STORY: Lebanese villagers defy Israeli withdrawal delays, push to reclaim occupied lands
SHOOTING TIME: Jan. 31, 2025
DATELINE: Feb. 1, 2025
LENGTH: 00:01:58
LOCATION: Beirut
CATEGORY: SOCIETY/MILITARY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of damage in the border village of Al Dhaira, Lebanon
2. various of Civil Defense ambulances entering Al Dhaira, Lebanon
3. various of damage in Al Dhaira, Lebanon
4. various of citizens walking between rubble
5. various of Lebanese army in Al Dhaira, Lebanon
6. various of damage in Al Dhaira, Lebanon

STORYLINE:

For recent days, convoys of cars draped in Lebanese flags and Hezbollah banners have choked roads near Lebanon's southern border, as hundreds of villagers -- men, women, and children -- march toward homes they fled months ago during cross-border clashes. 

Their return, timed to the expiration of a 60-day ceasefire deadline for Israel's withdrawal, has reignited tensions in a region scarred by decades of conflict.

The Lebanese Health Ministry reported at least 25 deaths and 160 injuries this week, attributing the casualties to efforts by Israeli forces to block civilians from advancing. Yet the crowds pressed on, undeterred by live fire and warnings from loudspeakers.

In the rubble-strewn town of Khiam, 30-year-old Haitham Abdallah surveyed what remained of his neighborhood. "Our homes are gone, but our roots are here," he said, gesturing to collapsed buildings and scattered Israeli military debris. Nearby, soldiers monitored returnees as families sifted through the wreckage for belongings.

Further south, in Kfarchouba -- a village destroyed and rebuilt four times since the 1970s -- 50-year-old Jamil Yahya watched as elderly residents swept debris from doorsteps. "Mothers dig through concrete hoping to find a photo, a shirt -- anything that says their life was real," he said.

Under the ceasefire agreement reached last December, Israel was set to withdraw from southern Lebanon once the Lebanese army deployed to secure the area and prevent Hezbollah's resurgence. However, Israel announced last week that its forces would remain in the region beyond the deadline, arguing that the Lebanese military has yet to establish full control and that Hezbollah has not fully withdrawn north of the Litani River.

On Monday, Lebanon's caretaker government agreed to extend the ceasefire until Feb. 18, following a U.S. request to buy time for negotiations. President Joseph Aoun called for restraint, asking residents to "trust the army" to facilitate their safe return. The UN peacekeeping mission also warned that "conditions are not yet in place for citizens to return safely."

However, for some, all warnings and risks would not stop them from returning. 

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Beirut.
(XHTV)