Israel Strikes Southern Lebanon but Partial Truce with Hezbollah Appears to Hold
Israel kept up aerial and drone attacks on southern Lebanon on Tuesday — killing at least three people and wounding soldiers — but held back from striking Beirut for a second day, after a US-brokered partial ceasefire that both sides have accepted in ambiguous and contradictory terms.
Smoke rises from Israeli airstrikes near Nabatieh, southern Lebanon — Tuesday, June 3, 2026 · Reuters / Atef Safadi / NATFLIX
⚡ What We Know Right Now
- Israel struck at least four municipalities around Nabatieh, southern Lebanon, on Tuesday — injuring two Lebanese Army soldiers and killing at least three civilians.
- Israel did not strike Beirut for the second consecutive day — holding the Beirut portion of the partial truce announced by Trump on Monday night.
- An Israeli drone overflew Beirut at low altitude on Tuesday, keeping residents on edge despite the Beirut ceasefire.
- The Lebanese Embassy in Washington confirmed Hezbollah accepted the US proposal — Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs cease; Hezbollah refrains from attacking Israel.
- Israeli Defence Minister Yisrael Katz explicitly denied a formal ceasefire was in place in Lebanon — calling it a conditional operational decision, not a truce.
- Hezbollah said it would not take a public stance until a formal declaration requiring a comprehensive cessation of hostilities across all Lebanese territory is issued.
- Lebanon and Israel began their 5th round of peace talks at the US State Department in Washington on Tuesday.
- Lebanon's health ministry reports 3,400+ people killed, 128 paramedics and healthcare workers dead, and 159 attacks on ambulances and medical facilities since March 2.
- Netanyahu vowed Israel's campaign in south Lebanon "would continue" regardless of any Beirut arrangement.
Israel pressed on with airstrikes across southern Lebanon on Tuesday, targeting at least four municipalities in the Nabatieh region and wounding two Lebanese Army soldiers, even as a partial US-brokered ceasefire announced by President Donald Trump the previous evening continued to hold in its narrow, contested scope — keeping Israeli jets away from Beirut for a second day while the far bloodier campaign in the south continued unabated.
The partial truce, announced by Trump on Monday night following direct phone calls with both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, is already being described in such contradictory terms by the parties involved that its durability remains deeply uncertain. What both sides appear to agree on, at minimum, is this: Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs are suspended, and Hezbollah has refrained from launching attacks into Israeli territory. Everything south of that narrow understanding is, as of Tuesday, still war.
How the Partial Truce Came to Be
Trump's intervention on Monday came after a sharp weekend escalation that threatened to collapse the broader ceasefire framework entirely. Israel had issued evacuation warnings for Hezbollah-controlled neighbourhoods in Beirut's southern suburbs over the weekend, signalling an imminent major strike. It was at that point that Trump personally called Netanyahu and asked him to stand down — specifically to prevent Beirut from being targeted and to avert further escalation in the three-month-old war.
"Under the proposal, Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs are to cease in exchange for Hezbollah refraining from carrying out attacks against Israel."
— Lebanese Embassy in Washington, official statement, June 2, 2026The proposal was brought to the parties by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who framed it as a gradual de-escalation framework that would eventually expand to cover the rest of Lebanon. The Lebanese government said it would use the Tuesday peace talks in Washington — the fifth round between Lebanon and Israel at the US State Department since April — to push for exactly that expansion.
But before the ink was dry on the announcement, the Israeli side issued qualifications that made clear Jerusalem viewed the arrangement in very different terms. A joint statement by Netanyahu and Defence Minister Katz described the Beirut restraint as a response to an operational assessment — not a mutual truce — and Katz explicitly denied that a formal ceasefire was in effect anywhere in Lebanon. Israel's position, as stated by its government, is that attacks on "terror targets" will continue wherever Hezbollah is operating or rearming.
Hezbollah's Calculated Silence
Hezbollah's response to the partial ceasefire announcement was notable for what it did not say. Youssef al-Zein, the head of Hezbollah's press office, declined to endorse the deal or confirm the group's participation in it — pointing instead to the pattern of past ceasefires that Israel had subsequently violated.
"Hezbollah will monitor developments both on the battlefield and in diplomatic channels in the coming days."
— Youssef al-Zein, Head of Hezbollah Press Office, Monday, June 2, 2026Zein's statement pointed directly to Israel's conduct after the November 2024 ceasefire — which Israel violated repeatedly with near-daily strikes throughout 2025 — and to the April 16 truce announced by Trump, which Israel also continued to breach. Hezbollah's message, delivered with studied ambiguity, was clear: the group would not publicly commit to a ceasefire it did not believe Israel intended to honour comprehensively. It would watch, and act accordingly.
🇮🇱 Israel's Position
Netanyahu says the campaign in south Lebanon will continue regardless of the Beirut arrangement. Defence Minister Katz explicitly denies a formal ceasefire exists. Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah weapons storage, production sites, and commanders. An Israeli drone overflew Beirut on Tuesday — a visible reminder of Israel's continued reach into the capital. Israel maintains troops in five "strategic" hilltop positions in south Lebanon, in violation of the November 2024 ceasefire terms.
🇱🇧 Hezbollah's Position
Hezbollah has not formally confirmed it accepted the US proposal. Press office chief Zein says the group will "monitor developments." Hezbollah demands a comprehensive cessation of hostilities across all Lebanese territory before making any public commitment. The Lebanese Embassy in Washington confirmed Hezbollah accepted — but Hezbollah itself has not. The group points to Israel's history of violating previous truces as grounds for caution.
