BBC reports from Lebanese border town as residents try to return home

BBC Arabic's correspondent Carine Torbey reports from the border town of Khiam, as the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon goes into its second day.

Displaced Lebanese have begun cautiously returning to their homes in the south after Lebanon and Israel agreed to a 10-day truce, even as the Lebanese army calls on residents to delay their return and Hezbollah warns it has its 'finger on the trigger' in case of Israeli violations.

Families packed into cars with mattresses lashed to rooftops, many waving Hezbollah flags, and streamed into southern Lebanon in the first hours of a tentative ceasefire early Friday, rushing home after six weeks of Israeli bombardment that has killed more than 2,100 people across the country.

A fragile calm has emerged in Lebanon following a U.S.-brokered 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, temporarily halting intense hostilities and prompting thousands of displaced families to cautiously return home.

People uprooted by the war in Lebanon began returning to devastated towns and neighborhoods on Friday, with many finding their homes destroyed or uninhabitable and hesitant to stay for fear a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel could unravel.

Fierce fighting continues over Bint Jbeil and Khiam, towns that are strategically placed on top of hills and hold significant importance in any confrontation between the Israeli army and Hezbollah.

A tenuous ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon took effect on April 17, 2026, signaling a potential de-escalation of the broader Iran-U.S.-Israel conflict, though challenges remain.

Israel and Lebanon have entered into a tentative 10-day ceasefire starting at midnight Friday, though Hezbollah has not formally agreed to the truce.

A fragile 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took effect on April 17, 2026, temporarily ending 46 days of intense conflict that left 2,196 dead in Lebanon—mostly civilians—and 15 in Israel.