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Lebanon ceasefire deal extended as initial deadline passes

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The United States and Lebanon say the ceasefire agreement with Israel – which was due to expire on Sunday – has been extended until mid-February.

Israel kept its forces deployed in Lebanon after the initial deadline, accusing the Lebanese government of not fully implementing its part of the deal, which requires removing Hezbollah from the region.

The Lebanese Ministry of Health said on Sunday that Israeli soldiers killed 22 people and wounded 124 others as they tried to return to their homes in the south of the country.

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said that after contact from the United States, the truce will remain in effect until February 18.

The initial ceasefire plan, announced in late November, ended 14 months of conflict between Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.

The agreement, brokered by the United States and France, gave Hezbollah 60 days to end its armed presence in southern Lebanon, and demanded the withdrawal of Israeli forces during the same period.

Announcing the plan, then US President Joe Biden said it was “designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities” between the two sides.

But on Friday, two days before the deadline, Israel said some soldiers would remain in the area because the ceasefire agreement “has not yet been fully implemented by the Lebanese state.”

A White House statement on Sunday said the deadline has now been postponed to February 18, and that negotiations will begin to return Lebanese prisoners captured after October 7, 2023.

Thousands of Lebanese residents have returned to towns and villages near the border since the agreement was agreed, despite warnings that the area remains unsafe.

The Lebanese Ministry of Health said on Sunday that 22 people were killed by Israeli soldiers in the area.

The Israeli military said it fired “warning shots in multiple areas,” without specifying whether people were injured, and arrested several people it claimed posed an “imminent threat.”

The long-running conflict between Israel and Hezbollah – the Iranian-backed armed political and social movement – escalated last September. This led to an intense Israeli air campaign throughout Lebanon, a ground invasion of the south of the country, and the assassination of senior Hezbollah leaders.

The attack killed about 4,000 people in Lebanon – including many civilians – and displaced more than 1.2 million residents.

Israel’s stated goal was to allow the return of some 60,000 residents who had fled communities in the north of the country due to Hezbollah attacks, and to remove the group from areas along the border.

Hezbollah launched its campaign the day after Hamas attacks on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, saying it was acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

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2025-01-27 01:55:00

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