Ceasefire brings no peace to Lebanon as Israel continues its attacks

Fady Noun

(ZENIT News – Asia News / Beirut, 04.09.2026).- A ceasefire has been reached between the United States and Iran, but the war in Lebanon continues for the time being. In fact, the Mideast country has experienced one of its bloodiest days, with the warring sides providing differing accounts. The Lebanese government reported a provisional death toll of 89 dead, including 12 medical personnel, and 722 wounded.

In Lebanon, the ceasefire announcement was welcomed by the president and the prime minister, who support European and international efforts to get Israel to respect it in Lebanon as well. Both leaders emphasised in separate statements that only Lebanese authorities are authorised to negotiate with Israel. This excludes Hezbollah whose military activities have been declared «illegal» by the government. The Speaker of Parliament, Nabih Berri, announced that Lebanon is concerned by the decision.

Hezbollah, acting independently and confirming that its war effort is under Iranian command, announced that it would respect the ceasefire. As of 1:00 am, the party-cum-militia has not claimed responsibility for any attacks, either on northern Israel or on Israeli soldiers on Lebanese territory.

However, in an unprecedented escalation, Israel unleashed a barrage of attacks yesterday afternoon on Beirut and its suburbs, as well as in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley. Its raids reached the city of Hermel, north of the Bekaa, where the civil defence centre was bombed.

Several sectors of Beirut were hit with a staggering toll – approximately one hundred deaths – in a series of raids carried out in just 15 minutes, overwhelming hospitals in Beirut and Sidon.

Overnight, a raid struck a civilian target, a café in Sidon, where fans were watching a football match, resulting in several deaths and injuries.

Rush to the South

Hezbollah issued a statement celebrating its victory and that of Iran, but urged residents not to return to their villages until the situation stabilises.

Indeed, an enthusiastic and somewhat naive rush to southern Lebanon immediately followed the news of the ceasefire, costing the lives of many Lebanese (the toll is still uncertain at this time).

To avoid a bloodbath, the Lebanese army, echoed by media outlets affiliated with the Shia parties, urgently called on displaced people Wednesday morning not to return to the south, specifying that airstrikes were continuing and that Israel had not included Lebanon in the ceasefire between Iran and the United States.

“The army calls on citizens to wait before returning to the towns and villages of the south,» the army said in its statement. To this end, it has blocked a road leading to southern Lebanon, near Burj Qalaouiyah, between the districts of Tyre and Nabatiyeh, to prevent displaced people from returning, according to correspondents on the ground.

Patriarch al-Rahi prevented from reaching Debel

Israel’s escalation prevented a humanitarian aid convoy, headed by Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rahi and Apostolic Nuncio Paolo Borgia, from reaching Debel. The convoy included Maronite bishops and officials, including Father Samir Ghaoui, president of Caritas Lebanon, and Fouad Abounader, president of the Nawraj association.

The previous day, another convoy led by the nuncio and including a delegation from L’Œuvre d’Orient had also been halted at the same location. The nuncio took the opportunity to publicly read Pope Leo XIV’s message to the Christians of southern Lebanon who refused to leave their land.

After arriving via the Bekaa Valley, the convoy stopped again yesterday in Kaukaba, a town with a mixed Druze and Christian population, reports my colleague Katia Kahil. She explained that an altercation occurred between Israeli forces and UNIFIL, under whose protection the convoy was travelling. This incident led to Israeli troops detaining a member of the French contingent of the international force for two hours.

After Kaukaba, the patriarch also visited Marjayoun and Qleiat before returning to Beirut.

Katia Kahil stressed that extensive destruction was caused by the close-quarters fighting that took place around Khyam and the towns surrounding Bent Jbeil, which the Israeli army had wanted to enter.

For its part, the Lebanese President’s Office is trying to get Paris, Riyadh, and Washington to exert pressure on Israel to accept a ceasefire, a prelude to negotiations aimed at ending the war on the southern border, recovering all of Lebanon’s territory, and implementing the Taif Agreement.

However, this plan runs counter to the Israeli government’s goal, recently reiterated by the Chief of the General Staff, Eyal Zamir, which is to continue its bombing campaign against Hezbollah.

Are these sudden, massive, and indiscriminate bombings a final push by Israel, aware that it will not be able to continue its offensive in Lebanon for much longer? This is what some observers believe, including activist Ronnie Chatah, son of Mohammad Chatah, a Sunni parliamentarian assassinated under Syrian influence. However, this is not what Amal Shehadeh, LBCI television correspondent in Haifa, thinks.

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