Tuesday's Strikes — What Happened on the Ground
Despite the partial truce, Tuesday was far from quiet in southern Lebanon. Israeli strikes hit at least four municipalities in and around the Nabatieh region — a city approximately 25 kilometres southeast of Sidon, well south of the Litani River. Lebanese Civil Defence reported deaths in Marwaniyeh. Two Lebanese Army soldiers were wounded in a separate strike, according to Lebanese military sources — a particularly sensitive development given the Lebanese Army's role as the key guarantor of the November 2024 ceasefire's implementation.
An Israeli drone was also reported overflying Beirut at low altitude on Tuesday, maintaining a presence in the capital's skies even as Israeli jets stayed away from striking it. For Beirut residents, the drone's presence was a pointed reminder that the partial truce is precisely that — partial — and that the capability and apparent willingness to strike remains on standby.
- Saturday–Sunday, May 31 – June 1 Israel issues evacuation warnings for Hezbollah-controlled neighbourhoods in Beirut's southern suburbs, signalling an imminent major strike. Tens of thousands of residents flee. Lebanon accuses Israel of preparing to destroy the truce entirely.
- Monday, June 2 — Trump Intervenes Trump calls Netanyahu and Aoun directly, asking Israel to step back from the Beirut strike. Secretary of State Rubio proposes a partial ceasefire framework. Lebanon announces Hezbollah accepted. Israel strikes south Lebanon and Bekaa Valley instead of Beirut — Israeli Civil Defense reports deaths in Marwaniyeh. Lebanon says Israeli forces withdrew from Kafr Kila, in the south.
- Monday Night — Partial Truce Announced Trump posts on Truth Social that "both sides have agreed" to halt attacks. Lebanese Embassy in Washington says Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs are suspended in exchange for Hezbollah refraining from attacks on Israel. Katz denies a formal ceasefire exists. Hezbollah declines to publicly confirm or deny.
- Tuesday, June 3 — Strikes Continue South Israel strikes four municipalities in the Nabatieh region. Two Lebanese Army soldiers wounded. Israeli drone overflies Beirut at low altitude. No strike on Beirut. Lebanese and Israeli delegations begin fifth round of peace talks at US State Department. Lebanon says it will push to expand the ceasefire to cover all Lebanese territory.
Lebanon's Path Forward — And Its Limits
Lebanon entered Tuesday's Washington talks — the fifth since April — with a clear objective: turning the narrow Beirut truce into a comprehensive framework covering all Lebanese territory. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has consistently framed Lebanon's position as requiring full Israeli withdrawal from all Lebanese territory and a complete end to all Israeli military operations, not just those targeting the capital.
That position faces formidable obstacles. Israel has maintained troops in five hilltop positions along the southern border that Netanyahu has declared strategically necessary, and has shown no inclination to withdraw. The IDF has conducted what Lebanese officials describe as more than 10,000 violations of the November 2024 ceasefire, killing at least 330 people before the Iran War broadened the conflict further in March. Israel's position — that its strikes will continue as long as Hezbollah maintains any military infrastructure south of the Litani — makes a comprehensive ceasefire dependent on a level of Hezbollah disarmament that has not materialised and that Hezbollah has given no indication it intends to accept.
What a Comprehensive Lebanon Ceasefire Would Require
- From Israel: Full withdrawal of remaining troops from five "strategic" hilltop positions in southern Lebanon. End of all airstrikes and drone operations over Lebanese territory. Adherence to the November 2024 ceasefire terms that were never fully implemented.
- From Hezbollah: Complete withdrawal of all fighters and weapons north of the Litani River. Dismantlement of all remaining military infrastructure south of the Litani. Formal and public ceasefire acceptance — not just through the Lebanese Embassy in Washington.
- From the US: Sustained diplomatic pressure on Israel to implement withdrawal. Clear and enforceable accountability mechanism for future violations by either side. Extension of the Beirut truce framework southward.
- From Lebanon: Lebanese Army deployment throughout southern Lebanon up to the Litani — partially underway but incomplete. Continued engagement with Israel in direct Washington talks despite Hezbollah objections.
- The gap: Lebanon's health ministry says 128 paramedics and healthcare workers have been killed and 159 attacks on ambulances and medical facilities have taken place over the past three months. These figures reflect a conflict that has, in practice, shown little respect for protected status.
The Partial Truce: A Fragile Holding Pattern
What Tuesday's events demonstrated is that the partial truce is, for now, holding in its narrowest definition: Beirut was not struck, and Hezbollah did not fire into Israel. That is not nothing. In the context of a three-month-old war that has killed more than 3,400 Lebanese and displaced over 1.2 million people, even a narrow suspension of the most escalatory actions represents a meaningful reduction in immediate harm.
But the silence in Beirut was accompanied by explosions in Nabatieh and a drone in the capital's sky. The Lebanese Army was wounded. The talks in Washington produced no announcement. And Hezbollah's careful silence — its refusal to confirm or deny accepting the truce — leaves open the question of whether the arrangement will hold if Israel strikes a target in south Lebanon that Hezbollah judges as crossing a threshold. The partial truce is not peace. It is, at best, a pause in the most visible part of a war that is very much continuing everywhere else.
"The Lebanese government has not — and will not — stop pushing for Israel's full withdrawal from our territory."
— Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, press statement, June 2026The broader Iran War ceasefire — the one between Washington and Tehran — remains a "work in progress" according to Secretary Rubio, with Iran saying a deal is "not imminent." Until that larger framework resolves, Lebanon's partial truce will remain exactly what it is: a narrow, contested, and fragile pause in a conflict that has fundamentally redrawn the security map of the Middle East.
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