The Israeli army said on Monday that it would hold its forces in five locations in southern Lebanon after a deadline for its complete withdrawal on Tuesday. The announcement raised fears of resurrection of violence in southern Lebanon between Israel and Hezbollah.
After more than a year of war, the two sides reached a ceasefire in late November, depending on Israel and Hezbollah, the control of the southern Lebanese in the Lebanese army by the end of January. Hezbollah had long dominated the area, while Israel had recorded large parts of it after Lebanese invasion in September.
At the end of January, mediators announced a three -week extension to this deal, giving Israel more time to complete his withdrawal. The truce has often been pierced by violence bursts, including an Israeli airline Air Force on Monday that killed a Hamas leader in southern Lebanon-but no side has returned to a full-scale war.
Now, the ghost of the renewed conflict emerges once again after the Israeli army’s announcement that it will hold some troops in Lebanon beyond the deadline of 18 February, may prevent some Lebanese citizens from returning home.
“We will leave small amounts of troops that are temporarily developed in five strategic points along the border in Lebanon, so that we can continue to defend our residents and ensure that there is no immediate threat,” said Nadav Shoshani, a military spokesman. Information on journalists on Monday afternoon.
Colonel Shoshani named various locations that spread along most of the 75 -mile border, including places beyond the border from the Israeli villages that suffered damage from Hezbollah fire during the war. He said that Hezbollah had not lived on the side of the November agreement and was still a threat to Israeli residents in these areas. He refused to say how long the profession would last. It is not clear to what extent Hezbollah has a presence in these areas.
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem strongly opposed Israel’s idea of ​​holding troops in Lebanon during a speech on Sunday. But he stopped committing to repeat the attacks on Israel.
“Israel must be completely withdrawn on February 18,” Mr Qassem said. “This is the agreement.”
“Everyone knows how a profession is treated,” he warned, without giving further details.
The war between Hezbollah and Israel broke out after the Lebanese militia began shooting in Israeli military positions in solidarity with her ally in Hamas, shortly after Hamas’ attack in Israel in October 2023.
The collision remained largely in rockets and rocket strikes, shifting thousands to each side of the border, until it exploded to a complete frontal war and widely Israeli bombing of the Lebanese cities in the second half of 2024.
Israel killed much of Hezbollah’s leadership in an aerial campaign and invaded large areas of the south Lebanese, in moves that collectively displaced more than a million people in Lebanon.
Israel said its intention was to prevent Hezbollah from being a threat to north residents Israel, about 60,000 of whom were forced to leave their homes due to Hezbollah fires.
Gabby Sobelman contributed to the report.
