The zone, which the IDF says residents are yet to return to, stretches from Mansoura on the coast to Sheba’a in the east.
On Wednesday, the Lebanese army warned residents not to return to areas where Israeli troops were stationed before they left.
Israel invaded southern Lebanon early last month after the IDF stepped up military operations against Hezbollah.
Hezbollah began the current conflict with Israel by firing rockets into and around northern Israel on October 8, 2023, a day after Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel from Gaza that killed around 1,200 people.
Hezbollah said it was acting in solidarity with the Palestinians after Israel responded to a Hamas attack with a massive military campaign in Gaza. The Hamas-run Health Ministry says at least 44,330 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli offensive.
Since October 8, Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged fire with increasing intensity. Lebanon’s health ministry said at least 3,961 people were killed and 16,520 wounded in Israeli strikes during the period. The numbers do not differentiate between civilians and combatants.
As a result of Hezbollah attacks, 31 soldiers and 45 civilians were killed in Israel, according to Israeli authorities. Another 45 Israeli soldiers were killed in the fighting in southern Lebanon.
In his first reaction since the deal, Hezbollah chief Naim Kassem said the group would coordinate with the Lebanese army to enforce the ceasefire.
According to him, “Hezbollah” achieved a great victory – preventing Israel from destroying it. It’s a narrative that may be accepted by his supporters, but not by others, given the scale of the loss of life and the widespread destruction of land and property in Lebanon.
