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The Israeli army issued urgent warnings to the residents of nine villages in southern Lebanon to evacuate in preparation for military operations targeting Hezbollah positions. These developments came despite the recent agreement to extend the ceasefire for an additional 45 days mediated by the United States.
On Saturday, Israeli forces issued urgent instructions to the residents of nine villages in the southern Lebanese border areas to evacuate them immediately, in preparation for launching military operations directed against Hezbollah positions. Villages targeted for evacuation included: Qa 'qa 'iyat al-Sanubar, Kawthariya al-Sayyad, Marouniya, Ghassaniya, al-Tuffaha, Irzai, Babylonian, Ansar, and al-Baysariya, where civilians were asked to move at least one kilometer away from their areas of residence, according to what it quoted The Times of Israel. Col. Avichai Adrai, the IDF spokesperson, justified the move by saying: “In light of the terrorist violations committed by Hezbollah of the ceasefire agreement, the IDF finds itself forced to take military action against it, while stressing that it has no intention of harming civilians.” These military warnings come at a sensitive time, as the US State Department announced last Friday that Israel and Lebanon agreed to extend their ceasefire for an additional period of 45 days, following extensive consultations in Washington, DC. This is the second extension of the ceasefire agreement that was announced in mid-April, as it was previously extended for the first time on the 23rd of the same month, which reflects the fragility of the security situation on the Lebanese-Israeli border and the continuation of tensions despite diplomatic efforts.
Source: Al-Wehda Al-Arabia News Portal
