2 Killed in Southern Lebanon as Protests against Israeli Presence Erupt for a Second Day

A United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon vehicle drives through a Lebanese army checkpoint in Burj al-Mulik - AFP
A United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon vehicle drives through a Lebanese army checkpoint in Burj al-Mulik - AFP
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2 Killed in Southern Lebanon as Protests against Israeli Presence Erupt for a Second Day

A United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon vehicle drives through a Lebanese army checkpoint in Burj al-Mulik - AFP
A United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon vehicle drives through a Lebanese army checkpoint in Burj al-Mulik - AFP

Firing by Israeli troops killed two people and wounded 17 on Monday in the second day of deadly protests in southern Lebanon, health officials said, as residents displaced by the 14-month war between Israel and Hezbollah attempted to return to villages where Israeli troops remain.

The shooting came a day after 24 people were killed and more than 130 wounded when Israeli troops opened fire on protesters who breached roadblocks set up along the border.

Under a US-brokered ceasefire on Nov. 27, Israeli forces were to withdraw from southern Lebanon, and Hezbollah was to move north of the Litani River by Jan. 26. While the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers had already deployed in several villages before the deadline, Israel remained in over a dozen villages.

The United States and Lebanon announced later on Sunday that the deadline to meet the ceasefire terms had been extended to Feb. 18.

Protests resumed Monday particularly in eastern border villages, where residents again attempted to return home. Israeli troops opened fire, killing one person in the town of Adaisseh and wounding seven others across four southern villages, the Health Ministry reported.

The Israeli military has blamed Hezbollah for pushing people to protest and has said soldiers fired warning shots when demonstrators approached.

In the village of Aitaroun, scores of unarmed residents, some waving Hezbollah flags, marched hand-in-hand or rode motorcycles, escorted by ambulances, bulldozers and Lebanese army tanks. They approached the edge of the town but stopped short of Israeli positions, unable to enter.

“We are coming with our heads held high and crowned with victory to our village, Aitaroun,” said Saleem Mrad, head of the municipality. “Our village is ours, and we will bring it back more beautiful than it was before. We are staying.”

Hassan al-Ahmad, a Aitaroun resident, said, “We have to give our blood and our souls. If there had not been blood spilled, the land would not have been liberated.”

Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that Israel dropped a bomb at the entrance of the southern village of Yaroun to deter residents from proceeding farther.

In the town of Bint Jbeil, Hezbollah members handed out flyers featuring slain leader Hassan Nasrallah with the words, “Victory has arrived.” Some residents waved Hezbollah flags.

Israel blamed the Lebanese army for not deploying to the region fast enough, while the Lebanese military accused Israel of stalling its withdrawal, complicating its deployment efforts.

Some family members who entered border villages Sunday discovered the bodies of their relatives. Israeli strikes have killed over 4,000 people during the war, but Lebanese authorities do not distinguish between fighters and civilians in their death toll.

Since the ceasefire began, Israel has conducted near-daily operations such as house demolitions, shelling and airstrikes in southern Lebanon, accusing Hezbollah of violating ceasefire terms by attempting to move weapons. Lebanon in turn has accused Israel of hundreds of ceasefire violations.



Israel, Hamas Poised for Third Hostage-prisoner Exchange

An Israeli police officer looks on as a Red Cross vehicle is seen near the Israeli military prison, Ofer, on the day Israel releases Palestinian prisoners as part of a hostages-prisoners swap and a ceasefire deal in Gaza between Hamas and Israel, near Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, January 19, 2025. (Reuters)
An Israeli police officer looks on as a Red Cross vehicle is seen near the Israeli military prison, Ofer, on the day Israel releases Palestinian prisoners as part of a hostages-prisoners swap and a ceasefire deal in Gaza between Hamas and Israel, near Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, January 19, 2025. (Reuters)
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Israel, Hamas Poised for Third Hostage-prisoner Exchange

An Israeli police officer looks on as a Red Cross vehicle is seen near the Israeli military prison, Ofer, on the day Israel releases Palestinian prisoners as part of a hostages-prisoners swap and a ceasefire deal in Gaza between Hamas and Israel, near Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, January 19, 2025. (Reuters)
An Israeli police officer looks on as a Red Cross vehicle is seen near the Israeli military prison, Ofer, on the day Israel releases Palestinian prisoners as part of a hostages-prisoners swap and a ceasefire deal in Gaza between Hamas and Israel, near Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, January 19, 2025. (Reuters)

Israel and Hamas were set to carry out their third hostage-prisoner exchange on Thursday, with three Israelis and five Thai captives slated for release as part of a ceasefire deal aimed at ending the Gaza war.

