Tonight, in his first speech since the ceasefire in the war against Israel came into force, the leader of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Naim Kassem, assessed that his organization had achieved a great victory and announced cooperation with the Lebanese army.
"I declare that we are on the verge of a great victory. We won because we prevented the enemy from destroying Hezbollah and from destroying the resistance or weakening it," Kasem said in a pre-recorded speech.
He also promised to cooperate with the Lebanese army, which is in charge of implementing the cease-fire agreement with Israel, which foresees the withdrawal of the Israeli army from southern Lebanon.
"Cooperation between the resistance and the Lebanese army will be at a high level to implement the terms of the agreement," Kassem said, Agence France-Presse reported.
Since the ceasefire went into effect on Wednesday morning, the Israeli military has observed several violations of the agreement and acted to enforce it with the use of force, Israeli media reported.
The Lebanese army has accused Israel of violating the ceasefire several times.
Two children and a 50-year-old woman were killed today in a stampede outside a bakery in Deir al-Balah, a city in the central Gaza Strip, as Palestinians jostled to get bread.
Food deliveries to Gaza are the lowest since the start of the war on October 7, 2023, according to official Israeli data.
The United Nations and aid officials say hunger and desperation are growing among Gazans, nearly all of whom depend on humanitarian aid to survive.
A doctor at Al-Aqsa Hospital confirmed that the woman and children suffocated in the crowd outside the Al-Bana bakery in Deir al-Balah.
Palestinians across the Gaza Strip depend heavily on bakeries and charity kitchens, and many can get by on just one meal a day.
Some bakeries in Gaza were closed last Sunday due to a shortage of flour.
More than 44.000 people have been killed and more than 104.000 wounded since the start of the nearly 14-month war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in Gaza.
The Israeli army has destroyed large parts of Gaza and the entire population of 2,3 million has been displaced by the conflict.
(Beta)
The Israeli army announced that today, on the third day of the cease-fire between the Lebanese Hezbollah and Israel, it targeted the area in the south of Lebanon where the movement of the rocket launcher of the pro-Iranian organization was observed.
As stated, the army will apply the ceasefire with the use of force.
Earlier today, the Israeli army attacked southern Lebanon several times, Lebanese state media reported, and on Thursday an Israeli drone attacked a Hezbollah weapons depot.
The Lebanese army has not yet said anything about the latest attack, but has previously accused Israel of violating the ceasefire several times since it took effect early Wednesday, the Associated Press reported.
Israeli media reported that a medium-range mobile rocket launcher was attacked by a drone.
"The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) are deployed in southern Lebanon and are acting to eliminate threats to Israel and violations of the ceasefire agreement," the military statement added.
(Beta)
The Gaza Strip has fallen into anarchy, hunger is increasing, looting is widespread, and rapes in shelters are becoming more frequent, the United Nations warned today.
The director of the UN Office for Human Rights in the Palestinian Territories, Ajit Sungaj, said after his latest visit to the devastated Gaza that the extent of the suffering of the Palestinians must be seen to be fully understood.
"This time I was particularly disturbed by the widespread hunger. The violation of public order and security worsens the situation due to widespread theft and the struggle over scarce resources," Sunghaj told reporters in Geneva from Amman, the capital of Jordan, from where he spoke via video link.
Sunghaj assessed that there is anarchy in Gaza, which was warned about a few months ago, and added that such a situation was foreseeable and could have been prevented, France Press reported.
He said that the young women, displaced several times, emphasized that there are no safe places or privacy in their improvised tents.
"Others said that cases of gender-based violence and rape, as well as child abuse and other violence, have increased in the shelters as a result of the war and the breakdown of law and order," he said.
Sunghaj described the situation in Gaza City as "terrible", stating that thousands of displaced people live in inhumane conditions, that there is a shortage of food and that sanitary conditions are "terrible".
The United Nations has been prevented from delivering any aid to the 70.000 people believed to be living in northern Gaza, as Israeli authorities refuse to allow humanitarian convoys to pass through.
UN Human Rights Office spokesman Jeremy Lawrence called for an immediate ceasefire, saying the killing "must stop" and that the hostages "must be released immediately and unconditionally".
More than 44.300 people have died in Gaza since the start of the war on October 7, 2023, and more than 105.000 have been wounded. The victims are mostly women and children.
