Israel launches airstrikes in Lebanon despite truce

Beirut: Israel launched airstrikes in southern Lebanon on Sunday, despite an ongoing ceasefire that ended months of conflicts with the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, media reported.

At around 9:00 a.m. local time, Israeli warplanes carried out an airstrike on the outskirts of Ansar, a village in Nabatieh Governorate, and conducted two airstrikes on the area between the towns of Qlayleh and Al-Sama’iya, as well as the valley near the village of Maaroub in Tyre District, according to Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency NNA.

Israeli warplanes also hit targets in Saida District in southern Lebanon, according to the NNA.

A ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon has been in effect since November 27, 2024, ending more than a year of hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel, which escalated following the outbreak of the war in Gaza, Xinhua news agency reported.

The agreement stipulated that Israel would withdraw from Lebanese territory within 60 days, while the Lebanese army would be deployed along the Lebanese-Israeli border and in the southern region, ensuring that no weapons or militants remained south of the Litani River.

Although the agreement stipulated the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanese territory, Israel has maintained its presence in five key positions along the Lebanese border beyond the February 18 deadline.

Despite the truce, the Israeli military has continued to launch occasional strikes in Lebanon, claiming they are aimed at eliminating “threats” posed by Hezbollah.

Israel said it has killed more than 2,000 Hezbollah members while Lebanon’s Health Ministry said the war has displaced 1.2 million people.

Israeli ground forces invaded southern Lebanon in early October, meeting heavy resistance in a narrow strip of land along the border. The military had previously exchanged attacks across the border with Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militant group that began firing rockets into Israel the day after the war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023.

Lebanese politicians have decried the ongoing airstrikes and said they are impeding US-led ceasefire negotiations. The country’s deputy parliament speaker accused Israel of ramping up its bombardment in order to pressure Lebanon to make concessions in indirect ceasefire negotiations with Hezbollah.

IANS