Lebanese soldiers inspect the damage in Khiam on Dec. 12, 2024. (Credit: AFP)
An Israeli drone strike targeted an area south of Saida in southern Lebanon on Friday afternoon, according to L'Orient-Le Jour's correspondent, while the caretaker Lebanese Minister of Defense denounced Israeli "violations" of the cease-fire during the day.
This strike, the only one reported since Thursday, targeted the area known as "Tebna," on the outskirts of Baissariyeh, south of Saida. This region has been bombed several times since the cease-fire came into force on Nov. 27.
In addition, a joint committee of the Lebanese army and UNIFIL, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, conducted a tour of the town of Khiam (Marjayoun) on Friday, after the deployment of the Lebanese army on Wednesday evening around the town, occupied for several weeks by the Israeli army, according to information from L'Orient-Le Jour's correspondent. An army ambulance evacuated several bodies in Khiam, including the remains of Moustapha Awada, killed Thursday by a missile launched by a drone, while he was inspecting the damage to his house.
Earlier, Slim and army commander Joseph Aoun discussed the security situation in the south and the army's deployment in the region, and condemned Israel's cease-fire violations, the state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported.
"The continued violations [of the cease-fire] by the Israeli enemy and its aggressions towards the villages of the south are a blatant violation of Lebanese sovereignty and resolution 1701," said Maurice Slim. "The international community, particularly the countries that sponsor the cease-fire, must exert pressure for Israel to stop hostilities and withdraw beyond the border, in accordance with 1701," he added.
The cease-fire agreement includes a 60-day period for the Israeli army to withdraw from south Lebanon, and the Lebanese army to deploy there, as well as the withdrawal of all Hezbollah weapons from south of the Litani.