During Sunday morning, there were reports that several people were injured by the Israeli military in villages in southern Lebanon. Eleven people have been killed and over 80 people injured, Lebanon’s Ministry of Health said at 1 p.m.
The ministry states that the Israeli army (IDF) opened fire on residents trying to return to their villages in the border area and that the “aggression” took place in at least two villages, Houla and Kfar Kila.
Pictures from the Reuters news agency show returning Lebanese and protesters in Burj al-Muluk, on their way to Kfar Kila. Some protesters are carrying Hezbollah flags, and are said to have tried to enter the area in protest. Others had pictures of combatants killed in the war, according to CNN.
The IDF writes on Telegram that its troops fired warning shots to “remove threats in a number of areas” but did not comment on the deaths and the many injured.
The events come on the same day that Israeli forces – under the 60-day deadline set in the ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah – would have withdrawn.
Divided sentences
However, Israel announced on Friday that the withdrawal will be postponed indefinitely. The reason was given as a delay in the deployment of Lebanese government troops in southern Lebanon. It is also argued that Hezbollah has not withdrawn sufficiently from the region.
The Lebanese army has in turn accused Israel of “procrastination”.
Israel has banned Lebanese from returning to several villages where its military remains. Despite this, hundreds of Lebanese are trying to do just that, reports the AFP news agency.
UN: Not safe to return
The UN is now calling on both Israel and Lebanon to abide by the agreements that have been set up within the framework of the ceasefire.
“As we tragically saw this morning, the conditions are not yet in place for citizens to be able to return safely to their villages along the Blue Line (a demarcation line between the countries, ed. note),” writes the UN special coordinator in Lebanon and the UN mission Unifil in a joint statement.