Ancient Lebanese city issued Israeli evacuation after broken ceasefire

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) issued an evacuation to the entire ancient Lebanese city of Tyre, including the city’s Christian Quarter, Tuesday, citing Hezbollah activity in the Christian Quarter.

“In light of the terrorist Hezbollah party’s violation of the ceasefire agreement and targeting of Israel’s home front, the Israel Defense Forces are compelled to act against it forcefully. The Israel Defense Forces do not intend to harm you,” IDF spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote in a Tuesday morning X post.

The warning cautioned residents of the majority Muslim city to evacuate north of the Zahrani River, roughly 20 miles north of the city’s center.

“Your presence near Hezbollah elements or their facilities or combat means endangers your lives,” Adraee continued.

“As we warned in the past days, following Hezbollah elements’ actions inside the Christian Quarter in the city, the Israel Defense Forces will be compelled to act against their terrorist activities in the quarter in the near term,” Adraee wrote.

The city’s Christian Quarter, which has been continuously inhabited by Christians for nearly 2,000 years, had previously been spared of Israeli strikes and evacuation orders that had targeted much of the rest of the city.

Israel launched military operations against Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed terrorist group operating in Lebanon, after the group launched a fresh round of missile strikes on northern Israel in March as a response to the joint U.S.-Israeli assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

“Any building used by Hezbollah for military purposes may be subject to targeting. To ensure your safety – evacuate your homes immediately and move north beyond the Zahrani River,” Adraee added.

“Any movement south of the Zahrani River may endanger your lives,” his statement concluded.