BEIRUT:&nbsp;Human Rights Watch on Monday accused Israel of &quot;unlawfully&quot; using white phosphorus over residential parts of a southern Lebanese town last week. &quot;The Israeli military unlawfully used artillery-fired white phosphorus munitions over homes on March 3, 2026, in the southern Lebanese town of Yohmor,&quot; the New York-based rights group said in a report. HRW added that it &quot;verified and geolocated seven images showing airburst white phosphorus munitions being deployed over a residential part of the town and civil defense workers responding to fires in at least two homes and one car in that area&quot;.<div class="fr-embed youtube-embed"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DDxQiIA9jKU" title="Fresh strikes hit Beirut's southern suburbs after Israeli warning" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen="" style="width: 100%; height: auto; aspect-ratio: 16 / 9; max-width: 100%; display: block;"></iframe>&nbsp;</div>White phosphorus, a substance that ignites on contact with oxygen, can be used to create smokescreens and to illuminate battlefields. Horrific burns&nbsp;But the munition can also be used as an incendiary weapon and can cause fires, horrific burns, respiratory damage, organ failure and death. Israel -- which kept up strikes targeting Hezbollah despite a 2024 ceasefire -- launched multiple waves of strikes across Lebanon since last week and sent ground troops into border areas. Nearly 400 killed&nbsp;At least 394 people have been killed in Israeli attacks, Lebanese authorities said, registering more than half a million people as displaced.<div class="fr-embed youtube-embed"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fzVU2A-ExsQ" title="At least 30,000 displaced in Lebanon by Middle East conflict, UN refugee agency says" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen="" style="width: 100%; height: auto; aspect-ratio: 16 / 9; max-width: 100%; display: block;"></iframe>&nbsp;</div>&quot;The Israeli military&#39;s unlawful use of white phosphorus over residential areas is extremely alarming and will have dire consequences for civilians,&quot; Ramzi Kaiss, Lebanon researcher at HRW, was quoted saying in the report. &quot;Israel should immediately halt this practice and states providing Israel with weapons, including white phosphorus munitions, should immediately suspend military assistance and arms sales and push Israel to stop firing such munitions in residential areas,&quot; he added. &lsquo;Phosphorus shelling&rsquo;Lebanese authorities and HRW have over the past years accused Israel of using controversial white phosphorus rounds, in attacks authorities say have harmed civilians and the environment. Lebanon&#39;s state-run National News Agency on Sunday said Israeli forces targeted the towns of Khiam and Tal Nahas, near the border with Israel, &quot;with artillery and phosphorus shelling&quot;. Last month, Lebanon accused Israel of spraying the herbicide glyphosate on the Lebanese side of their shared border, with President Joseph Aoun decrying it as a &quot;crime against the environment&quot;.

Middle East

Says it, ‘verified and geolocated seven images showing airburst white phosphorus munitions being deployed over a residential part of’ a Lebanese town; at least 394 people have been killed in Israeli attacks. 

Israeli forces fired white phosphorus over homes in Lebanon: HRW

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ISLAMABAD: Israeli military operations forced nearly 90% of internally displaced families in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/israel-strikes-south-lebanon-after-warning-official-media" target="_blank" style="font-size: 18px;" rel="noopener noreferrer">southern</a>&nbsp;Lebanon to flee again in November last year, as hostilities intensified and attacks on civilians and humanitarian infrastructure escalated, according to a protection monitoring report published on UNHCR&rsquo;s Operational Data Portal. The report, based on joint monitoring by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC), the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and INTERSOS, documented a sharp rise in security incidents and territorial incursions by Israeli forces. Investigators recorded 167 violations during November, up from 133 in October. &ldquo;Reports documented <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/un-force-says-israeli-tank-fired-near-peacekeepers-in-lebanon" target="_blank" style="font-size: 18px;" rel="noopener noreferrer">repeated Israeli fire</a> on civilians in Aita al-Shaab and strikes on civilian equipment, alongside a pattern of expanding incursions and the occupation of additional Lebanese territory,&rdquo; the report stated. Insecurity and armed conflict emerged as the leading cause of displacement, driving 55% of new movements and overtaking economic pressures for the first time in months. While overall internal displacement fell to 5% of households nationwide, southern Lebanon accounted for the overwhelming majority of cases. The monitoring teams documented multiple attacks on <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/un-force-in-lebanon-says-peacekeeper-wounded-by-israeli-fire" target="_blank" style="font-size: 18px;" rel="noopener noreferrer">humanitarian</a> and civilian facilities. &quot;Israeli forces escalated attacks on response mechanisms by striking a M&eacute;decins Sans Fronti&egrave;res clinic in Hermel, Baalbak-El Hermel Governorate, while patients were receiving medical care,&quot; the report stated. The report also cited fatal airstrikes, including the killing of a municipal worker while he slept, and bulldozing operations from newly occupied Israeli positions that destroyed homes in Aitaroun. Additional attacks were reported in Talet Hamames, while &ldquo;reports documented repeated Israeli fire on civilians in Aita al-Shaab and strikes on civilian equipment, alongside a pattern of expanding incursions and the occupation of additional Lebanese territory.&quot; Researchers described a consistent pattern of attacks on civilians, civilian equipment and private property, warning that expanding incursions were deepening humanitarian needs. The proportion of households reporting multiple displacements declined from 64% in October to 52% in November, though fear of persecution and rising rents remained significant drivers of movement. Movement restrictions were the most commonly reported safety impact, affecting 56% of households. Beirut&ndash;Mount Lebanon and the North recorded the highest levels of safety incidents, at 21% each, with harassment dominating reports in the capital region. Checkpoint-related incidents rose to 53% in November, from 46% the previous month. Syrian and Palestinian refugee women reported intensified scrutiny. Some &ldquo;women described being denied passage at checkpoints where they were previously allowed through and being threatened with arrest if they attempted to cross again,&quot; the report said. Access to services deteriorated sharply. Only 60% of households reported accessing services in November, down from 75% in October. Cost was cited as the main barrier by 75% of respondents, followed by service unavailability and long travel distances. Eviction threats increased to 18% of households, a five-point rise from October, with Syrians accounting for 92% of reported cases. Delayed rent payments surged to 74% as the primary trigger, although actual evictions declined to 27% from 44% the previous month. Migrants reported exploitative practices by landlords linked to cash-for-rent assistance. The report said how &ldquo;[L]andlords exploit[ed] cash-for-rent programs: when [aid organizations] pay landlords directly for up to three months, [they] often raise[d] rents afterward,&rdquo; then evicted families and rented units to new tenants at higher prices. Legal vulnerability remained acute. Fewer than 19% of non-Lebanese households held valid residency permits, consistent with previous months. The North and Akkar governorates recorded the highest proportion of respondents without residency at 43%, a 13% increase from October. Households lacking legal status increasingly relied on irregular and exploitative work, which rose to 59% as the dominant coping mechanism, continuing an upward trend since September. The findings were based on 1,130 household surveys covering 5,676 individuals, alongside 80 key informant interviews and 39 focus group discussions conducted across Lebanon during November 2025.

