Israel strikes Hezbollah base in Lebanon amid ceasefire row
Israeli armed forces conducted airstrikes on a Hezbollah facility in southern Lebanon on Thursday. These strikes were a response to detected terrorist activities that violated the ceasefire.
The IDF is deployed in southern Lebanon, acting and thwarting any violation of the ceasefire agreement, noted the Israeli military's statement.
Earlier on Thursday, Israeli tanks shelled six border areas in Lebanon, citing the appearance of "suspects" in these areas, some of whom were in vehicles, which also violated the ceasefire rules, reported Reuters.
A Lebanese MP from Hezbollah, Hasan Fadlallah, accused Israel of breaking the ceasefire and alleged that it attacked civilians returning to their homes in southern Lebanon.
Ceasefire after many weeks of attacks
The ceasefire, in effect since Wednesday morning, assumes that the country's regular army will control southern Lebanon. For decades, this area has been under the de facto control of Hezbollah, backed by Iran, which has systematically shelled Israel for over a year. Two months ago, the Israeli army launched a ground operation against this Shiite group in southern Lebanon.
The ceasefire is to last for 60 days, during which time the Lebanese army is expected to take over the weapons and infrastructure of the withdrawing Hezbollah. Israeli soldiers are also expected to leave southern Lebanon, but the army has stated that this will only happen after the deployment of Lebanese units there.
The Israeli military has also called on civilians not to return to southern Lebanon for now. On Wednesday, the army prohibited civilians from approaching the area directly adjacent to the border. On Thursday, the Israeli military prohibited civilian movement in southern Lebanon after dusk until Friday morning. The restrictions were justified by concerns for the safety of those returning to their homes in Lebanon after the war.
The Ministry of Health in Beirut reported on Thursday that in the last days of fighting, Tuesday's Israeli attacks on Lebanon resulted in 78 deaths. In total, since the fall of 2023, when mutual attacks between Hezbollah and Israel began, 3,961 residents of Lebanon have died, the vast majority of them over the past two months. The ministry's data do not distinguish whether the deceased were civilians or fighters. However, media reports and local authorities stated that many civilians were among the casualties. The Israeli military stated that it had killed over 2,000 Hezbollah fighters.
Throughout a year of Hezbollah attacks on Israel, more than 100 people, both civilians and military personnel, have been killed, and several dozen Israeli soldiers have died in battles in southern Lebanon.
