IDF Warns Returning Lebanese Civilians Not to Enter Dead Zone in the South

Photo Credit: IDF Spokesman

Golani Yahalam special forces north of the Litani River, Nov. 26, 2024.

IDF Spokesperson in Arabic, Lieutenant Colonel Avichai Adraee, issued a warning Thursday morning to residents of southern Lebanon, especially those interested in returning to the villages near the border fence with Israel, stating that civilians are prohibited from moving beyond the villages located on the second tier in the south of the country:

“Until further notice, you are prohibited from moving south to the line of the following villages and their surroundings, as well as within the villages themselves: Shebaa, al-Habriya, Marja’youn, Arnon, Yahmar, al-Qantara, Shakra, Bereshit, Yater, and Al-Mansouri.”

#عاجل ?بيان عاجل إلى سكان لبنان
⭕️حتى إشعار آخر يحظر عليكم الانتقال جنوبًا إلى خط القرى التالية ومحيطها وأيضا داخل القرى نفسها: شبعا، الهبارية، مرجعيون، أرنون، يحمر، القنطرة، شقرا، برعشيت، ياطر، المنصوري
⭕️جيش الدفاع لا ينوي استهدافكم ولذلك يحظر عليكم في هذه المرحلة العودة إلى… pic.twitter.com/Ykcp0EoB2u

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) November 28, 2024

The IDF spokesman in Arabic added that anyone who travels south of the line of villages specified in the announcement or enters the villages specified exposes himself to danger. The ceasefire went into effect on Wednesday at 4 AM local time, but during the 24 hours that followed, IDF units eliminated 6 terrorists who thwarted the warning in southern Lebanon.

The Lebanese government on Wednesday published the full text of the agreement regulating the ceasefire, which includes 13 articles and deals with Lebanon’s obligations to deploy its forces in the south of the country and prevent Hezbollah from returning to the border with Israel, as well as the American-French monitoring mechanism that is supposed to enforce the agreement, one hopes.

The annex to the agreement presents new information in the form of a map that draws a new line, dubbed the “2024 Line,” which redefines the area where Hezbollah forces are prohibited from being present, and where the Lebanese army will be required to act to dismantle the remaining terrorist infrastructures.

The no-Hezbollah zone between the Litani River and the Israeli border. / Screenshot

The main change is in the Litani Valley. In this area, the river turns west and is located only about 3 kilometers from the Israeli border on the Galilee’s finger, where the Israeli settlement of Metula is located. The new line deviates from the riverbed to include additional areas in Lebanese territory, thereby preventing Hezbollah from threatening Israeli settlements from these areas.

These are high and dominant areas, such as the famous Beaufort Fortress, and therefore it is essential that Hezbollah terrorists not be allowed there.

Another aspect of the agreement is the deep American involvement in supervising its implementation. Until now, international military involvement in Lebanon was the responsibility of UNIFIL and European countries, but with the new agreement, the United States is taking on a series of commitments to make sure it is adhered to. Although American soldiers will not be stationed in the country (President Biden promised no American boots would touch Lebanese ground in his self-congratulatory statement––obviously recalling Hezbollah’s massacre of unsuspecting Marines 40 years ago), an American general will be stationed in the region, and ceasefire monitoring centers will be established in Beirut and Tsfat.

In addition, the agreement reiterates Lebanon’s commitment to “dismantling all armed groups” in the country, although it already appears that this goal is mostly ambition with very little follow through.