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Netanyahu orders expansion of security buffer zone in southern Lebanon

By Thomson Reuters Mar 29, 2026 | 10:40 AM

March 29 (Reuters) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday ​he had ‌instructed the military to further expand the existing security buffer zone in southern ‌Lebanon, ​vowing to ⁠fundamentally change ⁠the security situation there.

“I have just instructed to further expand the ​existing security buffer zone. We are determined ⁠to fundamentally ⁠change the situation ​in the north,” Netanyahu ​said in a video ‌statement from the Northern Command.

He said the decision aimed to ⁠strengthen Israel’s security posture along the northern frontier, amid ongoing ⁠tensions ‌along Israel’s ⁠northern border, where ​cross-border ‌hostilities have raised ​fears of ⁠a broader regional escalation.

(Reporting by Steven Scheer, Writing by Muhammad Al Gebaly, Editing by Susan ​Fenton)