Palestinians mourn their relatives killed in Israeli bombardments of the Gaza Strip, at Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir al-Balah on Sunday. ABDEL KAREEM HANA/AP
Israel warned on Sunday it will "be forced to act" if Hezbollah does not pull back from southern Lebanon as stipulated in a cease-fire deal, despite calls from Beirut and United Nations peacekeepers for Israel to withdraw its troops on schedule.
The cease-fire agreement, signed on Nov 27 by Israel and Lebanon, mandates Israel to withdraw from southern Lebanon and Hezbollah to end its armed presence there, within 60 days. However, both parties have since accused each other of violating the truce.
During a visit to the military's northern command, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel is interested in implementing the agreement, the Times of Israel reported.
However, the first condition for the implementation is the "complete withdrawal" of Hezbollah beyond the Litani River, the dismantling of all Hezbollah weapons and the "terror infrastructure" in the area by the Lebanese army.
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said in a speech on Saturday that Israel has pact duty to pull out of southern Lebanon and that the Lebanese government should urge Israel to withdraw. "Our patience might run out," he said.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said on X on Sunday that its peacekeepers observed a bulldozer of the Israel Defense Forces destroying a blue barrel marking the withdrawal line between Lebanon and Israel in Labbouneh, as well as an observation tower belonging to the Lebanese Armed Forces beside a UNIFIL position there.
"The IDF's deliberate and direct destruction of both clearly identifiable UNIFIL property and infrastructure belonging to the Lebanese Armed Forces is a flagrant violation of Resolution 1701 and international law," the UNIFIL said.
"We call on all actors to avoid any actions, including the destruction of civilian property and infrastructure, that could jeopardize the cessation of hostilities."
The Israel Hayom newspaper reported on Dec 29 that Israel was exploring the possibility of keeping its forces in key positions in southern Lebanon even after the 60-day deadline, citing the sluggish deployment of the Lebanese Army in the region and the continued discovery of Hezbollah weaponry and infrastructure.
Earlier, Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati accused Israel of failing to comply with its commitments under the truce, citing daily violations amid reports of continued strikes and bombings in southern Lebanon.
Farhan Haq, UN deputy spokesman for the secretary-general, said in a media briefing on Friday, "To address outstanding issues, we urge both parties to utilize the newly established mechanism as agreed in the understanding."
Hostage deal in Gaza
In another development, Israel said on Monday that Hamas had not yet provided the status of 34 hostages the group declared it was ready to release in the first phase of a potential exchange deal.
"As yet, Israel has not received any confirmation or comment by Hamas regarding the status of the hostages appearing on the list," the Israeli prime minister's office said after a Hamas official gave a list of captives the group was willing to free.
Late on Sunday, a senior Hamas official told AFP the group had "agreed to release 34 Israeli prisoners from a list presented by Israel as part of the first phase of a prisoner exchange deal".
The official, requesting anonymity, said the initial swap would include all the women, children, elderly people and sick captives still held in Gaza.
Health authorities in Gaza said on Monday that 49 people were killed in the Palestinian territory in the past 24 hours, taking the overall death toll of the conflict to 45,854.
Agencies contributed to this story.
