“A large number of IDF ground troops have launched offensive operations aimed at expanding the frontline defense line (…). The operation is currently being extended to additional territories,” the Israeli military said in a statement, adding that its forces have crossed the Litani River.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Friday that Israeli forces have crossed the Litani River in Lebanon, which flows about 30 km north of the shared border between the countries.
The ceasefire, aimed at stopping fighting between Israel and the Tehran-backed Hezbollah, officially came into effect on April 17, but it was not observed.
Both Israel and Hezbollah accuse each other of violating the ceasefire and justify their attacks by alleged violations by the other side.
On Sunday, the Israeli military reported that it had launched an operation “a few days ago” in the Beaufort Hills and Wadi al Saluki area in southern Lebanon, “to eliminate direct threats to the Galilee Panhandle and Metula communities and to carry out ongoing efforts to strengthen operational control in southern Lebanon.”
Later on Sunday, the Israeli military warned Lebanese civilians living south of the Zahrani River to evacuate the area, warning that it is intensifying operations against Hezbollah.
“Residents of southern Lebanon, you must immediately move north of the Zahrani,” wrote the military spokesperson in Arabic on social media, Avichayus Adraee.
On Wednesday, he stated that all areas south of the Zahrani River, which flows about 40 kilometers north of the Israel-Lebanon border, are considered combat zones.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam accused Israel on Saturday of pursuing a “scorched earth policy” in the south of his country.
According to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, more than 3,371 people have died in Israeli attacks since March 2, when Hezbollah involved Lebanon in the war in the Middle East.
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