Peace eludes Lebanon one year on from ceasefire with Israel | Global News Podcast

Welcome to the Global News podcast on. YouTube, where we go behind the. headlines of a story and tell you why it. really matters. On this episode, we mark. a year since the end of the war when a. ceasefire was brokered between Israel. and the Lebanese militia group. Hezbollah. Despite this, Israel has. continued to attack targets it says are. linked to Hezbollah, which is described. as a terrorist organization by countries. including the UK and the US. Lebanon. says more than 330 people, including. civilians, have been killed in Israeli.

air strikes across the country since the. deal came into effect. To discuss this. and mark a year since the ceasefire. began, I'm joined by our Middle East. correspondent, Hugo Basha, who's been on. the streets and communities of South. Lebanon in recent days talking to people. who are affected by events in their. local vicinities. And Hugo, you've been. talking to us about, I guess, whether. the ceasefire can hold and also how. people are feeling locally on the. ground. >> Exactly. And this was a war that was.

devastating uh for Lebanon. More than. 4,000 people were killed uh here in this. country. Uh you know, we're talking. about billions of dollars in uh. destruction, economic damage, and a year. ago today uh this ceasefire came into. effect. though it ended the war between. Hezbollah and Israel, but the reality on. the ground is that the war has. continued. Uh we have uh you know these. Israeli attacks that have been happening.

almost every day. And this is happening. because back when the ceasefire was uh. agreed between uh Israel and Lebanon, there was some kind of understanding. between the Israelis and the [music]. Americans that Israel would have the. freedom to operate in Lebanon when it. you know identified some kind of threat. come coming from Hezbollah. And this has. been the justification of the Israeli. governments to carry out these attacks. that have been happening across the.

country and again almost every day. Israel says that it is targeting. Hezbollah. Uh it says Hezbollah has been. trying to rebuild its military. capabilities. And the south of the. country is obviously the heartland of uh. the uh this country's Shia Muslim. community and it is the heartland of. Hezbollah and it is it's been one of the. places uh that uh you know have been uh. under constant attack by the Israeli. military. So we visited some of those.

hardest hit communities to talk to. residents to really understand how they. are, you know, living under the constant. fear of these Israeli air strikes. >> Yeah, it must been an incredibly. worrying time still because a year on we. can say that there's been a ceasefire, but sometimes a ceasefire as we've often. spoken about in the past, they can be as. fragile and complex as the paper they're. written on. Frankly, >> exactly. about the concept of a. ceasefire is that you know fire is going. to seize and this has not happened uh.

here uh in Lebanon and obviously you. know along uh the border those villages. that have been heavily destroyed are. completely deserted. The Israeli. military has essentially enforced a. buffer zone between Lebanon and uh. Israel. uh Israel continues to occupy at. least five locations in the south of the. country has justified this occupation uh. as saying that you know these are. measures needed uh to uh keep uh. communities uh in northern Israel safe.

and has been saying that it is. fulfilling its obligations under the. deal. Now what is key here to understand. you know these you know different. versions and claims and counter claims. is that uh there is a a river that runs. through southern Lebanon uh the Lerni. River. So this uh river is about 30. kilometers from the border with Israel. Hezbollah says that the ceasefire deal. only applies to this part of the country.

and that essentially has the you know. right to continue to operate in other. parts of Lebanon. Now Israel says that. this is not the case that the ceasefire. applies to the entire country and. obviously the Lebanese authorities are. under a lot of pressure because uh the. new government here has vowed to disarm. Hezbollah. So there is a huge effort by. the Lebanese military in the south of. the Lerni River to disarm Hezbollah. And. by and large what we're hearing from the. Lebanese army, from people who know the.

situation on the ground, from the United. Nations uh uh you know force that is uh. uh you know operating in the south of. the country. They say that Hezbollah has. been fulfilling its part of the deal and. they're not identifying any kind of uh. activity by Hezbollah to try to. reestablish itself in the south of the. country. Now the Israelis are saying. something completely different. They say. that they have identified activities by. Hezbollah to reestablish these military.

capabilities infrastructure in the south. of the country. And there has been a lot. of speculation in recent weeks that. Israel is planning to escalate its. offensive against Hezbollah. So there. is, you know, a lot of concern here in. Lebanon that we could be seeing the. beginning of a larger Israeli offensive. against Hezbollah. >> Yes. So you give us a sense and and a. understanding of of what maybe the two. sides are thinking and how they're. behaving. But amongst all of this, of. course, there are people who are living.

