Israel strikes southern Lebanon after ordering evacuations of nine villages | Lebanon
Thousands of people fled their homes after Israel ordered mandatory evacuations for nine villages in southern Lebanon ahead of attacks that killed six people on Friday, a day after the Hezbollah militant group rejected a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon.
Hundreds of families fled the village of Anqoun, home to at least 2,500 displaced people, after the Israeli army said it would soon launch an operation against what it said were Hezbollah targets and ordered residents to leave. The roads leading to Sidon, the nearest major city, were filled with cars as families sought shelter.
The Israeli army carried out airstrikes in large areas of southern Lebanon, including Anqoun; Drone strikes hit cars in the Nabatieh area, while air strikes and artillery hit the town of Kfar Tebnit. The town is adjacent to Fort Beaufort, which Israeli troops captured this week, and is on its way to the city of Nabatieh.
Israel issued a mandatory evacuation order for Nabatieh and several towns in the area as it advanced towards the city, which is now uninhabited but normally one of the largest in southern Lebanon. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had ordered Israeli troops to deepen their occupation of southern Lebanon after capturing the medieval crusader castle of Beaufort on Sunday.
Hezbollah attacked Israeli troops in southern Lebanon and targeted them with rocket bombardment near the fortress, according to a statement from Hezbollah.
The clash took place a day after a US-brokered ceasefire was accepted by the Israeli government and rejected by Lebanon’s Hezbollah. The militant group called for an agreement in which the shooting would cease but Israel would be allowed to continue airstrikes, which would amount to “surrender”.
Lebanese prime minister Nawaf Salam said on Friday: “Lebanon can no longer be the arena of wars fought on behalf of others, and neither can the south. [of Lebanon] and its people continue to pay the price for the decisions they did not make.”
Hezbollah is not a party to the negotiations between Israel and the Lebanese government. Instead, he conveyed his positions and messages primarily through Lebanon’s parliamentary speaker, Nebih Berri. Days before the failed ceasefire was drafted, Berri said he could guarantee Hezbollah would stop shooting in exchange for a halt to hostilities.
On Friday, Berri said Hezbollah would withdraw from the area south of the Litani River (28 miles from the Lebanon-Israel border) only if Israeli troops withdraw from Lebanon and a ceasefire is unconditional.
Israel currently occupies more than 608 square kilometers of Lebanese territory. Berri also criticized the idea of ”pilot zones” included in the proposed ceasefire, where the Israeli army would withdraw from certain areas and the Lebanese army would return to ensure that no Hezbollah members enter.
On Thursday, Israeli forces withdrew from the town of Dibbin in southern Lebanon for the first time since the war began on March 2. Lebanese soldiers and UN peacekeepers entered the town on Friday, reopening roads and clearing rubble for residents. It is unclear whether Israel’s withdrawal is linked to the “pilot zones” proposal.
Lebanon and Israel are engaged in bilateral talks in Washington to reach a ceasefire, but there are serious doubts about whether these talks can succeed without Hezbollah’s support.
Donald Trump is investing in Lebanon-Israel negotiations as Iran links the success of the ceasefire in Lebanon to its negotiations with Washington. The US president has repeatedly tried to end the Iran war amid rising gas prices and falling approval ratings, and has reportedly become frustrated with Netanyahu’s campaign in Lebanon as it complicates negotiations with Iran.
Netanyahu told ministers at a cabinet meeting Thursday night that he would not seek government approval for the latest U.S.-brokered ceasefire proposal with Lebanon unless Hezbollah agreed to its terms, after Hezbollah rejected it on Thursday.
According to Israeli news outlet Ynet, several ministers voiced their opposition to the fragile ceasefire that Israeli and Lebanese representatives agreed to extend during talks in Washington on Wednesday. They called on Netanyahu to present the proposal to the cabinet for a formal vote before Israel commits.
The Israeli prime minister rejected these demands, arguing that there was currently no agreement to ratify because Hezbollah had not yet ratified the agreement.
“There is no agreement at the moment” He reportedly told ministers. “Hezbollah opposes it and that’s why I’m not making a decision.” He added that if the group accepts the proposal, it will bring it before the cabinet for approval.
Clashes between Hezbollah and Israel began on March 2 after the militant group fired rockets at Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, triggering an Israeli invasion. More than 3,500 people were killed in Israeli attacks in Lebanon, while Hezbollah killed at least 29 Israeli soldiers and three Israeli civilians in Lebanon.
