WATCH: Hezbollah incites & pays rioters to provoke Israeli soldiers stationed in southern Lebanon

After dozens of Lebanese were killed and wounded in clashes with Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers in southern Lebanon on Sunday, Israel’s Kan News reported that Hezbollah was behind the riots, sending civilians to provoke Israeli troops and reportedly even paid them to do so.

Confirming the Israeli report, the Lebanese newspaper L’Orient Today said Monday that municipalities across southern Lebanon, most of them controlled by Hezbollah or its allied Shia movement, Amal, were calling on residents to go en masse to confront IDF troops again.

On Sunday, the original deadline for the withdrawal of the Israeli troops from southern Lebanon expired.

Israel repeatedly warned civilians that its instructions not to approach IDF positions were still active, and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) called on residents to trust its troops and to wait for their deployment before returning to their homes.

A short time ago, the Lebanese Armed Forces proved once again they were useless to stop civilians from entering southern Lebanon villages. Furthermore, how can anyone believe they can disarm Hezbollah? pic.twitter.com/439Kaotn8r

— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) January 26, 2025

Nevertheless, thousands of crowds rushed toward IDF positions throughout the day, many of them carrying Hezbollah flags and chanting religious and anti-Israeli slogans.

According to Kan News, Hezbollah opened special social media groups to incite and organize the riots. Later in the day, the terror group celebrated its “victory” with demonstrations in Beirut.

“Our honorable people … today, you amaze the world once again, proving that you are a proud, loyal and courageous people,” Hezbollah stated.

Hezbollah convoy in Burj Hammoud pic.twitter.com/kvisvHlTAu

— Michael A. Horowitz (@michaelh992) January 26, 2025

Lebanon’s Minister of Labor Moustafa Bayram, who is affiliated with the terror group, said the events of the day showed that “The banners of resistance returned to protect the homeland’s fence, and the equation of army, people, and resistance [Hezbollah] was practically consecrated.”

Bayram also threatened: “To the settlers of the north, the banner of Hezbollah will rule you until your entity is eliminated.”

The UN peacekeeping force UNIFIL said Sunday it was “very concerned” over the clashes, adding it deployed troops in the area to “monitor the situation and help prevent any further escalation” at the LAF’s request.

However, UNIFIL noted that “the management of crowds remains outside our mandate,” and called on the IDF to “avoid firing at civilians.”

While concluding its statement with a call for the full implementation of the ceasefire agreement, which includes the withdrawal of Hezbollah from southern Lebanon, it did not mention the terror group by name.

In the evening, the White House announced that all parties agreed to extend the ceasefire deal until Feb. 18, with Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati confirming the extension on Monday morning.

IDF Arabic Spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee on Monday repeated his warnings to civilians not to approach IDF positions in Lebanon.

“In the near future, we will continue this approach and will inform you about the places to which we can return. Until then, we ask you to wait, and not allow Hezbollah to exploit you again in an attempt to cover up the devastating repercussions of its irresponsible decisions at the expense of the security of the State of Lebanon,” Adraee said.

“The implementation of the agreement continues, as the deployment process is taking place gradually, and in some areas it is postponed and requires more time in order to ensure that Hezbollah is not able to re-establish its strength in the field," he added. "Hezbollah, as usual, puts its narrow interests above the interests of the Lebanese state and tries through its mouthpieces to heat up the situation, despite being the main reason for the destruction of the south."