Beirut/Jerusalem, Nov 27 (EFE).- People took to the streets of Lebanon on Wednesday to celebrate the start of the ceasefire with Israel, as convoys of cars streamed to areas residents were displaced from due to Israeli bombings.
Displaced people began to return to southern Lebanon at 4 am local time (02:00 GMT), when the ceasefire came into effect, according to the National News Agency (NNA).
The roads that go from Sidon to Zahrani and up towards Nabatiye were filled with cars, waving Lebanese flags and resistance flags, the agency said.
In addition to Nabatiye, which was completely destroyed by the incessant Israeli bombing campaign that began on Sep. 23, many also returned to the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon and the south of the country, two other areas hard hit by the Israeli offensive.
The Lebanese military had called on citizens to wait to return to the areas still occupied by Israel following its invasion that began on Oct. 1 in the south of the country and to take precautions if they returned to other areas of the country from which they fled.
Residents were also outside in the streets, including the southern suburbs of Beirut known as Dahieh, according to local television.
Fighting continued up until the ceasefire as Israel intensified its bombings against this area, located about 6 kilometers south of central Beirut, as well as attacking other points in the Mediterranean capital after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders for two buildings, while Hezbollah claimed to have attacked the Tel Aviv residence of the head of the Israeli air force, Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, with drones.
The 60-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, an agreement in which the United States and will work with both sides to “ensure this arrangement is fully implemented and enforced,” consists of three stages.
First, an initial truce, followed by the withdrawal of the Lebanese Shiite group’s forces north of the Litani River; the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon within 60 days; and, finally, negotiations between the two countries to delimit their border, which currently corresponds to a line drawn by the UN after the 2006 war.
Shortly after the agreement came into force, the Israeli army said it would maintain its military deployment in southern Lebanon for the time being.
It warned against south Lebanon residents’ return to areas where its troops remained.
Since the outbreak of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah on Oct. 8, 2023, more than 3,800 people have been killed and more than 15,800 injured in Israeli attacks in Lebanon.
The vast majority of deaths, around 3,100, have occurred since the start of Israel’s massive bombing campaign on Sep. 23, which has mainly affected communities in southern and eastern Lebanon, as well as the southern suburbs of Beirut known as Dahieh.
The violence has forced more than 1.2 million people to flee their homes, more than half of whom have crossed the border into Syria, according to data from the Lebanese government. EFE
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