Two days after a US-brokered agreement was signed between Israel, Lebanon and the US aimed at moving toward a broader peace deal, fighting continues in southern Lebanon, with fresh Israeli attacks reported today.
In response to CNN, the Israeli military said they were not aware of any strikes in the Shebaa area.
Elsewhere, an Israeli soldier, Capt. David Hazutt, was killed in southern Lebanon in a firefight with a Hezbollah gunman, the Israeli military announced Sunday.
The clashes risk complicating efforts to secure a lasting peace agreement between the US and Iran, and have continued despite the memorandum of understanding recently reached between Washington and Tehran including a ceasefire in Lebanon.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said today it is “regrettable” that Israel continues its attacks on Lebanon, pinning responsibility on the US to stop such strikes.
The Israeli military also carried out a drone attack in southern Lebanon on Saturday, which an IDF official told CNN was aimed at eliminating a threat to its troops.
The fighting persists in the country’s south despite Israel and Lebanon broadly welcoming Friday’s signing as a positive step. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu celebrated the agreement, describing it as a major win for Israel. However, his far-right coalition partner, Itamar Ben Gvir, called it a “big mistake.”
As part of the agreement, Israel will withdraw from two areas in southern Lebanon, transferring the sites to the Lebanese military.
Hezbollah criticized the deal: The group’s Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem said the agreement was “a squandering of Lebanon’s sovereignty.”
Read more about the newly signed agreement here.