US-Israel-Iran War Latest News: The Israel Defense Forces stated that troops and Border Police returned about 15 to 17 Israeli settlement activists who damaged a border fence near Ghajar and crossed illegally into southern Lebanon. The individuals were handed over to the police for further handling.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest News: Israeli Army Returned Citizens
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed they tracked down and returned around 15 Israeli civilian activists who illegally crossed the northern border into southern Lebanon.
On 5 August 2026, a group of settlement activists arrived at the Israeli border community of Ghajar, damaged the security border fence, and breached Lebanese territory.
The group primarily consisted of young women and teenage girls affiliated with the Uri Tzafon Movement—a Religious Zionist organization advocating for Israeli settlement in southern Lebanon. Reports indicated that dozens of people, including families with a toddler, initially gathered at the fence.
Activists who spoke to media outlets stated their goal was to establish an Israeli settlement in the territory. They argued that failing to settle southern Lebanon would undo the achievements of the ongoing military campaign.
Following an extensive search by IDF soldiers and Border Police forces, all individuals who crossed the fence were apprehended and escorted back to Israel, where they were handed over to the Israel Police for further handling.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest News: Official Reactions
The military strongly condemned the breach, stating it caused a “severe interference with operational activity” and created a direct danger to IDF troops operating in the active conflict sector.
The IDF publicly urged law enforcement authorities to bring those involved to justice. They emphasized that such unauthorized crossings constitute a criminal offense and place a repeated, heavy burden on military forces deployed on the northern front.
Similar border breach attempts by the same movement have occurred repeatedly in recent months. Historically, Israeli authorities have rarely filed severe criminal charges against these activists despite repeated unauthorized crossings.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest News: Infiltration and Evasion
The infiltrating group consisted largely of young women, teenage girls, and families. Israeli authorities confirmed that 10 of those detained inside Lebanon were female minors, and one woman was arrested while carrying a toddler.
While on the run from IDF forces inside Lebanon, the activists gave a live interview to the Israeli news outlet Ynet. They stated they intentionally crossed to force a change in the government’s military strategy, claiming, “We need to settle this territory to win the war. If we don’t settle now, all the achievements of this war will revert.”
While roughly 15 to 17 individuals successfully cut the fence and crossed into Lebanon near Ghajar, reports indicate that a larger group of about 40 settlement activists originally gathered at the border to support the breach.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest News: What is the “Uri Tzafon” Movement?
Uri Tzafon is an ultranationalist, Religious Zionist organization that advocates for the expulsion of Lebanese civilians, Israeli military occupation, and the building of Jewish settlements in southern Lebanon.
The movement maps out southern Lebanon up to the Litani River (roughly 10% of Lebanon’s total territory). It replaces sovereign Lebanese towns with Hebrew names and has even begun mock-advertising residential plots to investors.
While the Israeli government maintains its official military goal in Lebanon is defense and security, Uri Tzafon has increasingly garnered mainstream media attention and open ideological support from far-right lawmakers within Israel’s ruling coalition.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest News: Pattern of Multi-Front Border Breaches
This is not an isolated event; extremist activist groups have repeatedly breached active military zones on multiple borders over the summer of 2026:
-
Syria Border Breaches: Just a week prior, the IDF had to detain activists from a sister movement, the Bashan Pioneers, after they breached the Syrian border and occupied a building in the Syrian village of Hader.
-
Previous Lebanon Incursions: In separate incidents in July 2026, Uri Tzafon members crossed into southern Lebanon to swim in the Hasbani River, and in previous months, crossed near Yaroun to symbolically plant trees and fly Israeli flags.
The IDF’s sharp public demand for the Israel Police to “bring those involved to justice” reflects deep military frustration.Â
The IDF states these ideological incursions pull essential troop resources away from actual combat operations to conduct domestic search-and-rescue sweeps in highly volatile war zones.
