Israel, Lebanon Finally Reach Ceasefire Deal After Weeks of Brutal Attacks

Israel and Lebanon have finally reached a ceasefire deal after weeks of brutal attacks on Hezbollah, devastating Lebanese communities and killing over 2,000 people.

The deal, brokered by US President Donald Trump, consists of a 10-day truce between the two sides, allowing for no fighting during that period of time. Israel and Hezbollah launched strikes towards the other right up until midnight last night, when the ceasefire took effect.

Israel's strikes in Lebanon have been brutal, killing at least 2,196 people and injuring 7,185 others. More than 1.2 million people have been displaced across Lebanon, and infrastructure and buildings have been destroyed in the capital city of Beirut, the major city of Tyre, and various smaller cities.

Many of those displaced from southern Lebanon have been forced to sleep in tents for weeks, surviving on meager supplies of food and water. Some families told reporters that they couldn't even bring their clothes with them– they were forced to evacuate at that speed. Some evacuation orders have even been expanded into the Mediterranean Sea, forcing fishermen to leave their boats out of fear of impending Israeli strikes.

Additionally, the deaths are indiscriminate, killing innocent civilians, and many of the strikes take place in bustling residential areas with inadequate warnings or even no advance notice at all. Two beekeepers have died on their respective bee farms as well– some claim that Israel intentionally targeted the beekeepers due to the importance of bees to local agriculture, while others argue that they were just regular citizens killed by strikes on their farms.

At least 91 Lebanese medical workers have also been killed in attacks that locals claim are targeted towards medics. First, a strike takes place, and paramedics rush to the scene with equipment, ambulances, and medical personnel. Then, a second round of strikes takes place on the same site, hitting the medics. This method is known as a double-tap and directly violates international law– all medics are protected from warfare. However, Israel has taken it farther; medics claim they have experienced quadruple-taps during this conflict, where Israel strikes the same place four times within a short span of time, obliterating ambulances and medical support.

Thousands of acres of crops and agriculture has been destroyed in southern Lebanon, and several local reports claim that Israel has been using white phosphorus on fields and forests yet again– the highly reactive chemical is an incredibly dangerous weapon that sticks to skin and burns straight through tissue until oxygen is cut off. White phosphorus also heavily contaminates the soil, destroys biodiversity and wildlife, and can pollute nearby drinking water, causing severe burns and injuries for locals nearby. Israel used the chemical repeatedly to raze Lebanese fields and forests during their war against Hamas and Hezbollah from 2023 through 2025, and these reports claim that they may be spreading it again.

Israel has also taken control of southern Lebanon and is working to systematically destroy border villages under the claim that Hezbollah maintains activities in those locations.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah has fired several rockets toward Israel, killing two Israeli civilians, and an additional 13 Israeli militants have died in combat. They have not fully acknowledged the ceasefire, but the group's weakness after weeks of Israeli targeting means that they are unlikely to restart the conflict if not prompted.

Even temporary peace between Israel and Hezbollah could bring the war in Iran to a close, as their ongoing conflict was one of the primary obstacles that hindered negotiations between the US and Iran. Iran asserted that they could not form a proper deal while Hezbollah, one of their proxies, was being attacked.

However, the truce in Lebanon is not a long-term solution. Israel demands that the Lebanese government completely eradicate Hezbollah from their territory, but the local government cannot do so due to the deep ties the community has to the Iran proxy. Eliminating Hezbollah is possible but risks sparking a civil war, leaving Lebanon with an impossible choice.

Nevertheless, Israel has refused to vacate southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is eradicated, labeling it a "security zone." This leaves them in control of thousands of homes and businesses in southern Lebanon, and they are already beginning to set up outposts in the region under the claim of protecting Israeli towns across the border.

From the beginning, Israel re-entered the conflict in Lebanon because they were provoked by Hezbollah, who launched more than 2,000 drones and rockets towards northern Israel on March 2 after the Iran war commenced. Supporters claim that Israel's attacks in Lebanon are simply to protect their own territory, while others across the world have argued that they are attempting to weaken Lebanon as part of a plan to take over the region– known to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as "Greater Israel."

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Image credit to AFP