(Beta)
The Israeli army will remain in Gaza for years, fighting new Hamas recruits, and could take over responsibility for delivering humanitarian aid, said Avi Dichter, Israel's food security minister and a member of Israel's security cabinet.
His remarks confirm an increasingly clear picture of a long-term deployment of Israeli troops in Gaza, with no immediate plan for another administration to take control of the territory of 2,3 million people and begin reconstruction.
"I think we will stay in Gaza for a long time. Most people understand that [Israel] will be for years in some kind of situation like the West Bank, where you go in and out and maybe stay along the Netzarim corridor," Dichter said, according to the British Guardian.
Reservists who recently served in Gaza described the extensive new military infrastructure Israel has built in the area, including new camps and roads in northern and central Gaza.
One demobilized officer said he had spent the previous 70 days demolishing houses to make way for military bases in the Netzarim Corridor, a military zone between the Mediterranean coast and Gaza's eastern fence.
"That was the only mission. There were no buildings higher than my waist (in the corridor) left, except for our bases and observation posts," he said.
Israeli media also reported on the intense build-up of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in the Netzarim corridor and other parts of Gaza.
The amount of explosives used to destroy buildings north and south of the Netzarim corridor was so great that some units ran out of supplies, other demobilized reservists said.
"We are not at the beginning again ... but we are definitely not at the beginning of the end either because we still have a lot of work to do," said Dichter at a press briefing in Jerusalem last Sunday.
Israeli strikes on Thursday killed at least 21 Palestinians across Gaza, medical sources said, as tanks pushed deeper into the northern and southern parts of the territory.
The escalation came a day after Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah began a ceasefire in Lebanon, ending more than a year of hostilities and reviving hopes among Palestinians in Gaza that a similar deal could be reached with Hamas, which has ruled the territory since 2007. to the current conflict.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly stated that Hamas must be completely destroyed and that Israel must maintain permanent control over parts of Gaza. Ceasefire talks have broken down, and negotiations to return about 100 hostages held by Hamas are currently stalled.
Israel's campaign in Gaza has so far claimed nearly 44.200 lives and displaced nearly the entire population at least once, according to Gaza officials. Most of the victims were civilians, and large parts of the territory were destroyed.
Hamas-led militants, who attacked Israeli communities in the south 13 months ago, killed around 1.200 people, mostly civilians, and took more than 250 hostages.
Dichter, the former head of Israel's Shin Bet internal security service, said Hamas still has some military capabilities because Israel "hasn't reached every place in Gaza."
"We know that [Hamas] has recruited new people ... They have less capacity, but they have new recruits," he said.
The ceasefire in the north leaves Hamas, whose capacity has already been severely weakened by the Israeli offensive, to fight alone.
Khalil Sayegh, a Palestinian analyst, told the Guardian that the truce could further weaken Hamas's popularity in Gaza, as it shows the failure of its strategy of attacking Israel to bring other militant groups together in the fight.
"This is a moment where we see Hamas's messages becoming weaker as they struggle to justify their strategy to the public," he said.
It is still unclear how Israel plans to govern Gaza if it remains in the territory. Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected proposals for a reformed Palestinian Authority to take over power, but has made no other specific proposals.
Dichter confirmed that Israel is considering hiring private firms to protect aid convoys from looters, which could be a trial solution, and also suggested that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) could take on that role. Different solutions could be applied in different parts of Gaza, he said.
"So far we haven't found the answers, but I believe we should find a way ... to ensure that enough food reaches every citizen in Gaza ... and not allow Hamas to be the informal ruler. You don't have to use the same system everywhere in Gaza , but Hamas will not rule Gaza, so who will - I can't say now," said Dichter.
The war with Israel has weakened the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and its ally Iran, which has been used by jihadists in Syria to launch an offensive against regime forces.
The rebels were surprised by their success and made more progress than they had originally planned, analysts said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last night that he has ordered the army to be ready for intense fighting if the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is violated.
In an interview with Israel's Channel 14, he said that Israel is "vigorously enforcing" the agreement,
"But if necessary, I have given a directive to the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) - be prepared for an intense war in case there is a violation of the framework of the ceasefire," Netanyahu said, according to Radio Free Europe.
Bonus video:
