Lebanon army removes roadblocks placed by Israeli forces near southern village

The Lebanese army on Monday evening began dismantling roadblocks placed by the Israeli army outside the village of Aitaroun in southern Lebanon.

In a statement, the army said that Israeli forces had positioned concrete blocks and piles of earth on a road outside the village on Sunday night to block residents from accessing their land.

It worked alongside the UN's peacekeeping mission (UNIFIL) to remove the barriers, it said.

The Israeli military has occupied a 10 square-kilometre chunk of land between the village and the disputed border for more than a year, following the end of last year's war in November 2024.

It seized large parts of the south during its war against Hezbollah but has refused to withdraw from five areas close to the Blue Line de facto border, in violation of the ceasefire agreement.

Under the deal, Israel was supposed to fully withdraw from Lebanon within 60 days.

This comes as Israel holds its largest military drill since 7 October 2023 close to the Lebanese border.

Ground forces, the navy and the air force are participating in the five-day exercise, which began on Sunday.

Israeli warplanes and drones have conducted hundreds of strikes against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon in the 11 months since the ceasefire came into effect.

US envoy Tom Barrack warned the Lebanese government on Monday that Israel would launch a new war against the armed group if it is not disarmed.

The Trump administration has put intense pressure on Beirut to strip Hezbollah of its weapons.

This year the Lebanese army has taken control of the area south of the Litani river, a former Hezbollah stronghold, dismantling much of the group's infrastructure and confiscating weapons.

However, Hezbollah retains its arsenal in other areas of the country and has refused to unilaterally disarm.

The country's president and prime minister in August asked the army to come up with a plan to fully disarm the group by the end of the year.

The proposal was approved by the government the following months, though details on how the army plans to confiscate the weapons have been kept under wraps.