The Israel-Hezbollah truce goes into effect

A ceasefire following more than a year of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon has come into force.

It began at 04:00 local time (02:00 GMT) on Wednesday, marking at least a temporary end to the nearly 14-month war between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group.

The agreement was announced on Tuesday evening by Israel, France and the US, and President Joe Biden said it was aimed at “ending the fighting once and for all”.

Attacks by both sides were recorded until shortly before the ceasefire began.

Israel issued orders to evacuate parts of Beirut four hours before the deadline for the ceasefire, one hour earlier. Hezbollah also fired drones at Israel a few hours before the cease-fire.

Minutes after the ceasefire began, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) warned residents of southern Lebanon that they could “head to the villages the IDF has ordered to be evacuated or face the IDF forces in the area”.

Arabic IDF spokesman Avichay Adraee told X that the IDF “will let you know when it is safe for you to return home”.

However, dozens of vehicles were seen heading south shortly after the ceasefire by Reuters news agency reporters, some loaded with their belongings.

Fighting had been going on for about a year when, in late September, Israel intensified its bombing campaign and attacked Hezbollah.

The war has been Lebanon's worst in decades, killing more than 3,823 people, according to local officials.

Under the agreement announced on Tuesday and made by the US, Israel will gradually withdraw its troops from southern Lebanon over a period of 60 days.

At the same time, Hezbollah fighters and weapons will be removed from the area south of the Litani River, the border established at the end of the last Israel-Hezbollah war in 2006. They will be replaced by Lebanese government forces.

“This announcement will create the conditions to restore lasting calm and allow citizens in both countries to return safely to their homes,” said a joint statement from the US and France, both of which will join the existing system tasked with enforcing the previous UN resolution. set at the end of the 2006 war.

The Prime Minister of Lebanon, Najib Mikati, has welcomed the ceasefire agreement, calling it “an important step to restore peace and stability” in the country and allow civilians to return home.

But he also demanded that Israel “fully comply” with the agreement, leave its current positions and respect the UN resolution.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will not hesitate to strike if Hezbollah violates any part of the agreement.

“If Hezbollah violates the agreement and tries to arm itself, we will attack. If it tries to rebuild terrorist infrastructure near the border, we will attack,” he said.

Biden said Israel “has the right to defend itself in accordance with international law”.

A recent Israeli TV poll showed 37% of Israelis support the ceasefire, 32% oppose it and 31% say they don't know.

Netanyahu also said that an end to fighting in Lebanon, Israel's neighbor to the north, would allow the IDF to focus on “Iran's gate”.

Hezbollah has long been seen as Iran's first line of defense. But now that the group's missiles have been destroyed, the military balance between Iran and Israel appears to have tilted in favor of Israel.

The past 13 months of fighting began when Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel a day after its ally Hamas carried out a brutal attack in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed around 1,200 people.

Netanyahu said ending the fighting in Lebanon would increase pressure on Hamas.

“Since the second day of the war, Hamas has relied on Hezbollah to fight on its side. Since Hezbollah is gone, Hamas is left alone,” Netanyahu said.

He said ending the fighting in Lebanon would also give the IDF space to resupply weapons, ammunition and soldiers, and thus free up more Israeli forces to operate in Gaza. Similar talks to end the conflict have been stalled for months.

American officials have expressed their hope that the Israel-Hezbollah standoff will provide an impetus for success in the Gaza talks. On Tuesday, Biden said his administration was working with Turkey, Egypt and Qatar to “make another push” on the deal.

No US troops will be used to enforce the current ceasefire, US officials have clarified.

The war has been devastating in Lebanon, where, in addition to 3,823 people killed and 15,859 injured, a million civilians have been displaced from areas where Hezbollah rules.

Israel has continued to attack Hezbollah – described as a terrorist organization by Israel and many Western countries – after nearly a year of cross-border fighting sparked by the war in Gaza.

It said it wanted to ensure the safe return of about 60,000 civilians in northern Israel who were displaced by rocket attacks, launched by Hezbollah in support of the Palestinians.

Hezbollah attacks in Israel and the Golan Heights have killed at least 75 people, more than half of them civilians, and more than 50 soldiers have been killed in the fighting in southern Lebanon, according to Israeli authorities.