IDF calls on civilians to evacuate 37 southern Lebanon villages and towns
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The IDF is calling on Lebanese civilians in 37 villages and towns in southern Lebanon to evacuate immediately, and head north of the Awali River.
In recent days, the military has called on dozens of locales in southern Lebanon, including those north of the Litani River, to evacuate.
“Hezbollah’s activity forces the IDF to act against it. The IDF does not wish to harm you,” Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, says in a statement on X.
“For your safety, you must evacuate your homes immediately. Anyone who is near Hezbollah operatives, their facilities or their weapons, puts themselves at risk,” he says.
The IDF says it will update the civilians when it is safe to return.
The evacuations come amid Israeli ground operations in southern Lebanon, which the military has described as “limited, localized and targeted raids,” with the goal of demolishing Hezbollah’s infrastructure in the border area.
Officials have said that the military intends for the operations to end as quickly as possible.
UPDATED: Map of Israeli military's evacuation orders in South Lebanon over the past 3 days. The expanding zones now include new areas as the situation escalates, displacing even more residents. #Lebanon pic.twitter.com/JU6QXr5O2B
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