The IDF and Hezbollah jousted at low levels in several areas in southern Lebanon on Wednesday, but the ceasefire, which started at 4 a.m., largely held.
According to the IDF, over the course of the day, Hezbollah tried numerous low-level violations, including to enter certain areas of southern Lebanon.
IDF responses
The IDF responded in three different ways.
In some cases, the military fired on and killed Hezbollah forces, though it did not provide numbers. In other cases, it wounded the fighters, while in other cases, it fired in the air and the figures retreated.
The IDF also detained and questioned four Hezbollah fighters. Queried by The Jerusalem Post about whether they were released, or brought back to Israel for indictment and trial or for administrative detention, a military spokesperson said no decision had yet been made.
However, given that Lebanon is a foreign country, it is rare that the IDF would detain them in some way.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said the military should prevent Lebanese persons – even civilians – from returning to southern Lebanon at this early stage in the 60-day ceasefire.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi said the military would enforce the ceasefire even more strongly than the war until now and that if Hezbollah forced a return of hostilities, the military would strike it in even deeper areas of Lebanon than it had until now.
Moreover, military sources said no withdrawal has begun and that it would only take place in stages, and it becomes more apparent that Hezbollah would respect the ceasefire terms.
The IDF reiterated that it would be ready to operate all across Lebanon against those seeking to breach the ceasefire agreement.
Earlier on Wednesday, troops shot at suspects detected in a prohibited area, just hours after the ceasefire kicked in.
Later on Wednesday, Hezbollah member Hassan Fadlallah, who is also a member of the Lebanese Parliament, said the terror group had the right to defend itself if Israel attacked.
Ceasefire agreement
The ceasefire agreement includes a 60-day period during which Israeli forces will withdraw from southern Lebanon, where the Lebanese military would be deployed, with Hezbollah moving north of the Litani River.
It is said that the Lebanese army will increase deployment of soldiers in southern Lebanon to 10,000 troops, Lebanon’s Defense Minister Maurice Sleem told Al Jazeera.
Sleem also told Al Jazeera that “there will be only the Lebanese army and UNIFIL forces on Lebanese territory,” and added that the Lebanese government was committed to international resolutions and Lebanon’s sovereignty.
Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati was informed by the Lebanese military of the plan to enhance the Lebanese Armed Forces’ deployments to southern Lebanon, Al Jazeera stated.
Earlier, the Lebanese Armed Forces said it is preparing to deploy its forces to southern Lebanon, Reuters reported.The army also asked that residents of border villages delay returning home until the IDF withdraws.
Despite these statements, Israeli political and defense officials put little stock in the Lebanese army’s ability to hold Hezbollah back from retaking southern Lebanon and other violations of the ceasefire.
Rather, the IDF expects to self-enforce any deal violations based on a side letter from the US.
Prior to the ceasefire coming into effect, the IDF undertook a number of late operations late Tuesday and early Wednesday.
These include destroying three key weapons smuggling areas between Syria and Lebanon and destroying Hezbollah’s largest precision weapons manufacturing facility – which spanned a 1.4-km. area – along with dozens of attacks on Hezbollah’s banking system and in Beirut.
Military sources said the precision rocket facility was saved for the end of the war because it was deep underground, though it was unclear why that explained the delay.
An alternative explanation given was that the IDF wanted to wait to destroy it until the last moment when Hezbollah would find it difficult not to go through with the deal despite the fury it would feel at the loss of such a strategic site.
Hezbollah’s operations officer Jafar Ali Samaha was killed in an IAF strike in Beirut, eliminating much of the chain of command in Hezbollah’s aerial unit, the military said on Wednesday.
Hezbollah’s aerial unit, which was established under Iranian leadership, received drones, cruise missiles, and production components from Iran alongside training terrorists. The unit is responsible for numerous aerial attacks using drones to target Israel.
Since the beginning of the war last year and the ground operation in Lebanon in September, the IAF conducted several strikes to dismantle the aerial unit’s infrastructure. The IAF struck numerous assets, including over 150 drone launch positions, 20 weapons storage facilities, and 30 command centers. As such, 70% of the unit’s stockpile of drones and cruise missiles were destroyed.
Strikes on Hezbollah targets
Overnight on Tuesday, the IAF conducted several precise strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. In these strikes, the IAF targeted Hezbollah command centers, launchers, weapons storage facilities, and other terrorist infrastructure.The IDF noted that it struck sites in several localities, including Beirut, Tyre, and Nabatieh.
Some targets included a military structure used by Hezbollah’s coast-to-sea missile unit in Beirut. Many of the targets belonged to Hezbollah’s “Aziz” and “Bader” Units, as well as the Radwan Force.
In one case, dozens of Radwan members were killed.
IDF issues evacuation warnings
The IDF issued evacuation warnings on Tuesday for several buildings in Beirut suburbs, according to a statement from the IDF’s Arabic spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, on X/Twitter.
In Gaza, the IDF killed or arrested dozens of Hamas forces in Jabalya and Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza, especially at the al-Hartani school.
The IDF continued to emphasize its movement of Gazans from northern Gaza to southern Gaza, while still denying there is any macro-plan to empty northern Gaza of all civilians as proposed by a group of former senior commanders.