Israeli military says Lebanese are prohibited from moving south

Lebanese residents are prohibited from moving south to a line of villages and their surroundings until further notice, Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said on X today.

Israel said it opened fire towards what it called “suspects” with vehicles arriving at several areas in the southern zone, saying it was a breach of the truce with Hezbollah, which came into effect on Wednesday, Reuters reports.

Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah in turn accused Israel of violating the deal.

“The Israeli enemy is attacking those returning to the border villages,” Fadlallah told reporters, adding “there are violations today by Israel, even in this form”.

The Israeli military also said yesterday that the air force struck a facility used by Hezbollah to store mid-range rockets in southern Lebanon, the first such attack since the ceasefire took effect.

In his recent post, Adraee called on Lebanese residents not to return to more than 60 southern villages, saying anyone who moves south of the specified line “puts themselves in danger”.

The Lebanese army earlier accused Israel of violating the ceasefire several times on Wednesday and Thursday.

The exchange of accusations highlighted the fragility of the ceasefire, which was brokered by the United States and France to end the conflict, fought in parallel with Israel’s war on Gaza. The truce lasts for 60 days in the hope of reaching a permanent cessation of hostilities.

READ: Israeli violations of Lebanon ceasefire agreement