An Israeli official told i24NEWS that the ceasefire with Hezbollah is in effect, while stating that Israel continues to operate against threats and will respond forcefully if Hezbollah strikes Israeli troops or civilians. The official added that Israeli forces remain in the security zone inside southern Lebanon.
An Israeli official confirmed to i24NEWS on Friday evening that the ceasefire with Hezbollah is in effect and that Israeli forces remain deployed inside the security zone in southern Lebanon, with full freedom of action against emerging threats. The official stressed that any Hezbollah attack on IDF soldiers or Israeli civilians would draw a forceful response. This latest official statement is the most explicit on-the-record confirmation yet that the IDF intends to maintain an ongoing ground presence in southern Lebanon, while the ceasefire holds. The timing — after 20:00 Jerusalem — aligns with a lull in public statements from both sides as the day's events settled.
The Friday thread unfolded rapidly. At 15:56, a senior US official told Reuters that Israel and Hezbollah had agreed to a ceasefire effective 16:00, as The Zioneer first reported. By 16:09, an Israeli source confirmed to The Zioneer that Jerusalem had agreed on condition it stays in the security zone. The IDF spokesperson simultaneously stated at 16:15 that strikes would continue as needed. Multiple Israeli sources then confirmed the ceasefire was in effect (16:10), with one official at 17:12 saying the halt was mutual — Israeli restraint met Hezbollah restraint. The evening i24NEWS statement reinforces that the ceasefire is holding, but the IDF retains freedom of action against emerging threats. No Hezbollah statement on the latest official's remarks has been published.
As The Zioneer reported on Friday, the ceasefire was brokered by the United States and Qatar, with Gulf diplomatic sources also confirming the arrangement. A Hezbollah statement from Monday said the group has not attacked since the ceasefire took hold but warned it would respond if Israel operates in Lebanon — framing the IDF's ongoing deployment in the security zone as a potential trigger.
What remains open: whether Hezbollah will treat the continued Israeli presence as a violation triggering a response, or whether both sides will interpret the security zone arrangement as consistent with the ceasefire. No Hezbollah statement has addressed the latest official's confirmation of the IDF's operational posture in the zone.
9 developments
- DevelopingIsraeli ambassador to US responds to Iranian threats, ceasefire allegations
- DevelopingUS ambassador to Lebanon says IDF strikes on Beirut will continue if Hezbollah attacks persist
- DevelopingIsrael returns to Lebanon ceasefire — no initiated strikes unless attacked, Israeli official says
- StrongSenior US official reportedly says Israel and Hezbollah to cease fire at 16:00
Source and signal
- Internal intake