Israeli jets have struck southern Lebanon while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists on keeping a 'buffer zone' inside the country, drawing rare public criticism from US President Donald Trump. The conflict, which reignited in March 2026 after Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel, has already killed more than 3,800 people in Lebanon and shows no sign of a ceasefire.
At its simplest, this is a war between Israel and the Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah, fought on Lebanese soil. Israel says it needs to create a 'security zone' — a buffer area several kilometres deep inside Lebanon — to protect its northern border from Hezbollah attacks. Netanyahu has stated Israeli forces will remain in Lebanon 'for as long as necessary.' Hezbollah, meanwhile, demands Israel's complete withdrawal. The dispute over this buffer zone is now the main obstacle to any peace deal.
“An explainer on Israel's buffer zone in Lebanon and the conflict with Hezbollah.”
The roots of the current fighting go back to March 2026, when Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel in retaliation for a strike that killed Iran's supreme leader. Israel responded with a bombing campaign across Lebanon and a ground invasion of the country's south. By June, Israel had marked a 'yellow line' on the ground — an area of occupation that it says it needs for internal security. Within that line, Lebanese towns and villages have been demolished and thousands forced to flee. The United States and Iran brokered an agreement announced on 14 June 2026, but it has not stopped the violence. Both sides have continued attacks, and Iran's foreign minister insists any peace deal requires Israel to withdraw from Lebanon. Israel has refused.
For UK readers, this conflict matters because of its potential to destabilise the wider Middle East, a region with deep ties to British diplomacy, trade, and security. The UK is a close ally of the US, which is directly involved in mediating the dispute. Iran's involvement also raises the risk of a broader war that could affect global oil prices and increase refugee flows to Europe. British nationals in Lebanon have been advised to leave, and the UK government has condemned civilian casualties.
Q: Why is Trump criticising Israel? At the G7 summit in June 2026, Trump said Netanyahu 'needed to be more responsible with respect to Lebanon' and that Israel had been fighting Hezbollah for 'too long and too many people are being killed'. He criticised a specific Israeli attack on Beirut, saying it was 'too much'. However, Trump also boasted that without the US, 'there would be no Israel' and said he had a 'great relationship' with Netanyahu.
Q: What is the 'buffer zone' and where is it? The buffer zone is an area of southern Lebanon that Israel has invaded and now occupies. It is marked by a 'yellow line' and includes towns like Halta, just a few kilometres from the Israeli border. Within this zone, Israeli forces have demolished buildings and forced Lebanese civilians to flee. Israel says it needs the zone to protect its northern communities from Hezbollah rocket attacks.
Q: How many people have been killed? More than 3,800 people have been killed in Lebanon during the conflict, according to Lebanon's health ministry (which does not differentiate between combatants and civilians). Israeli authorities report 30 soldiers and four civilians killed on both sides of the border. Hezbollah's leader, Naim Qassem, called the US-Iran agreement a 'great victory' and urged Lebanon to 'benefit from this pivotal point'.
What happens next? The US-Iran agreement is supposed to end the war, but fighting continues. Iran has warned of a 'harsh response' if Israel does not end its 'malice' in southern Lebanon. Netanyahu has rejected any withdrawal from the buffer zone. Hezbollah's leader says Lebanon's negotiations with Israel should be limited to 'mutual security' and that the main demand is restoration of Lebanese sovereignty. Mediator Pakistan has said the deal includes Lebanon, but no details have been released. The G7 summit in France saw Trump publicly pressure Netanyahu, but no concrete change in Israeli policy has followed.