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Ceasefire, then strikes
Israel and Hezbollah agreed to renew a ceasefire after the deaths of four Israeli soldiers, but Al Jazeera reported that Israel continued attacks on Lebanon despite the ceasefire being reported.
“Israel has continued to attack Lebanon after the new ceasefire with Hezbollah was reported, raising fears that Tel Aviv is trying to wreck the fragile agreement tied to wider efforts to end Middle East hostilities”
Al Jazeera said the ceasefire was set to start at 4pm local time (13:00 GMT), while the Lebanese health ministry said Israeli attacks that began at midnight and continued through Friday killed at least 47 people and wounded 97.
The BBC reported that Lebanon’s health ministry said at least 47 people were killed in Israel’s air strikes and that Israel’s military said four of its soldiers were also killed.
The BBC added that Israel’s military said it had struck 80 targets linked to Hezbollah and killed "dozens" of its members, as the strikes came a day after the US and Iran signed a deal aimed at ending the conflict in the Middle East.
In southern Lebanon, Al Jazeera’s Heidi Pett said, "It doesn’t feel much like a ceasefire," describing a pattern where residents see "a renewed burst of military activity on the ground."
Voices and blame
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem denounced what he called "the criminal Israeli war on Lebanon" and said the "project to eliminate Hezbollah and consolidate the occupation has failed" in a defiant tone reported by Al Jazeera.
Al Jazeera also quoted Israel’s ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter, saying on X: "Israel remains firmly committed to an immediate ceasefire."
The BBC reported that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu extended condolences to the four Israeli soldiers killed and wrote on X that he had instructed the IDF to "strike Hezbollah with full force".
The BBC further reported that Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said the "expansion of Israeli attacks constitute a dangerous escalation" and added that it would "not deter efforts to achieve a comprehensive ceasefire as quickly as possible."
In a separate account of the fighting, Anadolu Ajansı said Hezbollah claimed it destroyed three Merkava tanks and killed several soldiers in an ambush targeting Israeli forces advancing toward Ali al-Taher Heights.
Next talks and risks
The US state department said the next round of Lebanese-Israeli talks is due in Washington from June 23 to 25, after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun spoke by phone, according to Al Jazeera.
“Hezbollah claims it killed Israeli soldiers, destroyed 3 tanks in southern Lebanon Claim comes after Israeli army says 4 soldiers, including battalion commander, killed in southern Lebanon Jomaa Younis 19 June 2026•Update: 20 June 2026 İSTANBUL Tank ‘came under attack by a Hezbollah drone or another attack means, killing all four crew members, including the commander of the 52nd Battalion of the 401st Armored Brigade,’ says Israeli military investigation Hezbollah claimed Friday that it killed and wounded several Israeli soldiers and destroyed three tanks in an ambush targeting Israeli forces in southern Lebanon”
Al Jazeera reported that Aoun said a "comprehensive ceasefire" must serve as a "fundamental basis" for any direct negotiations with Israel, while the Lebanese presidency said he thanked Rubio for "the support of the United States for Lebanon".
France 24 said Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire on Friday after the resurgence of strikes in Lebanon strained the interim US-Iran deal, and it reported that Lebanese authorities said Israeli strikes had killed 47 people since Thursday night.
France 24 also said preparations for talks between US and Iranian delegations in Switzerland were postponed, with no new date announced, while Switzerland’s foreign ministry said it "remains ready to facilitate these talks."
In the background of the ceasefire dispute, the BBC reported that more than 3,900 people have been killed and more than 11,600 others wounded since the latest conflict began, and it said around a million people remain displaced while dozens of communities in the south have been completely destroyed.
