The Israeli military has given orders to its soldiers to shoot any civilians, even if they are unarmed, despite an ongoing ceasefire. This is based on the unsound premise by government representatives of Israel, that there are “no civilians left” – absolutely none – in the south of Lebanon, as the Israeli military has given evacuation orders.
According to The Jerusalem Post, an English-language Israeli newspaper, “Although the IDF has given general orders to open fire within southern Lebanon even if an approaching unidentified person is not armed, based on the idea that there are no civilians left in southern Lebanon, this approach may be difficult to maintain over time.”
Since the April 17 Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire, large numbers of Lebanese civilians have attempted to return to southern Lebanon to check on the condition of their homes, businesses, and villages. Many have found their livelihoods and generations-long residences significantly damaged, or completely destroyed.
Since their ground invasion into southern Lebanon and the enforcement of a ‘yellow line’ at the Litani River, the Israeli military has been engaging in a sustained campaign of the destruction of infrastructure, detonating and demolishing entire villages and towns in southern Lebanon.
Despite the clear terms of the ceasefire, the Israeli military claims that “the ceasefire only applied North of the Litani River.”
Israel’s claim that proper evacuation orders are given is contradicted by many Lebanese civilians who report that they have received no notification before the multitude of airstrikes and invasions by Israel that have occurred on a near-daily basis.
On 2 May, while fully into a 3-week ceasefire extension agreed to by the US and Israel, 50 Israeli strikes have hit southern Lebanon in 24 hours, leaving 41 people killed.
Civilians who have returned to southern Lebanon who survived these strikes say their location had no Hezbollah presence at all, only civilian presence.
The death toll from Israeli strikes on Lebanon since March 2 have been raised to 2,659, with 8,183 others injured. More than one million have been displaced.
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