One Year After Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire: What Satellite Images Reveal About Israel's Military Positions?

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One year since the November 27, 2024 ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, satellite images reveal Israel still maintains five fortified positions in south Lebanon, despite the truce terms requiring full withdrawal. These bases control key Lebanese border villages and are heavily fortified with widened access roads. Villages around these positions face significant destruction from Israeli strikes, especially near Hula and Markaba. The ceasefire aimed to dismantle Hezbollah's military presence north of the Litani River, but military tensions remain high.

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00:00One year after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, the Israeli army still maintains

00:08five positions in South Lebanon, with fortifications and widened access routes,

00:14according to satellite images analysed by AFP. The November 27, 2024 truce, which sought to end

00:22more than a year of hostilities between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group, required

00:28Israel to fully withdraw troops from Lebanon within 60 days. Hezbollah was to pull its forces

00:34north of the Litany River, some 30 kilometres from the Israeli border, and its military infrastructure

00:40in the area was to be dismantled. Israel has kept troops in five positions that it deems

00:47strategic, saying it wants to ensure Hezbollah does not carry out any military activities

00:52in South Lebanon. AFP was able to pinpoint these bases through satellite images from Planet Labs

01:00PBC. Located on ridges across the Blue Line, the de facto border, these positions allow the Israeli

01:07army to control a series of Lebanese border villages, a move it considers key to protecting

01:13nearby Israeli communities. The positions offer a direct view of the towns and villages of Kfar

01:19Kila, Aita al-Shaab, Maroon al-Ras, Aitaroon, Bleda, Markaba and Hula, among the most destroyed

01:27by Israeli strikes and ground operations. Satellite images show that all buildings near the

01:33Hatsivoni military outpost between Hula and Markaba have been destroyed. Surrounded by fortifications,

01:40including those made of earthen embankments, the positions of approximately one to two hectares in size

01:47are usually made up of a larger section housing temporary buildings and a smaller part generally

01:52for military vehicles. The westernmost outpost in La Bonnet appears to have been built around 150 meters

02:00from a United Nations peacekeeper's base and the Blue Line. The easternmost base, on the Hammamaze hill,

02:07is the deepest position in Lebanese territory, located around 1.5 kilometers from the border.

02:14Satellite images also show that the access roads to these positions have been significantly widened

02:20to facilitate vehicle movement. As in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army has carried out the systematic

02:26demolition of buildings and infrastructure in villages closest to the border, an area that was also

02:34heavily bombed. According to a comparison of satellite images by American researchers Corey Scherr

02:40and Jamin van den Hoek from the University of Oregon, last updated in late January, the village of

02:47Kafar Kila had been 65% destroyed, with Aita al-Shaab and Yarin at 57% and 55% destroyed respectively.

One Year After Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire: What Satellite Images Reveal About Israel's Military Positions?

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