{"id":149,"date":"2026-03-06T22:31:28","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T22:31:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/menastability.org\/?p=149"},"modified":"2026-03-22T13:06:35","modified_gmt":"2026-03-22T13:06:35","slug":"the-regional-war-lebanon-hoped-to-avoid-unpacking-the-escalation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/menastability.org\/ar\/middle-east\/lebanon\/the-regional-war-lebanon-hoped-to-avoid-unpacking-the-escalation\/","title":{"rendered":"\u0627\u0644\u062d\u0631\u0628 \u0627\u0644\u0625\u0642\u0644\u064a\u0645\u064a\u0629 \u0627\u0644\u062a\u064a \u0643\u0627\u0646 \u0644\u0628\u0646\u0627\u0646 \u064a\u0623\u0645\u0644 \u0641\u064a \u062a\u062c\u0646\u0628\u0647\u0627: \u062a\u062d\u0644\u064a\u0644 \u0623\u0633\u0628\u0627\u0628 \u0627\u0644\u062a\u0635\u0639\u064a\u062f"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On Monday, March 2, Lebanon got pulled into a regional war that many in the country had hoped to avoid. This explainer lays out how that happened, what has unfolded, what the impact on the ground has been, and how the Lebanese government has responded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Saturday, February 28, 2026, the United States and Israel launched a massive military operation against Iran. In the days prior, murmurs of a potential attack had been floated and the Pentagon had built up a notably large force of American warships and aircraft carriers. Meanwhile, U.S.-Iran nuclear talks continued. In fact, on the day prior to the operation, one key mediator, Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi expressed<\/a> confidence that a \u201cpeace deal is within our reach.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the attack kicked off, U.S. President Donald Trump made public remarks<\/a> claiming that Iran had \u201cattempted to rebuild their nuclear program,\u201d pledging, \u201cThey will never have a nuclear weapon.\u201d Introducing a regime change component<\/a> to the war which he has since explicitly adopted, he directed an additional message to the Iranian people: \u201cWhen we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In response, Iran launched counterattacks, targeting Israel and a number of neighboring countries who are either hosts of U.S. military installations or close U.S. partners. In the early hours of Monday, Hezbollah launched an attack on a military site<\/a> in Haifa, spreading the conflict even further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did Lebanon get pulled into the war?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Following hours of U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on Saturday, Israel announced<\/a> the killing of Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was revered as a spiritual guide by some Shia Muslims and was at the helm of Iran\u2019s political power structure for almost four decades<\/a>. He had also been at the heart of devastating abuses in Iran and around the region, including the targeting and killing of Iranian protesters and support<\/a> for the brutal Assad regime. On Sunday, Hezbollah issued a statement describing the U.S. and Israel\u2019s killing of Khamenei as \u201cthe height of criminality,\u201d referring to him as \u201cour guardian, our leader, the leader of the Nation, Imam Khamenei.\u201d They pledged to \u201cfulfill [their] duty in confronting aggression.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a self-described act of retaliation for Khamenei\u2019s killing, on early Monday morning, Hezbollah launched<\/a> a rocket and drone attack against a military site in Haifa, marking the first time that Hezbollah had attacked Israel since the November 2024 ceasefire. Israel has since responded with sweeping airstrikes in South Lebanon, Dahieh, and Beqaa, which are still ongoing<\/a> at the time of writing. Israel has also issued evacuation warnings for over 50 villages in southern and eastern Lebanon, leading to a mass exodus of civilians seeking to flee from the site of potential strikes. On March 2, Lebanon\u2019s Ministry of Health stated<\/a> that the death toll had climbed to 52, with 154 wounded. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prior to this escalation, Israeli military strikes on South Lebanon and the Beqaa had continued on an almost daily<\/a> basis since the November 2024 ceasefire; leading<\/a> to the death of 127 civilians as of November 2025 and the damage and destruction of 10,000 buildings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How has the Lebanese government responded?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Within hours of Hezbollah\u2019s rocket and drone attack, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun rejected<\/a> the use of Lebanon as a \u201cplatform for proxy wars\u201d and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam called<\/a> the firing of rockets \u201cirresponsible.\u201d The Prime Minister said that his government would not \u201callow dragging the country into new adventures.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following an emergency session<\/a> at the Presidential Palace, Salam made<\/a> a number of significant public remarks which reiterate the leadership of the Lebanese government on this file, its unequivocal rejection of Hezbollah\u2019s attacks, and its commitment to a full disarmament process. Specifically, Salam has:<\/p>\n\n\n\n