The Israeli military's extensive destruction of civilian property and agricultural land across southern Lebanon must be investigated as war crimes, Amnesty International said in a new research briefing released on Aug. 25.

The report, entitled "Nowhere to Return: Israel's Extensive Destruction of Southern Lebanon," documents the demolition of more than 10,000 civilian structures between October 2024 and January 2025. Amnesty concluded that the destruction, often carried out with manually laid explosives and bulldozers while Israeli forces were in control of the areas, occurred outside active combat and without the "imperative military necessity" required under international humanitarian law.

Researchers verified 77 videos and images published by Israeli soldiers and activists, alongside satellite analysis showing villages systematically razed. The destruction included homes, mosques, cemeteries, orchards, roads, and parks. Amnesty found instances where soldiers filmed themselves celebrating demolitions.

Amnesty emphasized that, under international humanitarian law, destruction of adversary property outside combat is prohibited unless justified by imperative military necessity. Broad strategic objectives, such as creating a buffer zone or preventing future attacks, do not meet this standard. “Any such destruction should be investigated as a war crime where it was carried out intentionally or recklessly” under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), said Amnesty.

The organization urged Israel to provide reparations, Lebanon to pursue international accountability avenues, and states, particularly the US, to suspend arms transfers to Israel given the significant risk of further violations. The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has also criticized Israel's actions. UN experts reported that at least 57 civilians were killed while attempting to return to their homes during the ceasefire period in late 2024 and called on Israel to "stop killing civilians returning to their homes in South Lebanon."

The Israel–Lebanon conflict is rooted in decades of unresolved disputes, cross-border violence, and regional power rivalries. After Israel's creation in 1948, Lebanon absorbed large numbers of Palestinian refugees. Israel invaded Lebanon in 1978 and again in 1982 to suppress cross-border attacks. In the 1980s, Hezbollah, backed by Iran, emerged as a key resistance movement against Israel’s occupation of southern Lebanon. The 2006 Lebanon War, sparked by Hezbollah’s capture of Israeli soldiers, ended with UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which required Israeli withdrawal, Lebanese Army deployment in the south, and Hezbollah’s disarmament north of the Litani River.

Tensions escalated again after Hamas' October 2023 attack on Israel, when Hezbollah launched rockets into northern Israel. Israel responded with intensified military operations, culminating in a ground invasion of southern Lebanon in October 2024. A ceasefire brokered in November 2024 called for Israeli withdrawal and international monitoring, but destruction during this period remains under investigation.

This is not the first time Israeli operations in Lebanon have drawn legal scrutiny. In its 1996 report on that year’s Israeli military intervention in Lebanon, "Operation Grapes of Wrath," Human Rights Watch documented indiscriminate shelling, civilian deaths, and destruction of villages, raising similar concerns under international humanitarian law.

Amnesty International said it submitted questions to Israeli authorities on June 27, but had received no response by the time of publication of the report. Erika Guevara Rosas, Amnesty’s senior director for research, urged:

The Israeli authorities must provide prompt, full and adequate reparations to all victims of violations of international humanitarian law and war crimes, both individuals and entire communities. These reparations must extend to the families of those harmed by Israel’s unlawful conduct.

From JURIST, Aug. 26. Used with permission.