At least 15 people were killed and more than 80 wounded by Israeli forces in southern Lebanon on Sunday, Lebanese officials said, as a 60-day deadline for Hezbollah and Israel to withdraw from the south expired and thousands of Lebanese displaced by the war poured in. on the southbound roads back home.
The accord, which was signed in November and halted the deadliest war in decades between the two sides, called for Hezbollah and Israel to withdraw, while the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers would be deployed in force to secure the area. Negotiators hoped the ceasefire would be permanent, restoring calm to the troubled region.
But as the deadline passed on Sunday, a very different scenario was beginning to take shape.
Israeli troops remained in southern parts of Lebanon in violation of the cease-fire agreement, raising fears that Israel would continue to be defrauded and rekindling hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah. Israeli officials have warned the Lebanese not to return to their homes in many towns and villages in the south.
“In the near future, we will continue to inform you about the places you can return to,” said Avichai Adraee, a spokesman for the Arab army on social media on Sunday morning. “Until further notice, all previously published instructions remain in effect.”
The Ministry of Health in Lebanon said that those who died and were injured on Sunday morning were trying to enter their border areas when they were attacked by Israeli forces. Residents of some southern towns have asked their neighbors to gather early on Sunday and head home, despite warnings from Israel. The Lebanese army said it was accompanying civilians returning to several border towns to try to ensure their safety. The army said in a statement that a Lebanese soldier was among those killed by Israeli fire.
It marked one of the most dangerous days in Lebanon since it began operations in November.
The Israeli army said in a statement that it had fired “warning shots” after “suspects” approached its forces. It also revealed that an unspecified number of people were arrested, who are currently being interrogated at the scene of the incident.
In the southern town of Aita al-Shaab, most of which has now been destroyed, many they began to stream back to their homes on Sunday, arriving at streets littered with rubble and flattened buildings.
Mohamed Srour, the city’s mayor, was one of those who returned after being expelled for more than a year. He said that the Israeli army had not fully withdrawn from the city and said that they were shooting at civilians. The claims could not be independently verified. However, Mr. Srour remained steadfast.
“Today, Aita celebrates his long-awaited return.” he said. “The houses have been destroyed and the means of livelihood are gone, but our will to live is strong. We will build again.”
In recent days, Israeli officials have expressed concern that Hezbollah is still active in southern Lebanon and doubts about the Lebanese Army’s ability to stop the group.
Those claims could not be independently verified, and the five-member committee responsible for implementing the ceasefire did not publicly release any information about Hezbollah’s compliance with the terms of the agreement.
The situation poses a critical test for Lebanon’s new leaders, President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Nawaf Salam, as they seek to wrest political control from Hezbollah, the country’s political and military force, and build a functioning government. Mr. Aoun urged citizens to exercise restraint on Sunday, but insisted that the country’s sovereignty was “non-negotiable.”
Any prolonged Israeli presence in southern Lebanon could breathe new life into Hezbollah, the group that was founded to liberate Lebanon from Israeli aggression and has presented itself as the only force capable of protecting Lebanon’s borders, experts say.
It also threatens to disrupt the political momentum in Lebanon, where for the first time in decades there is serious pressure to consolidate all military power in the government and end Hezbollah’s justification for its massive arsenal.
The main focus in Lebanon now is “disarming Hezbollah and moving away from a period when Hezbollah was considered entitled to weapons,” said Mohanad Hage Ali, deputy director of research at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, Lebanon. capital. Any prolonged stay in Israel “will put a break in that momentum, which is happening,” he added.
Hezbollah officials did not respond to Israeli allegations that the group was still active militarily in southern Lebanon, but said they were “committed” to supporting the terms of the deal.
On Saturday, Lebanese Army officials said they were ready to end their deployment in the south. This month, the American general who oversees the ceasefire monitoring committee expressed confidence in the Lebanese Army’s ability to protect southern Lebanon. The army continues to show that it has “strength, purpose and leadership to protect and defend Lebanon,” said Maj. General Jasper Jeffers in a statement.
The 60-day deal came into effect more than a year after Hezbollah began firing rockets at Israeli positions in cooperation with its partner Hamas, the Palestinian terror group in Gaza that led the Oct. 7, 2023, in Israel. Israel retaliated by killing Hezbollah leadership, leveling border towns and villages and attacking southern Lebanon.
Even before Sunday’s deadline, thousands of Lebanese displaced by the war from homes along the southern border were preparing to return home. On Saturday, the main road from Beirut to southern Lebanon was jammed with traffic, as people received automated calls from the Israeli army warning them not to return home.
The Israeli army appeared to be continuing its persistent efforts during the 60 days to close the roads between the villages in southern Lebanon, according to local media. Israel currently occupies about 70 percent of the territory it captured after invading Lebanon last week, according to the United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah has not said how it plans to respond to Israel’s continued occupation of Lebanese soil. Some Hezbollah lawmakers have vowed revenge. But some Hezbollah officials instead he shifted the burden of accountability to Israel from the Lebanese government. The group’s statement on Friday said it was in the hands of the government to “return the land and take it from the hands of that land.”
That shifting of responsibility is a tried and true tactic of Hezbollah, which a few months ago asked the government to provide for thousands of Lebanese displaced by the war that had drawn the country into it. Nevertheless, the political stance from its core group against the Israeli occupation shows Hezbollah’s current fragile state.
After 14 months of fighting, the Shiite Islamist group’s forces are being beaten, and its loyal support base is exhausted. Its patron Iran has also been weakened by Israel. And in neighboring Syria, rebels overthrowing Iran’s ally, dictator Bashar al-Assad, cut off the Hezbollah bridge for accepting weapons and money from Iran.
These blows weakened Hezbollah’s once powerful political force in Lebanon, shifting the political sands in that country for the first time in decades. This month, Lebanese lawmakers elected a new president, Mr. Aoun, after many years of politics that many analysts say is Hezbollah. Days later, lawmakers named Mr. Salam, a popular ambassador Hezbollah had long opposed, as prime minister.
Still, Middle East experts have warned against erasing Hezbollah’s political weight. And if Israel continues to occupy Lebanon, it could revive the group’s predominantly Shiite Muslim base as it looks to the Israeli army as a protector and protector.
“I believe that none of the parties are interested in restarting the war,” said Sami Nader, director of the Institute of Political Science at Saint Joseph University of Beirut. “But as long as Israel stays in Lebanon, it revives the narrative of Hezbollah.”
Hwaida Saad, Diana is coming and Sara Chaito contributed reporting.
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