Israel and Hezbollah both claiming ceasefire violations on Day 2
beirut — Israel opened fire in southern Lebanon on Thursday, wounding at least two people, state media reported. Israeli Army and Hezbollah Accusing each other of violating ceasefire Less than two full days after it took effect.
“Several suspects arrived in vehicles in various areas of southern Lebanon and violated the conditions of the ceasefire. The IDF opened fire on them,” the IDF said in a statement.
“The Israel Defense Forces remain in southern Lebanon and will actively enforce ceasefire violations,” the military said.
AFP/Getty
Hassan Fadlallah, a Hezbollah member of the Lebanese parliament, accused Israel of violating the ceasefire by firing on civilians returning to their homes in southern villages.
“Israel’s enemies are attacking those who return to the border villages,” Fadlallah told reporters after the legislative session, according to Reuters. “There are violations by Israel today, even in this form.”
The deal, brokered by the United States and France, includes an initial two-month ceasefire in which Hezbollah fighters will withdraw north of the Litani River and Israeli troops will return to their side of the border. As Israeli troops withdraw, the buffer zone will be replaced by the presence of Lebanese troops and U.N. peacekeepers, but that is expected to take weeks. As of Thursday, Israel retained full security control on both sides of the border area.
Lebanon’s state-run state news agency said Israel opened fire in Markaba, near the border, wounding two people but gave no further details. Reports said Israel fired artillery at three other locations near the border. There have been no reports of casualties.
While the U.S. has not yet made public the detailed terms of the ceasefire, President Biden made clear in his announcement on Tuesday that Israel retained the right to defend itself, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that any violation of the agreement would be met with a swift and severe military response. .
An Associated Press reporter near Israel’s northern border heard Israeli drones buzzing overhead and Lebanese artillery fire.
Israeli officials said the troops would gradually withdraw to ensure the agreement was implemented. Israel has repeatedly warned people not to return to areas where troops are deployed and said it reserves the right to strike against Hezbollah if it violates the terms of the ceasefire.
The ceasefire announced late Tuesday ends a 14-month conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that began a day after Hamas launched an attack from Gaza on October 7, 2023, when Lebanese militants The group began launching rockets, drones and missiles in a show of solidarity. Hamas launched an attack in which militants killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel and took another 250 hostage.
Israel retaliated with airstrikes, and the conflict intensified for nearly a year until all-out war erupted in mid-September. this Gaza war The epidemic is still raging with no end in sight, with health officials in the Hamas-controlled Palestinian territories saying more than 44,280 people have died. Most of the enclave’s 2.3 million people have been displaced, with many forced to flee multiple times over the last year.
Israeli artillery fire in Lebanon killed more than 3,760 people during the conflict, many of them civilians, according to Lebanese health officials. Meanwhile, fighting in Israel has killed more than 70 people, more than half of whom were civilians, as well as dozens of Israeli soldiers fighting in southern Lebanon.
About 1.2 million people are displaced in Lebanon, with thousands starting to return home on Wednesday despite warnings from the Lebanese and Israeli military against entering certain areas. Some 50,000 people have been displaced on the Israeli side, but few have returned, and communities near the northern border remain largely deserted.
