Lebanese army uncovers tunnel with living facilities in southern border sweep — the details

Report by Lara El Hachem, English adaptation by Karine Keuchkerian

It is enough to travel through Wadi al-Aziyeh in armored military vehicles to understand the difficulty soldiers face as they search the area and clear it of weapons. Along the route, troops found empty storage rooms and identified positions between the trees that had been used to launch rockets.

It takes about 45 minutes to reach Wadi Zibqin, where one of Hezbollah’s tunnels is located.

Inside a tunnel, all essentials for living were found — including sanitation facilities, a kitchen with neatly arranged canned food, and water tanks. The tunnel was equipped with ventilation pipes to allow fighters to stay inside for extended periods.

Wadi Zibqin had been one of Hezbollah’s main strongholds before the army cleared it, losing five soldiers while dismantling a military installation during one of the 30,011 missions carried out since the ceasefire agreement. 

The army says it paid a price for conducting its work quietly, prompting a decision to brief local and Western media on efforts launched when the truce took effect.

According to the army, seized materials total more than 219,000 weapons, rounds of ammunition and pieces of military equipment. The only obstacle to completing deployment, according to Brigadier General Nicolas Tabet, commander of the South Litani Sector, is the Israeli occupation.

At the Labbouneh hill, Israel seized about 400,000 square meters by building a military position and creating a buffer zone around it.

In the western sector, the Israeli army completed construction of the border wall after burning forested areas and targeting even Lebanese army positions.

Despite these challenges, the army says it remains determined to complete the weapons-containment plan.

The army, which coordinates closely with UNIFIL and the ceasefire monitoring committee, entering homes is not part of its plan at this stage, and inspections of houses struck by Israel have not uncovered weapons or ammunition.