Israel Strikes Lebanon Despite US-Brokered Ceasefire Agreement

Israel continued its attacks on southern Lebanon on Friday despite a new US-brokered ceasefire agreement between the two countries. According to Lebanon's National News Agency (NNA), at least five people were killed when Israeli warplanes and drones struck several towns. The Israeli military also issued fresh forced evacuation orders.

The attacks targeted residential areas, buildings, and roads, while extensive destruction was carried out in Bab al-Thaniya. Israeli warplanes also struck near Jabel Amel Hospital, targeting the Bank Audi area.

Two people were killed in Habboush, including a doctor. In Doueir, a young man was killed and another seriously injured in an Israeli warplane strike. An attack on Qalawiya Tower village left one dead and one wounded, while a drone killed a man sitting in his car in Kfar Reman.

The Israeli military issued two sets of evacuation orders covering nine towns and villages. The strikes came shortly after news that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to a new US-brokered ceasefire, announced by the Trump administration on Thursday, just weeks after a previous ceasefire on April 16.

In the interim, more than 600 people have been killed in Israeli attacks across Lebanon, while the Israeli military expanded its presence in the south. Israel now occupies about one-fifth of Lebanese territory. The prospects for the new deal to halt the fighting appear low, as ongoing exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israel suggest pessimism.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem quickly rejected the agreement, calling it “surrender and failure.” The Iran-aligned armed group said it had carried out at least eight attacks on Israeli military positions in southern Lebanon from early morning until Friday afternoon. Hezbollah claimed its fighters launched multiple rocket salvoes at Israeli vehicles and soldiers in the southeastern outskirts of Zawtar al-Sharqiyya, as well as using artillery and rocket attacks at Yahmar al-Shaqif, and Ababil suicide drones targeting Israeli military vehicles at Tell al-Salaa.

Israel's defense minister declared that the military campaign would continue, and Israeli media reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had not yet approved implementing the ceasefire. Iran emphasized that a comprehensive ceasefire in Lebanon is necessary for it to agree to a broader ceasefire with the US and Israel.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Friday urged Iran to stop treating his country as a “bargaining chip” in negotiations with Washington over the Middle East conflict. “If I can send a message to Iran, it is: have mercy on our south, do not treat it and its people as a bargaining chip to improve your negotiating terms,” Salam said at a press conference on the UN's aid appeal for Lebanon.

Andrea Dessi, assistant professor at the American University in Rome, told Al Jazeera that any agreement excluding Hezbollah would fail. “Any agreement that excludes or completely ignores the prerogatives of key actors on the ground, primarily Hezbollah, and of course Iran behind Hezbollah, will unfortunately fail.” However, he argued that diplomacy remains the only viable path.

Israeli diplomat Alon Pinkas told Al Jazeera that Israel has no consistent strategy for Lebanon and that the stated goal of destroying Hezbollah is unattainable. “If the idea is to eliminate, destroy, all those grandiose terms Netanyahu likes to use, then you basically need to occupy the entire state of Lebanon. That is not only feasible and immoral, but also impractical.”