Israeli troops kill two in south Lebanon after lull in fighting, authorities say

Israeli soldiers have shot dead two people in southern Lebanon, the Lebanese health ministry said on Wednesday, marking the first fatal incident since a new ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group appeared to take hold over the weekend.

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported that the two men were killed while standing near a bulldozer that was clearing a road in the town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa. Hezbollah condemned the shooting as "a blatant violation of the ceasefire."

Israel's military said soldiers in the Ali al-Taher ridge area, just east of Nabatieh al-Fawqa, fired at "four Hezbollah terrorists riding a bulldozer and a motorcycle" who posed a threat. The military added that the group had crossed into the Israeli-declared "security zone" in southern Lebanon and ignored warning shots.

In a separate incident, Israeli soldiers struck a "cell of armed terrorists" north of the security zone. The military released a photo it said showed one of the men holding a rifle. No casualties were immediately reported from that incident.

The NNA identified the two killed as Mohammed Amhaz and Sajed al-Hajj Ali, saying they were with a team from the Islamic Health Association, an emergency service linked to Hezbollah, and a bulldozer working to reopen roads and recover bodies under rubble.

Hezbollah's military wing, the Islamic Resistance, said in a statement: "What the enemy has committed constitutes a blatant violation of the ceasefire, which the Resistance has adhered to up to this point." The group did not say whether it would retaliate.

The Ali al-Taher ridge, which overlooks much of southeastern Lebanon, has been one of the most fiercely contested positions in the conflict. Before the ceasefire, Israeli ground forces tried to seize the ridge, believed to contain a Hezbollah "underground military fortress."

The ceasefire has largely held since Sunday, marking the longest pause in weeks of escalating hostilities that spilled over from the US-Israeli war with Iran. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday night that Israeli troops had full freedom of action against any Hezbollah threat and would remain in Lebanon "as long as is necessary."

Tuesday's deaths came as Lebanese and Israeli officials opened talks in Washington aimed at advancing what the US State Department described as "a comprehensive peace and security agreement between the two countries." Iran has insisted that Lebanon be covered by the agreement signed with the US last week, warning that violations of the ceasefire could undermine broader diplomatic efforts.

Lebanon was drawn into the war between Israel, the US and Iran on March 2, when Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel in retaliation for a strike that killed Iran's supreme leader. Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed at least 4,192 people since the current round of hostilities began, according to the Lebanese health ministry. More than 1.2 million people have also been displaced, Lebanese authorities say. Israeli authorities say 36 Israeli soldiers and four civilians have been killed on both sides of the border during the conflict.