IDF Troops Say They Are 'Policing' Displaced Civilians Returning en Masse to Homes in Southern Lebanon - Lebanon News
Israeli troops stationed in Lebanon have been facing daily incidents of friction with the thousands of displaced Lebanese civilians who began returning to their homes as the Iran-U.S. cease-fire was announced, soldiers told Haaretz on Wednesday.
The soldiers said troops in IDF-occupied parts of southern Lebanon didn't receive clear instructions on how to deal with the civilians' return since the memorandum of understanding was first tentatively announced on Sunday.
IDF commanders' internal correspondence obtained by Haaretz also reveals deep frustration over the lack of a clear policy. Israeli security officials expressed concern that the growing friction would soon lead to harm to both Israeli soldiers and Lebanese civilians.
One soldier deployed in Lebanon told Haaretz that, as Israel's political leadership delays providing a proper answer, soldiers are forced to act as a border police force against a civilian population, instead of focusing on the IDF's operational missions in the area.
"There's a bit of a mess," the soldier described the situation that has unfolded since the United States said earlier this week that it had reached a memorandum of understanding with Iran.
"People have started infiltrating the territory," he said. "Our attempts to evict them create a lot of work for forces – setting up roadblocks and chasing them around."
The root of the problem, according to some IDF combat soldiers and commanders, lies in the large gap between official evacuation orders and the facts on the ground.
Earlier this month, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel does not intend to withdraw from southern Lebanon in the foreseeable future. "As they say, perhaps when Hezbollah is dismantled, we will reconsider our steps," he told the heads of northern Israeli municipalities.
Israel began its invasion of Lebanon in March as hostilities with Hezbollah renewed shortly after the Iran war began. By April, Israel had seized the second line of border villages, about 8-10 kilometers (5-6.2 miles) into Lebanon, reoccupying the areas it held until its November 2024 cease-fire with Hezbollah.
In May, Netanyahu said Israel is "deepening" its operation in Lebanon as the Israeli military expanded its ground advances beyond the self-declared buffer zone, marked by the so-called Yellow Line.
Throughout Israel's ongoing invasion of Lebanon, the IDF has issued extensive evacuation warnings, which also included areas north of the Litani River.
The Israeli military repeated these warnings several times before the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding, warning they were still in effect and that there should be no return south.
However, as the Israeli soldiers' testimonies indicate, now "people are returning close to Israeli forces along the front line."
Speaking to Haaretz, the soldiers complained that there is no updated Israeli announcement on the matter. The Israeli defense establishment has not provided updated maps or detailed instructions clarifying which areas are prohibited for return and which are permitted.
A few days after Haaretz spoke with the soldiers, the Israeli military released a statement, showing an updated outline of its buffer zone in southern Lebanon and saying its troops are "deployed ... approximately 10 kilometers inside Lebanese territory."
The IDF is deployed in the Security Zone, ~10 km inside Lebanese territory, due to operational requirements. IDF soldiers will continue to remove threats and strengthen the defense of Israel’s northern residents.
The IDF's updated buffer zone shows that Israeli troops advanced about four miles past the Beaufort Castle, which the Israeli military occupied several weeks ago for the first time since Israel's 1982 Lebanon War.
Videos circulated on social media in recent days show Lebanese citizens close to IDF soldiers in the Israeli-occupied buffer zone.
According to reports in Lebanon, civilians were seen near IDF troops in the village of Hadatha, and a similar situation was seen in the village of Majdal Zoun, which the IDF only recently captured.
The IDF also captured the village of Tebnit, and gunfire was reported in the area as recently as Tuesday, despite reports of a cease-fire.
Commanders on the ground are concerned about the lack of clarity regarding continued operations, especially concerning the destruction of infrastructure and homes in the captured villages.
"We are trying to understand whether there will be forces to cover us in today's operation, if there is one," one of the soldiers shared, expressing concern about carrying out demolition work in front of civilians who have returned to the area.
On Wednesday, Hezbollah drones wounded five soldiers in southern Lebanon, one of them seriously. The Israeli military said an explosive device detonation killed Master Sergeant (Res.) Alexander Filin, 29, on Wednesday.
Economic hardship in Lebanon is pushing civilians to return to their homes in the south while putting themselves at risk. Many displaced families report that they have run out of money to rent apartments in safer areas further north.
Hezbollah, which offered to help the displaced civilians with rent, mainly provided this assistance to families of its operatives, leaving many civilians without a solution.
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Israel's defense establishment understands that the IDF's general calls not to return are irrelevant in the face of increasing numbers of civilians moving back to their residential areas.
This creates immediate and uncontrolled friction between the Israeli forces deployed in the area, who are still engaged in fighting, and the civilian population moving on roads and streets.
Security sources say such friction is a ticking time bomb.
Without political leadership defining clear open-fire regulations and issuing targeted warning messages and clear demarcation lines, the next IDF of civilian casualties due to a misidentification is only a matter of time, they say.