BEIRUT — The Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire is becoming increasingly fragile as casualties mount and the Lebanese government struggles to deliver on its pledge to disarm Hezbollah.
asserted
government → become → Hezbollah
What was presented as a critical step toward restoring Lebanon’s sovereignty now risks becoming little more than a mirage.
asserted
presented → present → mirage
I sat by the plane’s window as Beirut’s Mediterranean coastline came into view.
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coastline → sit → view
As we landed, the cabin erupted in applause — a familiar Lebanese tradition celebrating a safe arrival.
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cabin → land → arrival
I joined in, but I wasn’t clapping for the pilot.
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I → join → pilot
I was applauding the resilience of passengers returning home despite the constant news of war, destruction and the rising death toll in southern Lebanon.
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I → applaud → Lebanon
My first question to the cab driver, as he sped toward my hotel along the virtually empty corniche on a weekend afternoon, with the Mediterranean stretching out beside us, was simple: “How is tourism these days?”
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tourism → speed → us
Look at it now — it’s almost empty,” he said.
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he → look → it
“Westerners are afraid to come, and Gulf countries have warned their citizens against travelling here.
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countries → come → citizens
We rely heavily on Lebanese living abroad for summer visits and the dollars they bring.
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they → rely → visits
It’s all because of the war — it could resume at any moment.”
While more than 800,000 displaced Lebanese people have returned to their homes in the south since the June ceasefire, my driver and his family remain among the hundreds of thousands still internally displaced.
uncertain
driver → ’ → thousands
They are living in temporary housing, collective shelters or with host families, unable to return to their villages.
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They → live → villages
Tensions there peaked in March after Hezbollah fired missiles at Israel, days after the United States and Israel began attacking Iran.
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States → peak → Iran
“Do you think the Lebanese army will be able to disarm Hezbollah, as agreed under the U.S.-brokered deal between Israel and the Lebanese government?” I asked.
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I → think → Israel
“It will never happen.
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It → happen → ?
The military does not recruit members based on political affiliation, but more than half of the army is Shiite Muslim.
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half → recruit → army
Many of sons serving in the army remain loyal to or sympathize with Hezbollah,” he said.
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he → serve → Hezbollah
“The Israelis are demanding what they call verified disarmament of Hezbollah before they withdraw from my village in the south.
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they → demand → south
I’m telling you now — it will never happen.
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it → tell → you
I am a Shiite Muslim myself, and in our religion, we don’t forget blood.
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we → forget → blood
We must avenge the deaths of our people in the south, our martyrs will not be forgotten.
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martyrs → avenge → south
It stops there.”
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It → stop → ?
Hezbollah was founded in 1982 by Lebanese Shiite clerics, including Hassan Nasrallah, who led the group until his death in an Israeli airstrike in September 2024.
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who → found → September
His successor, Naim Qassem, has rejected the U.S.-mediated framework, calling it “humiliating.”
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successor → reject → it
Under the terms of the June ceasefire, Hezbollah operatives were required to withdraw entirely from the buffer zone between the Israeli border and the Litani River, while Lebanese security forces were to assume control of designated “pilot zones” in the south that were previously occupied by Israeli forces.
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that → require → forces
In the southern village of Zawtar al-Gharbiya, where three-quarters of the buildings have been destroyed and there is still no running water or electricity, Lebanese army units have been clearing unexploded ordnance and rubble, working with residents to recover bodies and ensuring that no Hezbollah military presence remains in the area.
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presence → destroy → area
The U.S. State Department has maintained that the pilot-zone model is the only viable path toward lasting security for Lebanon, Israel and the wider region.
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model → maintain → Lebanon
Yet on the ground, skepticism among the locals remains high.
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skepticism → remain → locals
On paper, the agreement signed in Washington by Israel and Lebanon on June 26 marked a historic shift — the first direct agreement between the two countries since 1983.
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agreement → sign → 1983
A road map rather than a peace treaty, it recognizes Israel’s sovereignty and the two countries’ right to live in peace.
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it → recognize → peace
Yet Hezbollah, the central actor in the conflict, was not a signatory, underscoring the gap between the agreement’s diplomatic ambitions and the reality on the ground.
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Hezbollah → underscore → ground
I worked in Lebanon for a year with the International Committee of the Red Cross, visiting refugee camps, conflict zones and prisons.
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I → work → camps
I came to see a troubling pattern: Hezbollah-affiliated suspects rarely faced prolonged detention through Lebanon’s formal justice system.
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suspects → come → system
The few Hezbollah prisoners I interviewed were often quickly released on bail or discharged.
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I → interview → bail
Hezbollah is a Shiite Islamist political and paramilitary organization designated as a terrorist group by the United States, Canada and others.
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Hezbollah → designate → States
Over decades, it has become a state within the state, challenging Lebanon’s sovereignty and its institutions.
asserted
it → become → sovereignty
Sitting in my hotel room on Aug. 5, I watched news coverage of the three-day peace talks between Lebanese and Israeli diplomats in Rome, where they were negotiating the broader terms of the U.S.-brokered agreement.
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they → sit → agreement
Then, suddenly, a breaking-news banner flashed across the screen: two Israeli soldiers had been killed and four wounded by an explosive device in southern Lebanon.
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four → break → Lebanon
The Israeli military described the incident as a “blatant violation” by Hezbollah.
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military → describe → Hezbollah
Israeli airstrikes followed, along with evacuation warnings for villages across southern Lebanon — a stark reminder of just how fragile the ceasefire remained.
asserted
ceasefire → follow → Lebanon
…and 20 more, not listed.
