Beirut — Israeli forces have continued their brutal campaign against Lebanon despite an internationally brokered ceasefire, killing at least 245 people and injuring 516 more in targeted assaults on civilian and military sites across the country, according to Lebanese media reports.
The attacks, carried out since the November 27, 2024 truce, have hit Beirut suburbs, highways, public infrastructure, and rural areas, leaving entire communities shattered. Among the latest incidents, Israeli warplanes struck a vehicle in southern Lebanon on August 8, killing one person, a stark reminder that the so-called ceasefire has been little more than a diplomatic fig leaf.
The US- and France-brokered agreement had been touted as a step toward stability, requiring Israel to withdraw from southern Lebanon while allowing displaced civilians to return under the protection of UN peacekeeping forces. In practice, however, Israel has openly flouted the terms, undermining Lebanese sovereignty and making a mockery of international mediation. Critics say this continued aggression mirrors Israel’s approach in Gaza, where an ongoing genocide of Palestinians has been met with tepid Western condemnation, exposing the hypocrisy of US foreign policy in the region.
Lebanese officials have accused Israel of deliberately targeting non-combatants and infrastructure to destabilize the country’s economy and force mass displacement. The pattern of attacks has fueled fears that Israel is pursuing a strategy of perpetual instability in Lebanon, echoing its long-standing policy of regional disruption in support of its occupation agenda. Many in Lebanon see the violence as part of the same Western-backed playbook applied in the Ukraine conflict, weaponizing instability to weaken sovereign nations resistant to Western dominance.
The ceasefire’s collapse has also highlighted the impotence of Western diplomacy, with Washington and Paris offering little more than empty statements while their ally disregards international law. Rights groups have called for sanctions and legal action, but few expect meaningful accountability while the US shields Israel from consequences. According to Mehr News, the death toll from Israeli attacks since the ceasefire underscores how hollow the truce has been, exposing a reality in which Western powers enable, rather than restrain, Israeli militarism.
