IDF says ceasefire violated, opens fire on suspects moving towards southern Lebanon

The IDF on Thursday continued to react promptly and tenaciously against Hezbollah violations of the ceasefire terms. The deal was being abided by for the most part.

Hezbollah had not fired a rocket or drone at Israel since Tuesday.

Nevertheless, the IDF said it had struck a Hezbollah medium-range rocket crew in southern Lebanon because it looked like it was getting in position to fire at Israel.

Also, several Hezbollah suspects, some in vehicles, had arrived in towns and villages in southern Lebanon on Thursday morning, constituting another minor breach of the ceasefire, the IDF said, adding that it opened fire on them.

The IDF said it had deployed in southern Lebanon and was enforcing all violations of the ceasefire agreement, which came into effect Wednesday morning.

Three people were wounded in an Israeli drone strike near a vehicle in the town of Markaba in southern Lebanon on Thursday, Army Radio reported.

Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah accused Israel of violating the deal.

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

Due to the relative quiet, the IDF said on Thursday it was ending some protective restrictions that had limited the size of gatherings in parts of central and northern Israel. The change was made following a situational assessment, it said.

Lebanese families displaced from their homes near the southern border have tried to return to check on their properties. But Israeli soldiers remain stationed within Lebanese territory in towns along the border. Reuters reporters heard surveillance drones flying over parts of southern Lebanon.

Renewed restrictions

The IDF on Thursday renewed a curfew restricting the movement of residents of southern Lebanon south of the Litani River between 5 p.m. and 7 a.m.

Despite the ceasefire, Hezbollah has said its fighters remained “fully equipped to deal with the aspirations and assaults of the Israeli enemy,” and that its forces will monitor Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon “with their hands on the trigger.”

The terrorist group has been weakened by casualties and the killing of its leader Hassan Nasrallah and other commanders by Israel.

US President Joe Biden, who announced the Lebanon accord on Tuesday, said he would renew his push for a ceasefire agreement in Gaza. He urged Israel and Hamas to seize the moment. Months of efforts to negotiate a ceasefire have yielded scant progress.

IDF strikes killed at least 21 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip on Thursday, Gaza health officials said.

Israeli forces stepped up their bombardment of central areas and tanks pushed deeper into the north and south of the enclave.

Meanwhile, the IDF on Thursday said the total number of Hezbollah terrorists who had been killed rose to about 3,500 from previous estimates of anywhere from 2,500 to 3,000. Hezbollah’s rocket capabilities had been damaged by more than 50% and in much higher percentages regarding its longer-range and precision-missile capabilities, the IDF said.

Despite these successes, the IDF has still been playing defense in the Israeli public sphere for not planning to hold onto a southern Lebanon security zone beyond the 60-day ceasefire.

IDF officers have said their job is to enforce the deal made by the political echelon.

Within the defense establishment, some said they supported the deal, adding that the IDF could enforce it even if the agreement itself is weak. Others wanted to hold onto a southern Lebanon security zone or to further weaken Hezbollah before a ceasefire.

Lebanon’s parliament speaker, Nabih Berri, set a January 9 date for the election to choose the country’s president, state news agency NNA reported Thursday.