ISRAEL KEEPS UP STRIKES
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz earlier on Thursday said Israel “will, for the time being, continue its fire and operations on the ground”. The Israeli military, in a warning to residents of the south, said it was continuing to target Hezbollah facilities.
Katz said Israel would continue to “dismantle terrorist infrastructure in the area” and had “freedom of action, backed by the US, to strike in Beirut in response to attacks on Israeli communities and territory”.
Israel carried out numerous airstrikes in southern Lebanon, security sources said. Lebanon’s National News Agency reported five people killed in airstrikes in the town of Sohmor. A drone buzzed over Beirut.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Washington’s ceasefire framework was “a final opportunity to secure a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire”.
Speaking before Qassem’s statement, Aoun said the ceasefire could come into force within a day if all parties approved, in an apparent reference to Hezbollah.
The statement released by the US State Department said the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire was contingent on Hezbollah completely halting fire and the evacuation of all its operatives from the area between the border and the Litani River.
It made no reference to any Israeli withdrawal from the south.
Katz said Israeli forces would remain in the security zone, including the area of Beaufort castle, seized by Israeli forces at the weekend, “and without the return of the population”.
Israel’s campaign has forced some 1.2 million people to flee their homes, including hundreds of thousands from southern Lebanon, Lebanese authorities say.