Lebanon says Israeli strikes kill one, wound soldier amid ceasefire
Israel’s aggressive actions represent flagrant violation of ceasefire deal terms: Speaker
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s parliament speaker accused Israel of violating a ceasefire, after authorities said one person was killed and another wounded in Israeli strikes on Monday, the sixth day of the truce.
“The aggressive actions carried out by Israeli occupation forces... represent a flagrant violation of the terms of the ceasefire agreement,” Nabih Berri, who helped mediate the ceasefire on behalf of ally Hezbollah, said in a statement.
Health ministry earlier said an Israeli strike killed one person in the country’s south on Monday, while the Lebanese army said an Israeli drone wounded one of its soldiers in the east.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency has repeatedly reported Israeli fire, including strikes, since a ceasefire went into effect Wednesday between Israel and Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah group, which has not announced any response.
“An Israeli enemy strike on Jdeidet Marjayoun killed one person,” a ministry statement said, while the NNA reported one person was killed in “a strike launched by an enemy drone... on a motorcycle” in the south Lebanon town.
Earlier, the Lebanese army in a statement said that “an enemy drone struck an army bulldozer at a position, injuring one soldier” in the country’s eastern Hermel region.
Last week’s fragile ceasefire ended more than a year of hostilities including two months of all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah.
As part of the agreement, the Lebanese army and United Nations peacekeepers will deploy in southern Lebanon as the Israeli army withdraws over a period of 60 days.
Hezbollah is also meant to withdraw its forces north of the Litani river, about 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the border, and dismantle its military infrastructure in southern Lebanon.
While the ceasefire has largely brought fighting to a halt, Israel has launched strikes against targets it says were violating the truce.
Israel’s military said Sunday it had fired on Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon over the previous 24 hours, saying it acted to “remove threats” that violated “the ceasefire agreement conditions”.
The NNA on Sunday reported “the continued violation of the ceasefire” in south Lebanon by Israeli forces.
Israel stepped up its campaign in south Lebanon in late September after nearly a year of cross-border exchanges begun by Hezbollah in support of its ally Hamas following the Palestinian group’s October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel.