As direct talks with Lebanon resume, Israel lays groundwork for prolonged southern presence: The details

Report by Amal Shehadeh, English adaptation by Mariella Succar

Israel waited for the launch of the seventh round of direct talks with Lebanon to reveal that its army is continuing operations in southern Lebanon and plans to maintain its presence there for at least another year.

An examination of the map of the Israeli presence shows that it extends across varying distances, covering an area of around 600 square kilometers inside Lebanon and reaching as far as 12 kilometers from the border in some areas.

The army has also established seven new military bases, five of them along the border and two in Khiam and Maroun al-Ras. It is also working with civilian construction companies to build infrastructure extending for kilometers along what it calls logistical roads. 

The work involves heavy engineering equipment, including excavators and D9 bulldozers.

Haaretz newspaper was the first to report the development, quoting a senior military officer as saying that the army had received instructions to prepare to remain in Lebanon.

The army is also making logistical arrangements for soldiers, most of whom are currently stationed inside civilian buildings in villages across southern Lebanon.

The disclosure that the Israeli presence could continue for at least another year coincided with the release of aerial images showing the scale of the changes in the area. The town of Khiam may be the clearest example.

Khiam is located 5 kilometers from the Israeli border. Roads are being opened there, and a military base is being established on the site of the former Khiam detention center. The army is also erecting earth berms and digging trenches along which its soldiers operate, while adding protective networks against suicide drones.

The same is happening in the village of Maroun al-Ras.
There, another military base has been established about 2 kilometers from the Israeli border, while the army has destroyed the vast majority of the village’s buildings.

Khiam and Maroun al-Ras are among 24 towns and villages whose destruction was highlighted by Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, amid statements from rights groups alleging that war crimes were committed there.