An Israeli strike kills a shepherd in Lebanon, further shaking the tenuous ceasefire
The IndependentFor free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Israeli forces carried out several new drone and artillery strikes in Lebanon on Tuesday, including a deadly strike that the Health Ministry and state media said killed a shepherd, further shaking a tenuous ceasefire meant to end more than a year of fighting with Hezbollah. Since it began last Wednesday, the U.S.- and French-brokered 60-day ceasefire has been rattled by near daily Israeli strikes, although Israel has been vague about the purported Hezbollah violations that prompted them. Hezbollah fired two projectiles toward an Israeli-held disputed border zone, its first volley since the ceasefire began, saying it was a “warning” in response to Israel’s strikes. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said any violations of the agreement would be met with “a maximum response and zero tolerance.” Speaking to troops on Israel’s northern border Tuesday, he said if the war resumes, Israel will widen its strikes beyond the areas where Hezbollah’s activities are concentrated, and “there will no longer be an exemption for the state of Lebanon.” The ceasefire ended 14 months of war between Israel and Hezbollah, capped by an intensified Israeli bombardment since late September and ground invasion that killed hundreds of Hezbollah members and civilians in Lebanon and sent more than 1.4 million fleeing their homes.