Israel and Hezbollah accuse each other of violating the ceasefire

The Israel Defense Forces announced on Thursday that it had identified several “suspicious incidents” in southern Lebanon in violation of the ceasefire. The IDF and Israeli Air Force responded with attacks.

“Earlier today, IDF soldiers identified two terrorists arriving at a known terrorist infrastructure site from which dozens of missiles were fired into Israel over the past month. The IAF has struck at terrorists,” the IDF statement read.

“Additionally, over the past hours, IDF soldiers have been acting to prevent additional terrorists from advancing into southern Lebanon,” he added.

According to Lebanon’s state-owned National News Agency, two Lebanese were injured in the aforementioned artillery attack near the border.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah accused Israel of violating it.

In turn, Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah accused Israel of violating the agreement.

“The Israeli enemy is attacking people returning to border villages,” Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah told reporters. “Today Israel is committing violations, even in this form.”

The Lebanese army, tasked with enforcing the ceasefire, also accused Israel of violating the ceasefire.

“On November 27 and 28 (November) 2024, after the announcement of the ceasefire agreement, the Israeli enemy repeatedly violated the agreement by violating air security rules by targeting various types of weapons on Lebanese territory,” the Lebanese army said in a statement. “The Army Command is monitoring these violations in consultation with the relevant authorities.”

According to AxlesLebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron, one of the officials enforcing the ceasefire, after Thursday’s attacks. They urged him to take further action to put pressure on Israel not to attack further.

Under the ceasefire, Israel can attack targets deemed an immediate threat.

IDF Chief of General Staff LTG Herzi Halevi pledged to continue strikes whenever Israel sees fit.

“Any violation will be punished with fire. This is our duty to the people of the north,” he said.

“Any deviation from this agreement will be punished by fire. The Northern Command knows this,” Halevi added. “I will also talk about the role of the Israeli Air Force soon. We will enforce this firmly and decisively. This is important because of the enormous effort we have put in to get to this point. But more than that, northerners are watching this now and want us to enforce it strongly so they can return to their homes. This is our duty to them and our duty to ourselves. But above all, it is our duty to the people of the north. That is why we will proceed with unwavering determination to enforce the law.”

The development does not bode well for the ceasefire that came into force on Wednesday.

President Joe Biden announced Tuesday that Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to a 60-day ceasefire that includes the withdrawal of Israeli ground forces from Lebanon and the withdrawal of Hezbollah’s heavy weapons north of the Litani River. It mirrored the same agreement that ended the war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006, although Hezbollah quickly broke the terms then. The agreement allows for better law enforcement by the Lebanese army and a five-nation panel led by the United States.

While both sides welcomed the ceasefire, experts and analysts did not division on its service life. Both sides want to cease hostilities and regroup, but have incentives to break the ceasefire.

Foreign policy noted that both sides have almost zero confidence that the other will keep their end of the bargain, and Israel is emboldened by its success over the past three months in its ability to degrade Hezbollah through direct strikes. Meanwhile, Hezbollah faces drastic damage to its prestige by not providing aid to its ally in the Gaza Strip, Hamas.

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While Netanyahu made it clear in his ceasefire speech that the Israeli army was exhausted and needed a break from fighting, Hezbollah was the clear loser of the war. In addition to the destruction of most of its weapons arsenal and the deaths of its senior leadership, it must also face the complete loss of prestige it gained by inflicting one of its first major defeats on Israel in 2006.

According to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, 3,768 people have been killed and 15,699 injured in Lebanon since October 2023. 45 civilians and at least 73 military personnel killed in Israel Reuters reported.