Telegraph Reports from Hezbollah Tunnel in Southern Lebanon Amid US-Israel Tensions

The Telegraph newspaper conducted a visit to an advanced Hezbollah base in southern Lebanon while the United States presses Israel to withdraw.

During a tour accompanied by Israeli forces, The Telegraph entered a Hezbollah tunnel running beneath the small village of Majdal Zoun, located atop a hill in southern Lebanon.

This tunnel differs significantly from the rudimentary, hand-dug tunnels in Gaza. It stretches approximately 170 meters in length and lies 20 meters below the destroyed village. The tunnel’s design and engineering are reportedly Iranian.

When The Telegraph entered the tunnel alongside Israeli soldiers equipped with night-vision goggles in the early hours of Friday, the site resembled a tunnel from the 1970s. The concrete passage was littered with war debris, and heavy blast-resistant doors led to several weapons storage rooms.

The Israeli military stated that the branching tunnels offered panoramic views of Israel and were used to launch munitions until they were targeted by airstrikes.

The commander of Israel’s 551st Brigade described one room where eight tons of explosives were allegedly found as "a terrorist stronghold."

He pointed to the floor covered with components of dozens of drones, noting, "These are one-way drones guided by GPS with a range exceeding 200 kilometers."

The fate of dozens of destroyed villages like Majdal Zoun, situated just three miles north of the Israeli border, will influence the outcome of the ceasefire negotiations between the United States and Iran.

US Vice President J.D. Vance stated in Switzerland that this hotspot tops the agenda in US-Iran talks, coinciding with apparent Israeli preparations for an assault on a second village featuring an extensive tunnel network located 22 miles northeast of Majdal Zoun.

According to The Telegraph, towns in southern Lebanon, some housing Hezbollah’s infrastructure, threaten to undermine the broader ceasefire between the United States and Iran.

Israel seeks control over these villages to establish a buffer zone protecting its northern regions and fears that allowing Lebanese residents to return would enable Hezbollah to rearm and reposition.

Conversely, Lebanese view Israel as the aggressor, destabilizing the region for decades by failing to resolve the Palestinian issue.

Recent Israeli incursions have resulted in the seizure of about 6% of Lebanese territory and displaced over one million people.

Nicholas Blanford, a non-resident fellow at the Atlantic Council, remarked, "When Hezbollah launched its first rocket barrage on March 2, the general reaction in its environment was: ‘Oh my God, what have you done? We barely recovered from the previous round and now you are dragging us into another war.’"

He added, "But within two or three weeks, the picture was changing."

The US-Iran memorandum of understanding, signed by US President Donald Trump on Thursday in Versailles, includes Lebanon in an effort to end the wider regional conflict.

While the memorandum does not explicitly demand Israel’s withdrawal, it implicitly calls for it to pave the way for a final peace and nuclear agreement with Iran to be negotiated within the next 60 days.

The first paragraph of the memorandum calls for an "immediate and permanent cessation of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon," demands "territorial sovereignty," and stipulates that the United States, Iran, and their allies must respect "the unity and sovereignty of Lebanon."

Israel strongly opposes these terms, whereas Iran and its ally Hezbollah insist on them, resulting in further escalation.

At nearly the same time The Telegraph was in Majdal Zoun, an Israeli tank crew of four soldiers was killed in an attack suspected to have involved a Hezbollah drone or missile in Kafr Tabnit. Israel responded with 150 airstrikes.

Israeli media report that Kafr Tabnit, like Majdal Zoun, conceals an extensive Hezbollah tunnel network.

The Israeli ruling coalition, facing elections in October, is under considerable pressure due to the war’s failure against Iran and the terms of the memorandum.

Ignoring Vice President Vance’s warning that "killing is not a solution to every national security problem," National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called for burning all of Lebanon, a message aimed particularly at voters in northern Israeli settlements.

In Shlomi, a small border town located directly south of the Majdal Zoun tunnel, residents express fear over the memorandum’s terms and worry they will not be safe unless Hezbollah is disarmed.

By Sunday, a new ceasefire was announced in Lebanon, and Trump issued a fresh warning on the Truth Social platform stating, "Iran must immediately stop its generously paid proxies in Lebanon from causing trouble… If not, we will strike Iran again, as we did last week, and with greater force!"

In Switzerland, US and Iranian negotiators began talks set to last 60 days. Vance said the question now is, "What can we achieve together? Can we start a new page?"

While the negotiations challenge Israel’s freedom of movement, they also undermine the credibility of Lebanon’s already weak government, reducing its ability to disarm Hezbollah, according to Michael Young of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut.

Nevertheless, Young suggested there may be a glimmer of hope, noting that linking Lebanon to the US-Iran agreement could help address Hezbollah’s armament for the first time "on the negotiating table" in official Washington-Tehran talks, something Iran has long resisted.

He added that this might lead to Hezbollah’s disarmament as part of an "organized gradual transition" rather than an immediate forced disarmament.

Although most world leaders welcome the US return to diplomacy, especially after the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, few believe the Israeli-Lebanese conflict will be resolved soon.