‘No red line’: South Lebanon residents outraged as Israel resumes strikes

As Israel resumes strikes and displacement orders in southern Lebanon, residents of the region are expressing anger and helplessness during ongoing talks between Lebanese and Israeli officials.

For displaced families, Thursday’s latest round of strikes, which injured at least eight people , is further evidence that the June ceasefire has failed to protect them from Israeli military action. The Israeli military sparked this latest wave of panic by issuing a forced evacuation order for the town of Mansouri on Wednesday, marking its first displacement directive in weeks.

“Mansouri is not part of Israel’s occupation zone,” Yousef Shehemi, mayor of the neighboring town of Majdal Zoun, told Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr. “But Israel has no red lines—they target where they want. They have not respected any ceasefire.”

Families from Mansouri who fled were still gathered on the outskirts of the town on Thursday, waiting for word that it was safe to return.

Outrage was mounting on the ground as residents watched the Israeli military demolish homes and set fire to farmland, with many expressing little faith that ongoing negotiations between Beirut and Israel will secure their safe return.

Abu Rached, a resident of Majdal Zoun, said the destruction had gone unanswered by Lebanese officials. “Can’t you see what they did to south Lebanon? They’re destroying it, displacing people—even the [Lebanese] army can’t stay in Mansouri,” he told Al Jazeera. “Where are the officials?”

Representatives from Lebanon and Israel met in Rome for another round of negotiations earlier this week, after both governments signed a “framework” intended to secure an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon once Hezbollah is disarmed.

Hezbollah, which is not a part of the ongoing talks, has publicly opposed the deal.