The Albany Gazette - Lebanon says Israeli fire kills two as residents try to go home

The bloodshed, which one analyst said was unlikely to re-spark war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah, came hours after the extension of a deadline for Israeli forces to withdraw from south Lebanon under a November ceasefire deal.

The ministry said Israeli fire killed 24 returnees on Sunday.

"Israeli enemy attacks as citizens attempt to return to their towns that are still occupied have led... to two dead and 17 wounded," the health ministry said Monday in a statement, updating an earlier toll of one dead.

It said the wounded included a child and a rescuer from the Risala Scouts association, affiliated with Hezbollah ally the Amal movement.

Under the ceasefire deal that took effect on November 27, the Lebanese military was to deploy in the south alongside United Nations peacekeepers as the Israeli army withdrew over a 60-day period, which ended on Sunday.

Hezbollah was also to pull back its forces north of the Litani River -- about 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the border.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said earlier Monday that Lebanon had agreed to an extension of the ceasefire deal between Hezbollah and Israel until February 18, after the Israeli military missed Sunday's deadline to withdraw.

In south Lebanon, residents accompanied by the army were again trying to return to their villages, official media and AFP correspondents reported.

In the village of Burj al-Muluk, an AFP photographer saw dozens of men, women and children gathering in the morning behind a dirt barrier, some holding yellow Hezbollah flags, hoping to reach the border town of Kfar Kila, where the Israeli military is still deployed.

- 'Bullets don't scare us' -

In the city of Bint Jbeil, an access point for many border villages, Hezbollah supporters distributed sweets, water and images of former chief Hassan Nasrallah, who an Israeli air strike killed in September.

Others handed out stickers celebrating the "victory from God" as women held pictures of slain Hezbollah fighters.

"They think they are scaring us with their bullets, but we lived under the bombing and bullets don't scare us," said Mona Bazzi in Bint Jbeil.

The official National News Agency (NNA) said that Lebanese "army reinforcements" had arrived near the border town of Mais al-Jabal, where people had started to gather at "the entrance of the town" in preparation for entering alongside the military.

It said the Israeli army had "opened fire in the direction of the Lebanese army" near the town, without reporting casualties there.

"We waited in a long line for hours, but couldn't enter," said Mohammed Choukeir, 33, from Mais al-Jabal, adding that Israeli troops "were opening fire from time to time on civilians gathered at the entrance of the town".

In nearby Hula, the NNA said residents entered "after the deployment of the army in several neighbourhoods".

- Bulldozers -

The truce has been marked by accusations of violations from both sides. It came after more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, including two months of all-out war.

On January 17, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for Israel to end its military operations and "occupation" in the south.

A source close to Hezbollah told AFP that "seven fighters from Hezbollah were taken prisoner" by Israel before the truce, while four other people were apprehended by the Israeli military on Sunday in south Lebanon border villages.

Lebanon's army said Sunday that it had entered several border areas including Dhayra, Maroun al-Ras and Aita al-Shaab.

An AFP photographer in Aita al-Shaab on Monday saw widespread destruction, with newly returned families among the ruins of their homes, as bulldozers worked to open roads and rescue teams searched for any bodies left over from the war.

Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee on Monday called again for south Lebanon residents to "wait" before returning.

Hilal Khashan, professor of political science at the American University of Beirut, said he did not expect a return to major violence.

"Hezbollah no longer wants any further confrontation with Israel. Its goal is to protect its achievements in Lebanon," he told AFP.

After the shootings on Sunday the Israeli military had said soldiers "fired warning shots to remove threats" where "suspects were identified approaching the troops".

The Lebanese army said Sunday it would "continue to accompany residents" returning to the south and "protect them from Israeli attacks".

(Y.Harris--TAG)