The Israel Defense Forces said Monday it had begun a “targeted ground operation against key targets” in southern Lebanon, pushing more forces deeper into the area as part of an expanded buffer zone, after the Hezbollah terror group began attacking Israel earlier this month amid the US-Israeli war with Iran.
The 91st “Galilee” Regional Division began a raid late Saturday in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon, during which troops encountered and killed several Hezbollah operatives, according to the military.
The IDF said the operation was aimed at expanding “the forward defense area.”
“This operation is part of the effort to establish forward defense, including the destruction of terror infrastructure and the elimination of terrorists operating in the area, to remove threats and create an additional layer of security for residents of the north,” the military said.
Before the troops pushed into the area, the IDF said it carried out massive airstrikes and artillery shelling “to remove threats.”
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Meanwhile, the 146th Reserve Division remains deployed to the western sector of southern Lebanon, and the 36th Division has been carrying out a raid in the Rab al-Thalathine area.
An Israeli self-propelled howitzer artillery gun fires rounds towards southern Lebanon from a position near the border on March 15, 2026. (Odd Andersen/AFP)
The IDF has been preparing to deploy more forces in southern Lebanon and further expand its buffer zone to push away the threat of Hezbollah from the border.
Multiple recent reports have indicated that Israel is planning a large-scale ground operation in southern Lebanon aimed at uprooting Hezbollah. Defense Minister Israel Katz has even threatened to seize territory there.
In recent days, there have also been several reports of plans for direct talks between Israel and the Lebanese national government, which has previously pledged to crack down on the terror group. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar has denied such plans, despite reports citing Israeli officials.
Since March 2, when Hezbollah began attacking Israel in response to the killing of Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, the terror group has launched around 100 rockets a day, according to the IDF, as well as more than a hundred drones over the entire period.
The IDF has said that Hezbollah is launching most of its attacks from deeper within southern Lebanon, and not from close to the border.
Smoke plumes rise following Israeli strike on the village of Khiam in southern Lebanon near the border with Israel, as seen from nearby Marjayoun, on March 16, 2026. (Photo by AFP) /
The attacks came following a period of relative quiet after a November 2024 truce agreement mostly ended a previous round of fighting, which had begun when Hezbollah attacked Israel on October 8, 2023.
More rocket fire from Hezbollah; IDF strikes in Beirut
Overnight Sunday-Monday, the IDF said it had launched a new wave of airstrikes against Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut.
No further details were given by the military.
Earlier, the IDF had repeated an evacuation warning for several neighborhoods in Beirut’s southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold.
Firefighters work at the site of overnight Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut on March 16, 2026. (Photo by AFP) /
Overnight and Monday morning, sirens sounded in the Galilee Panhandle, amid rocket fire by the terror group.
There were no reports of injuries.
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