BEIRUT, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Israeli tank fire hit three towns along Lebanon's southeast border with Israel on Thursday, Lebanese security sources and state media said, a day after a ceasefire barring "offensive military operations" came into force.
Tank fire struck Markaba, Wazzani and Kfarchouba, all of which lie within two kilometres of the Blue Line demarcating the border between Lebanon and Israel. One of the security sources said two people were wounded in Markaba.
Under the ceasefire terms, Israeli forces can take up to 60 days to withdraw from southern Lebanon. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had instructed the military not to allow residents back to villages near the border.
Lebanon's speaker of parliament Nabih Berri, the top interlocutor for Lebanon in negotiating the deal, had said on Wednesday that residents could return home.
The ceasefire is only between Israel and Lebanon. Rockets coming from Gaza will have been fired by Hamas or an allied group. There isn't a ceasefire with them to violate.
The Lebanese Al-Mayadeen network, which is affiliated with Hezbollah, claimed that at this time artillery fire is being fired at the village of Markaba in southern Lebanon. According to them, "the shooting violates the cease-fire agreement". Earlier, the IDF stated that "the arrival of suspects, some with vehicles, to several areas in southern Lebanon in a manner that constitutes a violation was detected, and IDF forces fired at them."
(Lior Ben Ari)
Netanyahu, Katz confirm 4 Hezbollah operatives, including commander, detained post-truce
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed Wednesday evening that four suspects apprehended by IDF forces after entering a restricted zone in southern Lebanon were Hezbollah operatives, including a local commander. Netanyahu and Katz instructed the IDF to bar civilian access to villages near the southern Lebanon border as part of the initial phase of the cease-fire framework, the Prime Minister’s Office announced. The statement emphasized that the military "will continue to take firm action against any violations."
(Itamar Eichner)