a temporary extension of the existing agreement and make certain parts of Lebanon less vulnerable for the time being,” he said.
“Also, the talks could fail completely and lead to the end of the ceasefire,” he added.
“In both cases, US President Donald Trump has the opportunity to encourage the parties to decide to come down and find a way to deal with this terrible war,” he said.