A fourth exchange is scheduled for the weekend, but Hamas accused Israel on Wednesday of jeopardizing the deal by holding up aid deliveries, an allegation Israel dismissed as "fake news".

The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu identified the three Israelis to be released Thursday as Arbel Yehud, Agam Berger and Gadi Moses, adding that five Thai citizens held in Gaza would also be freed.

In a statement Wednesday evening, the Moses family said it had "received with great excitement the wonderful news of our beloved Gadi's return".

The ceasefire that took effect on January 19 hinges on the release of Israeli hostages taken during Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack, in exchange for 1,900 people -- mostly Palestinians -- being held in Israeli custody.

Hamas has so far released seven hostages, with 290 prisoners freed in exchange.

Israel is to release 110 prisoners, 30 of them minors, in exchange for the three Israelis to be released on Thursday, the Palestinian Prisoners' Club advocacy group said.

The next swap on Saturday will see three Israeli men released, according to Netanyahu's office.

Aid trucks

The truce deal has allowed truckloads of aid into the devastated Gaza Strip, where the war has created a long-running humanitarian crisis.

But two senior Hamas officials accused Israel of slowing down aid deliveries, with one citing items key to Gaza's recovery such as fuel, tents, heavy machinery and other equipment.

"According to the agreement, these materials were supposed to enter during the first week of the ceasefire," one official said.

"We warn that continued delays and failure to address these points will affect the natural progression of the agreement, including the prisoner exchange."

Israel hit back at the accusation, with a spokesman for COGAT, the Israeli defense ministry body that oversees civilian affairs in the Palestinian territories, calling it "totally fake news".

Between Sunday and 1100 GMT on Wednesday, "3,000 trucks entered Gaza", the spokesman said.

"The agreement says it should be 4,200 in seven days," he added.

As the text of the agreement -- mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States -- between the warring parties has not been made public, AFP was not able to verify its terms on aid.

Both Hamas officials said representatives of the group had raised the issue during a meeting with Egyptian officials in Cairo on Wednesday.

Forced displacement an 'injustice'

The ceasefire deal is currently in its first 42-day phase, which should see 33 hostages freed.

Next, the parties are due to start discussing a long-term end to the war.

The third and final phase of the deal should see the reconstruction of Gaza as well as the return of the bodies of any remaining dead hostages.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed credit for sealing the agreement despite it taking effect just ahead of his inauguration, and his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who took part in the talks, met with Netanyahu in Israel on Wednesday

Trump has invited Netanyahu to the White House on February 4, according to the premier's office.

After the truce took effect, Trump touted a plan to "clean out" the Gaza Strip, calling for Palestinians to relocate to neighboring countries such as Egypt or Jordan.

The idea has faced strong backlash from both countries, as well as from European governments.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Wednesday that the forced displacement of Palestinians was an "injustice that we cannot take part in".

Jordan's King Abdullah II, meanwhile, stressed "the need to keep the Palestinians on their land and to guarantee their legitimate rights, in accordance with the Israeli and Palestinian two-state solution".

More than 376,000 displaced Palestinians have gone back to northern Gaza since Israel reopened access earlier this week, according to the UN humanitarian office OCHA, with many returning to little more than rubble.

"My house is destroyed," 33-year-old Mohammed Al-Faleh told AFP. "This morning, we built a small room with two walls made from the remains of our home. There is no cement, so I used mud.

"We are facing great difficulties," he added. "The biggest problem is that there is no water -- all the water wells are destroyed. Food aid is reaching Gaza... but there is no gas or electricity. We bake bread on a fire fueled by wood and nylon."