By Naeem Saleem — SCN News
WEST ZAWTAR, Lebanon, Oct. 8 — Israeli military patrols, surveillance drones and continuing demolitions in southern Lebanon are undermining a U.S.-backed withdrawal initiative intended to restore security along the border, leaving residents of a village designated as a model for peace struggling to rebuild their lives.
Israeli forces withdrew from West Zawtar in July under an arrangement designed to test whether Lebanese troops could take responsibility for security as Israel gradually pulled back from occupied areas. Nearly three months later, residents say Israeli soldiers remain positioned in neighbouring communities, explosions regularly shake the surrounding countryside and essential services have yet to be restored.
The village was intended to demonstrate how a phased Israeli withdrawal could work alongside efforts to disarm Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese armed group. But the initiative has made little progress beyond its initial stage, with no additional withdrawal zones agreed and disagreements continuing over security arrangements and Hezbollah's weapons.
West Zawtar's mayor, Abed Ezzedine, said the project had fallen short of expectations because electricity, running water and other basic services remained largely unavailable. Around 70 families have returned, many occupying only the relatively undamaged sections of their homes because the rest of their properties are unsafe or uninhabitable.
Among those who returned is Mariam al-Yaghi, 67, whose house bears extensive damage from Israeli military operations. A tank shell struck an upper floor, windows were shattered and another projectile damaged a rooftop water tank. Israeli military vehicles remain visible from her home, while surveillance drones regularly operate over the surrounding area.
Yaghi said Israeli soldiers patrol close enough for residents to hear their movements and conversations at night. During the day, drones monitor activity around homes and agricultural land, while explosions from neighbouring villages serve as a reminder that military operations continue despite the withdrawal from West Zawtar itself.
The Israeli military said operations to eliminate threats from Hezbollah weapons had not been completed. It said drones were being deployed to identify security threats and restrictions on civilian movement were intended to protect Israeli troops operating in the area.
Washington has defended the withdrawal initiative, describing the phased approach as the most viable means of establishing lasting security for Lebanon and Israel. A U.S. State Department spokesperson said further expansion would depend on Lebanese military operations to clear the initial zone, while Hezbollah's disarmament remained a central requirement.
The programme forms part of diplomatic efforts to reduce hostilities following months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. A ceasefire reached in June was intended to create conditions for a gradual Israeli withdrawal, but Israeli forces continue to hold a security zone encompassing dozens of Lebanese villages.
Israel has maintained that its continued military presence is necessary to prevent Hezbollah from rebuilding military capabilities near the border. Lebanese authorities have opposed the continuing occupation and destruction of villages, arguing that restoring state control requires the withdrawal of Israeli forces and the return of displaced residents.
The latest confrontation followed a major escalation earlier this year when Hezbollah launched attacks against Israel in support of Iran during the wider regional war. Israel responded with air strikes and a ground offensive in Lebanon, triggering widespread destruction and forcing more than one million people to flee their homes.
Although the June ceasefire reduced the intensity of large-scale fighting, Israeli military operations have continued in parts of southern Lebanon. The continued presence of troops, restrictions on civilian access and destruction of buildings have complicated efforts to return displaced families to their communities.
The situation is particularly severe in East Zawtar, a neighbouring village that remains under Israeli military control. Residents displaced from the community have gathered in West Zawtar, where they can see damaged homes and military activity across the valley separating the two settlements.
Israeli forces have carried out controlled demolitions in East Zawtar, destroying buildings as part of operations the military says are necessary to address security threats. Displaced residents say the continuing destruction has left them uncertain whether their homes will remain standing or whether they will eventually be permitted to return.
The damage extends beyond residential buildings. Agricultural land and olive groves have been affected by military vehicles and construction equipment, threatening livelihoods in communities where farming provides an important source of household income.
With the olive harvest beginning, some farmers whose land lies close to Israeli military positions have sought permission to access their groves through a U.S.-led coordination mechanism involving Lebanese and Israeli military authorities. Residents fear that delays in obtaining access could prevent them from harvesting their crops, adding financial losses to the destruction of their homes.
The arrangement has also highlighted the limits of civilian movement in areas nominally covered by the withdrawal initiative. Although Lebanese troops have returned to West Zawtar, nearby Israeli positions continue to influence where residents can travel and whether they can safely reach their property.
Reconstruction has progressed slowly. Lebanon's Council for the South has provided 16 prefabricated housing units for families whose homes were destroyed or rendered uninhabitable, but most remain unused because electricity and water connections are unavailable.
Restoring electricity has proved particularly difficult because the village's former power connection passed through East Zawtar, which remains occupied. Lebanese workers have begun developing an alternative connection to another station, but the work has not yet restored normal service.
The limited availability of housing and public utilities has discouraged many displaced families from returning. Those who have come back are often living in damaged structures because alternative accommodation is expensive or because they prefer remaining close to their land and property rather than continuing to live in displacement shelters.
Security incidents have further complicated the process. In August, three Lebanese soldiers were wounded while attempting to dispose of unexploded ordnance in West Zawtar, demonstrating the continuing danger posed by weapons left behind after military operations.
Lebanese authorities also reported an Israeli military incursion into the village that month, during which troops allegedly constructed an earthen barrier near the town square. The Israeli military said at the time that it was unaware of the reported incident, while Lebanese officials described it as inconsistent with the withdrawal arrangement.
The dispute reflects the broader difficulty facing U.S.-mediated negotiations between Lebanon and Israel. Beirut wants Israeli troops to leave Lebanese territory and civilians to return safely, while Israel has linked further withdrawals to guarantees that Hezbollah's military infrastructure will be dismantled.
Hezbollah's disarmament remains one of the most contentious issues in Lebanon's domestic politics. The group has long maintained an independent military capability alongside the Lebanese armed forces, while international efforts to strengthen Lebanese state authority have repeatedly encountered political and security obstacles.
The Lebanese army's deployment to West Zawtar was intended to show that national forces could secure territory previously occupied by Israel. However, the absence of further agreed withdrawal areas has left the initiative stalled and raised questions about whether the same arrangement can be extended across southern Lebanon.
For residents, the immediate concerns are less about the details of negotiations than the ability to live safely in their homes. Damaged roads, unreliable utilities, restricted access to farmland and the presence of Israeli forces in neighbouring communities continue to shape everyday life.
The uncertainty is particularly acute for families who have already spent months away from their villages. Some have returned despite extensive damage, while others remain in temporary accommodation because they fear renewed military operations or have no habitable homes to return to.
The continued use of surveillance drones has added to those concerns. During a recent visit by journalists, a small Israeli drone descended over West Zawtar's town square and remained nearby before returning toward an occupied neighbouring village, illustrating the persistent military monitoring reported by residents.
The United States maintains that the pilot-zone arrangement can eventually create conditions for a wider Israeli withdrawal and a more stable border. But its success depends on progress in negotiations, the Lebanese army's ability to assume security responsibilities and agreement over the future of Hezbollah's weapons.
For now, West Zawtar remains an incomplete test of that strategy. Israeli troops have left the village itself, but military activity continues within sight of returning families, while the infrastructure needed to support normal civilian life remains badly damaged.
The failure to extend the initiative beyond its first stage has left a central question unresolved: whether a limited withdrawal can produce lasting security when surrounding territory remains occupied and residents continue to experience the effects of military operations.
As diplomatic efforts continue, the approximately 70 families who have returned to West Zawtar face an uncertain future, with Israeli patrols nearby, homes awaiting repair and the prospect of a wider peace settlement still distant.