22 killed as residents of southern Lebanon defy Israeli orders not to return home

Three people were killed and 44 others injured by Israeli forces in southern Lebanon, the Lebanese government said, as residents of villages near the border defied orders by Israel’s military not to return to their homes.

At least 22 people were killed and 124 others injured by Israeli forces in southern Lebanon, the Lebanese Health Ministry said, as residents of villages near the border defied orders by Israel’s military not to return to their homes. The deaths come as a deadline expired Sunday for Israel to withdraw forces from the area, as part of a ceasefire agreement that ended months of conflict with Hezbollah. Under the November ceasefire agreement, both Israeli and Hezbollah forces agreed to withdraw from southern Lebanon by January 26, the end of a 60-day period stipulated in the deal. But Israel’s government said Friday that the military would not withdraw all of its forces from southern Lebanon by Sunday’s deadline, blaming Lebanon for failing to uphold its end of the agreement. The Lebanese army in turn accused Israel of “procrastination.” Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health said the Israeli military launched attacks on Lebanese citizens on Sunday attempting to enter towns still occupied by Israeli forces. Of those killed, one was a soldier “targeted by gunfire from the Israeli enemy,” the Lebanese army said.