Beirut, Nov 27 (IANS) Calm prevails over the border areas in southern Lebanon on Wednesday as a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon took effect at 4:00 a.m. local time (0200 GMT), according to Lebanese security sources.
The sources, who spoke anonymously, told Xinhua that the Israeli army on Wednesday attacked towns and villages in the western Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon and the border town of Khiam in southern Lebanon, and then stopped its airstrikes about 10 minutes before the ceasefire went into effect.
The main roads in various Lebanese regions, now open, are witnessing heavy traffic after a large number of the displaced quickly returned to their towns in southern and eastern Lebanon to check on their homes and properties.
The sources told Xinhua news agency that roads in frontline villages and towns adjacent to the Blue Line separating Lebanon and Israel are still closed.
“Many roads leading to the border areas are still cut off as a result of holes caused by Israeli airstrikes and the Israeli army firing large quantities of cluster bombs while Israeli forces are still inside them,” they added.
Meanwhile, the Lebanese army said in a statement that it is “working to take the necessary measures to complete the deployment in the south according to the Lebanese government’s mandate and to carry out its missions in coordination with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) within the framework of Resolution 1701.”
It called on citizens of the frontline villages and towns to “wait for their return” following the withdrawal of Israeli forces, and adhere to “the instructions of the military units deployed in the area to preserve their safety.”
It also called on those returning to other areas to “be careful of unexploded ordnance and suspicious objects left behind” by the Israeli army.
Israel’s security cabinet on Tuesday night approved a ceasefire deal with Lebanon, paving the way for an end to a nearly 14-month conflict which, according to Lebanese health authorities, has killed 3,823 people and wounded 15,859 others in Lebanon as of Tuesday.
The ceasefire ensures that the Lebanese army will take control of the territory near its border with Israel over the next 60 days, Israel will gradually withdraw its troops from the region, and civilians will return home.
–IANS
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