Israeli Troops Attack Kills 22 People In South Lebanon

Conditions in South Lebanon/UnICEF/Diego Ibarra Smailchez

JAKARTA - Israeli forces killed 22 people in southern Lebanon in attacks on a number of locations. The attack came at a time when the Lebanese military questioned the Israeli troops had not been withdrawn according to the ceasefire agreement.

Israel previously said it would maintain its troops in the southern region beyond the time limit set in the US-brokered ceasefire that ended last year's war with Hezbollah.

The Lebanese military reported one of its troops was among those killed by Israeli forces on Sunday, January 26, accusing Israel of delaying its troop withdrawal.

The Hezbollah-Israeli conflict coincided with the Gaza war, and reached its peak with a massive Israeli attack that forced more than one million people in Lebanon to flee and make the Iran-backed group very weak.

As reported by Reuters on Monday, January 27, the Lebanese Ministry of Health said 22 people were killed and 124 others injured in a number of locations in the south, as a result of Israeli attacks on residents as they tried to enter the occupied cities.

The Israeli military said its troops operating in southern Lebanon fired warning shots to eliminate threats in a number of areas where suspects were identified as approaching troops.

The statement also said "a number of suspects who were threats" were arrested.

Hezbollah's al-Manar television showed footage of residents moving towards villages on Sunday morning, some of them holding flags of the group and images of Hezbollah fighters killed in the war.

An Israeli military spokesman accused Hezbollah of trying to "manage the situation" and said Israeli soldiers "in the near future" would tell residents of places where they could return.

Hezbollah has given the Lebanese state responsibility to ensure the withdrawal of Israeli troops.

Lawmaker Hezbollah Hassan Fadlallah said Lebanon was committed to a ceasefire agreement but Israel turned against it because of US support.

The White House said on Friday last week that a short-term and temporary ceasefire extension was urgently needed.