Israeli forces again open fire as Lebanese try to return home

MIDEAST

Lebanese soldiers block residents rallying to return to the southern Lebanese village of Maroun al-Ras attempt to return to their border town where Israeli forces remain on Monday. FADEL ITANI — AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

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By Euan Ward

New York Times

BEIRUT >> Israeli forces fired toward residents of southern Lebanon for a second consecutive day Monday as people pressed on with attempts to return to their homes along the border, a day after at least two dozen people were killed and scores injured in Israeli attacks, Lebanese officials said.

Israeli gunfire Sunday was the deadliest eruption of violence in Lebanon since the war between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese militia, ended with a truce in November. In the renewed violence Monday, at least two people were killed and 17 others injured, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

The Israeli military said in a statement that it had fired “warning shots in order to eliminate threats,” without providing further details about the threats.

Wire agency photos showed Israeli forces gathered behind makeshift roadblocks, with flattened southern Lebanese villages visible on the rolling hillsides behind them. Some detainees crouched alongside a dirt road, blindfolded and with their hands bound, as Israeli soldiers stood watch.

The Israeli military said Monday that it had redeployed in areas of southern Lebanon and repeated calls for Lebanese residents to wait for its approval before returning home. The Lebanese military had sent reinforcements to parts of southern Lebanon earlier in the day, preparing to enter some towns and safeguard civilians, Lebanon’s state-run news agency reported.

Israeli forces killed at least 24 people and injured more than 134 others on Sunday, Lebanese officials said, after thousands of Lebanese marched to southern towns and villages. Those areas remain occupied by Israel past a 60-day deadline for its withdrawal under the November ceasefire agreement, which called for both Israel and Hezbollah forces to leave southern Lebanon and for the Lebanese army and U.N. peacekeepers to deploy in force there.

As the 60-day deadline elapsed Sunday, the White House issued a statement stating that the initial agreement would be extended until Feb. 18.

Hezbollah’s leader, Naim Kassem, said in a speech Monday that the group did not accept the extension of the ceasefire agreement and called on Israeli forces to withdraw from Lebanon. However, Hezbollah is not a signatory to the deal, and the Lebanese government had approved the extension after discussions with U.S. officials.

The flurry of diplomatic activity appeared intended to buy time and stave off further bouts of violence.