Sawt Falasteen - Lebanon says Israeli forces kill 22 in south on pullout deadline

The withdrawal deadline is part of a ceasefire agreement reached two months ago that ended Israel's war with Iran-backed Hezbollah, which had left the Lebanese militant group weakened.

The deal that took effect on November 27 said the Lebanese army was to deploy alongside United Nations peacekeepers in the south as the Israeli army withdrew over a 60-day period that ends on Sunday.

The parties have traded blame for the delay in implementing the agreement, and on Friday Israel said it would keep troops across the border in south Lebanon beyond the pullout date.

Lebanon's health ministry said on Sunday that Israeli forces opened fire on "citizens who were trying to return to their villages that are still under (Israeli) occupation".

It said 22 people including six women and a soldier were killed and 124 more wounded. The Lebanese army also announced the soldier's death and said another had been wounded.

The Israeli military said in a statement that its "troops operating in southern Lebanon fired warning shots to remove threats" where "suspects were identified approaching the troops".

It added that "a number of suspects... that posed an imminent threat to the troops were apprehended".

AFP journalists said convoys of vehicles carrying hundreds of people, some flying yellow Hezbollah flags, were trying to get to several border villages.

"We will return to our villages and the Israeli enemy will leave," even if it costs lives, said Ali Harb, a 27-year-old trying to go to Kfar Kila.

A joint statement from the UN special coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, and the head of the UNIFIL peacekeeping mission acknowledged that "conditions are not yet in place for the safe return of citizens to their villages".

- 'Threats and warnings' -

An AFP correspondent saw hundreds of people gather for a collective prayer on a main road in the border town of Bint Jbeil, followed by a march to some nearby villages.

Residents could also be seen heading on foot and by motorbike towards the devastated border town of Mays al-Jabal, where Israeli troops are still stationed.

Some held up portraits of former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, slain in an Israeli attack in late September, while women dressed in black carried photos of family members killed in the war.

Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee had issued a message earlier on Sunday to residents of more than 60 villages in southern Lebanon telling them not to return.

Speaking from the border town of Aita al-Shaab, Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah hailed in a television appearance "the return of residents in spite of the threats and warnings".

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, the former army chief who took office earlier this month, called on residents to keep a cool head and "trust the Lebanese army", which he said wanted "to ensure your safe return to your homes and villages".

Israeli forces have left coastal areas of southern Lebanon but are still present in areas further east.

The ceasefire deal stipulates that Hezbollah pull back its forces north of the Litani River -- about 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the border -- and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in the south.

- Truce holding -

Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati called Sunday for the backers of the ceasefire agreement -- a group that includes the United States and France -- "to force the Israeli enemy to withdraw".

French President Emmanuel Macron told Netanyahu in a telephone call on Sunday to "withdraw his forces still present in Lebanon" and stressed the importance of restoring Lebanese state authority nationwide, Macron's office said.

The truce has generally held since November, despite repeated accusations of violations.

It ended two months of full-scale war that had followed nearly a year of low-intensity exchanges.

Hezbollah began trading cross-border fire with the Israeli army the day after the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by its Palestinian ally Hamas, which triggered the war in Gaza.

Israel's campaign delivered a series of devastating blows against Hezbollah's leadership including its longtime chief Nasrallah.

H.Darwish--SF-PST