The Lebanese army has stepped up military and security measures in an area proposed for inclusion in a pilot zone in southern Lebanon, announcing deployments across towns in the districts of Bint Jbeil, Tyre and Nabatieh. The measures come amid an Israeli military escalation and the start of construction of a line of permanent positions inside the security zone Israel occupies in southern Lebanon, Israel’s Maariv newspaper reported. The Lebanese army said it had deployed patrols, checkpoints and observation posts in Froun, Ghandouriyeh, Qalawayh, Burj Qalawayh and Kfar Dounin in the Bint Jbeil district, as well as Qaaqaiyat al-Jisr in the Nabatieh district and Srifa in the Tyre district. It also released photographs showing military vehicles and personnel deployed in the towns. The measures were introduced ahead of a technical meeting scheduled to take place by video conference on Friday, with representatives of the Lebanese, Israeli and US militaries expected to discuss implementation mechanisms for the pilot zone and determine which towns it would cover. The proposed zone could include Zawtar al-Sharqiya, which is occupied by Israel, and Zawtar al-Gharbiya, part of which is under Israeli occupation. It could also cover Froun, Ghandouriyeh, Srifa, Qalawayh and Burj Qalawayh, where Israel maintains fire control but has no forces stationed. Airstrikes Meanwhile, the Israeli military continued its violations of the ceasefire agreement. Israeli warplanes carried out two strikes on Thursday afternoon targeting the outskirts of the al-Deir neighborhood in Nabatieh al-Fawqa, firing several air-to-surface missiles. The explosions echoed across the Nabatieh area, sending thick plumes of smoke into the air. Two people were killed in the strikes, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported. The Israeli military also set fire to several homes and plots of land on the outskirts of Beit Yahoun in the Bint Jbeil district. Later in the afternoon, an Israeli drone carried out a guided-missile strike on the Ali al-Taher woodland on the outskirts of Nabatieh al-Fawqa. At dawn, Israeli warplanes had also struck the outskirts of Baraachit and Beit Yahoun in the Bint Jbeil district.
