Israel ordered forced evacuations of nine villages in southern Lebanon on Friday, a day after Hezbollah rejected a US-brokered ceasefire, as airstrikes and artillery strikes killed six people across the region.
Hundreds of families left Anqoun, a village hosting at least 2,500 displaced people, after the Israeli military warned it would soon operate against what it said were Hezbollah targets there. Roads to the nearby city of Sidon were crowded with cars as residents sought shelter.
Israeli forces carried out strikes across wide areas of south Lebanon, including drone hits on vehicles near Nabatieh and bombardment of Kfar Tebnit, not far from Beaufort Castle, which Israeli troops seized this week. Hezbollah said it attacked Israeli forces near the castle with rockets.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said Lebanon could no longer be a field for wars fought for others. Hezbollah, which is not party to the negotiations, has conveyed its positions through parliament speaker Nabih Berri, who said the group would withdraw south of the Litani River only if Israeli troops left Lebanon and if a ceasefire was unconditional. Berri also criticised proposed "pilot zones" under which Israeli forces would have pulled back while the Lebanese army monitored areas.
The Israeli withdrawal from the town of Dibbin on Thursday was the first since the war began on 2 March, with Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers entering the town on Friday. Negotiations continue in Washington, with President Donald Trump reportedly frustrated by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's campaign amid talks with Iran. Netanyahu has said he will not seek cabinet approval for the ceasefire proposal unless Hezbollah first agrees to its terms.
