100 Days of Israel's New Military Campaign in Lebanon

Beirut, Lebanon – June 8 marks the 100th day of Israel's latest military campaign in Lebanon. During this period, Israeli forces have destroyed dozens of villages in southern Lebanon. Israel and Lebanon have held their first direct diplomatic talks in decades, but multiple attempts to implement a ceasefire have failed.

Alongside direct negotiations, Iran has pledged to link the conflict in Lebanon to any ceasefire agreement it reaches with the U.S. and Israel. On June 7, Iran attacked Israel in retaliation for a strike on Beirut's southern suburbs, an area Tehran considers a "red line."

Fighting continues in southern Lebanon between the Israeli military and Hezbollah, the Iran-backed political-military group opposed to direct talks between the Lebanese government and Israel. Hezbollah has recently begun using fiber-optic drones, introducing a new battlefield dynamic.

"They've gone back to traditional guerrilla tactics," Nicholas Blanford, a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council and author of a book on Hezbollah, told Al Jazeera. "The aim now, as in the 1990s, is to wear the Israelis down. They have to keep getting past every defensive and offensive measure Israel throws up in the south, to keep killing and injuring Israeli soldiers."

Thousands Killed

Israel maintains its assault intensity in southern Lebanon. On the 100th day of the war, Israel again threatened residents with displacement, issuing evacuation warnings for the coastal city of Tyre, including its Christian port district, which had not previously been targeted. At least eight people were killed in an airstrike on a residential area in the city. Israel also continued attacks on other parts of southern Lebanon.

The Israeli military escalation began on March 2, immediately after Hezbollah fired six rockets into Israel – the group's first response in over a year. Hezbollah said it retaliated because of repeated Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement reached in 2024 and because of the assassination of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei two days earlier, when the U.S. and Israel launched their anti-Iran campaign.

According to Lebanon's Health Ministry, Israel has since killed more than 3,600 people, including at least 245 children. Over 11,000 have been wounded, including at least 900 children. Many of the dead are civilians. At least 131 health workers have been killed, some in "double" or "triple" tap strikes; 17 hospitals have been damaged, and 3 have been forced to shut down entirely. Journalists have also been targeted over the past 100 days.

Meanwhile, Lebanon's government faces pressure from the U.S. and Israel to crack down on Hezbollah. On March 2, the government declared Hezbollah's military activities illegal, but so far the announcement has had little effect on the group's fighting capacity. Iran, Hezbollah's main backer, is also trying to tie Lebanon into any ceasefire deal with Israel and the U.S.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said in a recent interview: "I have no other choice. I'm trying to leverage President Trump's personal interest in ending this conflict. It's very difficult, but we are committed. We have no other choice. So we are counting on President Trump and his team to achieve a breakthrough."

Extended Occupation

Like the 66-day escalation in late 2024, Israel has again forced a massive displacement of Lebanese people. Since March 2, at least 1.2 million people have been displaced from their homes in the south, the Bekaa Valley in the east, and Beirut's southern suburbs. Many have been displaced multiple times.

Israeli forces have also pushed deeper into Lebanese territory – occupying about 2,000 square kilometers – more than at any point since the occupation of southern Lebanon ended in 2000. Israel invaded Lebanon in October 2024, but after a ceasefire a month later, it withdrew from Lebanon, keeping only five border points.

"In October and November 2024, the Israelis focused on limited objectives," Blanford said. "They moved in cautiously, mainly on foot with special forces." This time, analysts say Israel has no plan to withdraw. "They have come in much larger numbers, with tanks, armored personnel carriers, and bulldozers. They are destroying a much larger area in southern Lebanon, and unlike before, they plan to stay indefinitely," Blanford added.

Israeli officials have confirmed this. Defense Minister Israel Katz said the military will occupy up to the Litani River, which flows through southern Lebanon. Meanwhile, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has called for annexing southern Lebanon and declaring the Litani the new northern border of Israel.

No Ceasefire

Although Beirut has not been as continuously attacked as southern Lebanon, Israel struck the capital's southern suburbs on June 7 and continues to threaten the city. April 8 was one of the bloodiest days, when Israel launched Operation "Eternal Shadow," killing over 350 people in more than 100 strikes within less than 10 minutes. Israel said it was targeting Hezbollah, but experts, including from the United Nations, described the strikes as "indiscriminate."

The April 8 attacks triggered a strong international reaction. The day has been called "Black Wednesday" in Lebanon. More than a week later, on April 16, President Trump announced a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel, but Israel continued to strike the south and Hezbollah kept firing back.

Analysts say the intensity of fighting in southern Lebanon even increased after April 16. Another ceasefire was announced after a June 3 round of direct Lebanon-Israel talks, but Hezbollah rejected it while Israeli troops remained in Lebanon. For its part, Israel has never stopped its attacks.

Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem called the deal "shameless" and a "roadmap to destroy a part of the Lebanese people."