Israeli attacks in November 2025 drove mass displacement in southern Lebanon, targeting civilians and aid sites, worsening insecurity, services and housing.

Israeli attacks drive mass displacement, aid access plunges across Lebanon

BEIRUT:&nbsp;The UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon said Israeli soldiers shot at its troops on Sunday in the south of the country, while Israel&#39;s military said it mistook blue helmets for &quot;suspects&quot; and fired warning shots. The Israeli military blamed &quot;poor weather conditions&quot; and said it had not deliberately targeted UN troops. Earlier on Sunday, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said in a statement that Israeli forces &quot;fired on UNIFIL peacekeepers from a Merkava tank from near a position Israel has established in Lebanese territory,&quot; adding that heavy machine gun rounds hit about five meters from their personnel. The force said the peacekeepers were able to &quot;leave safely 30 minutes later&quot; after the tank withdrew inside the Israeli position. &lsquo;Poor weather conditions&rsquo;In a statement, the Israeli military said &quot;two suspects were identified&quot; in the El Hamames area of southern Lebanon. &quot;The troops subsequently fired warning shots, and the suspects distanced themselves. No injuries were reported,&quot; it said. &quot;After a review, it was determined that the suspects were UN soldiers who were conducting a patrol in the area and were classified as suspects due to poor weather conditions. &lsquo;Violation&rsquo; of UNSC resolution&nbsp;&quot;No deliberate fire was directed toward UNIFIL soldiers.&quot; UNIFIL has been working with the Lebanese army to consolidate a truce between Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah reached last November. It said the incident &quot;represents a serious violation of UN Security Council resolution 1701&quot;, which ended a 2006 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, and also formed the basis of last November&#39;s truce. That ceasefire sought to end more than a year of hostilities between the parties, which broke out after the start of the Gaza war. Under the deal, Israel was to withdraw its forces from south Lebanon, but it has kept them in five areas it deems strategic. &lsquo;Aggressive behavior&rsquo;It has also carried out regular strikes on targets in Lebanon, arguing it is hitting Hezbollah sites and operatives. The Israeli military said the incident was under examination and was being handled through official military liaison channels. Sunday&#39;s incident was not the first in which UNIFIL accused Israel of endangering its troops. &quot;Yet again, we call on the IDF to cease any aggressive behavior and attacks on or near peacekeepers,&quot; the force said. &lsquo;Violating Lebanese sovereignty&rsquo;&nbsp;Lebanon&#39;s army, meanwhile, accused Israel of &quot;violating Lebanese sovereignty, causing instability and obstructing the full deployment of the army in the south&quot;. The army is meant to deploy to the area alongside UNIFIL as part of the ceasefire agreement. It said it was &quot;working, in coordination with friendly countries, to put an end to the continuous violations&quot;.

UNIFIL says the incident "represents a serious violation of UN Security Council resolution 1701", which ended a 2006 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, and also formed the basis of last November's truce.

Articles tagged with "Southern Lebanon"

Israeli forces fired white phosphorus over homes in Lebanon: HRW

Israeli attacks drive mass displacement, aid access plunges across Lebanon

UN peacekeepers say Israeli forces fired on them in southern Lebanon