The US and Lebanon say a ceasefire agreement with Israel – which was due to expire on Sunday – has been extended until mid-February.
Israel kept troops stationed in Lebanon past the initial deadline, accusing the Lebanese government of not fully fulfilling its part of the deal, which called for Hezbollah to be removed from the area.
On Sunday, Lebanon's health ministry said Israeli soldiers killed 22 people and wounded 124 others who were trying to return to their homes in the south of the country.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said that after contact from the US, the ceasefire would remain in place until February 18.
The initial ceasefire plan, announced in late November, ended the 14-month conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
The agreement, brokered by the US and France, gave Hezbollah 60 days to end its armed presence in southern Lebanon and required Israeli forces to withdraw during the same period.
Announcing the plan, then-US President Joe Biden said it was “intended to be a permanent cessation of hostilities” between the two countries.
But on Friday, two days before the deadline, Israel said some troops would remain in the region because the ceasefire agreement “is not yet fully implemented by the Lebanese state”.
A White House statement on Sunday said the deadline had now been pushed back to February 18 and that negotiations would begin to return Lebanese prisoners captured after October 7, 2023.
Thousands of Lebanese returned to towns and villages near the border after the deal was agreed, despite warnings that the region was still unsafe.
On Sunday, the Lebanese Ministry of Health said 22 people were killed by Israeli soldiers in the area.
Israel's military said it fired “warning shots in multiple areas,” without specifying whether any people were hit, and detained several people it said posed an “imminent threat.”
The long-standing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah – an Iranian-backed militant, political and social movement – escalated last September. This led to an intense Israeli air campaign in Lebanon, a ground invasion in the south of the country, and the assassination of Hezbollah's top leaders.
The offensive has killed around 4,000 people in Lebanon – including many civilians – and displaced more than 1.2 million residents.
Israel's stated goal was to allow the return of some 60,000 residents who fled communities in the north of the country because of Hezbollah attacks, and to remove the group from areas along the border.
Hezbollah launched its campaign a day after Hamas attacks on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, saying it was acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.