Israeli troopers collect amid navy automobiles on the Israeli aspect of the border with Lebanon, following an escalation between Hezbollah and Israel, and amid the U.S.-Israeli battle with Iran, in northern Israel, March 16, 2026.
| Photograph Credit score: Reuters
The Israeli navy mentioned on Monday (March 16, 2026) it was finishing up what it described as “restricted” floor operations towards Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, with its Defence Minister warning that these displaced wouldn’t return house till northern Israel was safe.
Lebanon was drawn into the battle in West Asia on March 2 when Tehran-backed Hezbollah attacked Israel in response to the killing of Iranian Supreme Chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in U.S.-Israeli strikes.
Israel responded with air raids on its northern neighbour and troop incursions into border areas.
Dying and displacement by Israeli strike
Lebanon mentioned on Monday (March 16) that Israeli assaults have killed 886 folks, together with 111 youngsters, within the nation for the reason that newest battle erupted. Greater than 830,000 folks have registered as displaced.
An Israeli navy assertion mentioned that in current days its troops “have begun restricted and focused floor operations towards key Hezbollah strongholds in southern Lebanon”.
“This exercise is a part of broader defensive efforts to determine and strengthen a ahead defensive posture, which incorporates the dismantling of terrorist infrastructure and the elimination of terrorists working within the space, as a way to take away threats and create an extra layer of safety for residents of northern Israel,” it mentioned.
The bottom operations had been preceded by air and artillery strikes, it added.
The announcement echoes comparable statements issued in 2024, when Israel and Hezbollah fought a significant battle in Lebanon, and in 2023, when the navy launched a floor assault in Gaza in response to Hamas’s October 7 assaults.
Turkey condemned the Israeli floor operation, saying it was “worsening instability within the area” and warning of “one other humanitarian disaster” within the West Asia.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, in the meantime, urged Israel to “not take this path — it might be an error”, additionally warning of the humanitarian penalties of a floor offensive.
In a briefing to journalists, Israeli navy spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani mentioned Hezbollah was “aspiring to broaden their operations… and firing tons of of rockets a day” towards Israel.
“They’ve additionally despatched tons of of Radwan terrorists to the south (of Lebanon),” he added, referring to Hezbollah’s elite unit.
Shoshani mentioned the bottom operations had been “restricted in goal towards areas what we perceive Hezbollah is posing a menace in direction of our civilians.”
“These are new areas that our troops weren’t working in yesterday,” he mentioned, including that “we’ll function for as a lot as we’d like”.
In current days, Hezbollah has reported focusing on Israeli forces on the border with Lebanon and in quite a few frontier cities, together with “direct clashes” in Khiam.
Printed – March 16, 2026 11:00 pm IST