on the ground. And when you speak to. them and you've been through their. communities, what have they had to say. to you and and what are some of their. fears and and and hopes for the future? >> Yeah. So, uh you know, despite all of. this, Hezbollah remains extremely uh uh. you know, powerful popular uh in this. country. Uh so, you know, the group. still enjoys significant support. uh but. in some parts uh of uh of of the country. where the group has a very strong. presence, I think it's fair to say that.

there is uh some kind of discontent. because of this constant uh uh these. constant attacks by the Israeli. military. So, we've heard from a lot of. people who are saying, well, look, the. group needs to make a decision. Uh we. cannot continue to live like this. uh no. reconstruction is happening because. Lebanon's international partners have. said they're not going to fund any kind. of reconstruction until there is. Hezbollah's disarmament or there is a. you know a clear timeline uh for the. group to be disarmed. So we visited a.

number of v villages and locations in. the south of the country that remain in. ruins because no reconstruction is. happening. Uh a lot of people are also. very tired of this situation because you. have air strikes, you have drones uh uh. you know uh flying over uh cities and. villages across Lebanon uh almost on a. daily basis. Even in places like Beirut, you know, it's you know, we often hear, you know, the buzz of Israeli drones. flying over the capital, which is far.

from uh the border with Israel. So I. think this gives you an indication of of. the volatility uh of the situation here. and how fragile the ceasefire is. Now it. is important to say that Hezbollah has. not responded to this escalation that. we've seen uh in the last few weeks. because he knows that any kind of. response will pave the way for a massive. Israeli uh retaliation. But again, the. fear here of many Lebanese is that we. could be seeing uh an escalation in.

these uh hostilities and obviously there. is the concern that we could see a wider. conflict erupting. >> If that is to be the case, then in terms. of any international intervention, is. that likely possibly in the in the. coming weeks and months? >> Well, it does seem that uh the Israelis. are planning to go ahead with some kind. of wider campaign against Hezbollah. uh. they are saying that they are not going. to tolerate any kind of uh um uh. reinforcement of Hezbollah's positions.

along the border with Israel and it does. seem that they have the support of the. Trump administration. I've been talking. to diplomats here in Lebanon who are. familiar with uh the discussions that. are happening behind the scenes and. essentially they've been saying that the. Lebanese authorities have made some kind. of progress in disarming Hezbollah. especially in the south of the country. but there is this perception that things. have been extremely slow uh and there is. this frustration from American officials. that there hasn't been uh significant.

progress in their view and uh they are. supporting Israel's attacks and you know. uh the Israeli policy when it comes to. uh Hezbollah and they say that you know. there is some kind of uh you know. frustration with the way the Lebanese. authorities have been approaching what. is a very delicate you know issue here. in this country. Lots of divisions. remember that this is a country that had. a devastating civil war uh uh based on.

sectarian divisions and the president. has been saying that any kind of uh you. know uh strong response against. Hezbollah could exacerbate sectarian. divisions in the country and reignite. the civil war here. So that gives you an. idea of of how difficult the situation. is internally for the Lebanese. But. there has been uh you know some uh uh. you know push uh efforts uh diplomatic. efforts uh in recent days and weeks to. try to deescalate the situation. But.

again uh what we're hearing from uh you. know from the Israeli authorities uh. indicates that uh they seem to be uh you. know planning uh an escalation of this. campaign against Hezbollah. And then. finally, I guess Hugo, if that is to be. the case, then would the presence, the. shadow of Iran loom large over this? >> Yeah, and this is such an interesting. point here because obviously Hezbollah. is supported by Iran. Hezbollah was the.

main uh you know actor in what Iran used. to describe as the axis of resistance. which was essentially a ring of fire uh. uh around uh Israel and was considered. to be you know the main uh group uh you. know to defend uh Iran from any kind of. uh Israeli attack. That's no longer the. case. But a lot of people who've been. watching this uh situation for a very. long time say that well the Iranians are. playing the long game here. They know.

that they are under a lot of pressure. but they also see uh as being you know a. key part of the country's foreign policy. and part of the country's strategy to. have a very strong Hezbollah here in. Lebanon. So uh when you talk about. disarmament you know a lot of people say. that you know a decision about the. future of Hezbollah's weapons will not. be taken here in Lebanon but will be. taken in Iran. So obviously Iran is a. key player in the crisis that is. happening here.

>> Hugo thank you so much for your time. Hugo Basha our Middle East correspondent. joining me on the line from Lebanon. If. you enjoyed this story then do check out. our global news podcast where there are. other world stories we cover. You can. find it wherever you download your. podcast from. Also, do give this episode. a like and subscribe to our BBC News. YouTube channel. And please leave us a. comment below uh to talk about this. story and if there are any other stories. you'd love us to cover in the future. For now, I'm Anker Desai. Thanks so much. for your company.