Four civilians and two soldiers were killed by Israeli strikes on three border crossings between Lebanon and Syria hours before the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire came into effect, Syrian state media reports.

Twelve people were wounded, including children, women, and humanitarian workers from the Syrian Red Crescent.

The Syrian Red Crescent said earlier that one of its volunteers had been killed in the strike, which had also damaged several ambulances.

As dawn breaks in Lebanon, people displaced by months of Israeli attacks have been pictured returning home, despite an Israeli military warning to wait until they are told it is safe to do so.

Here are the latest images from Lebanon in the hours after the ceasefire began:

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

US President Joe Biden's announcement of a ceasefire deal is set to end more than a year of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Here are some of the details of the deal we've learned from officials and media reports:

• It is meant to be a permanent deal: The deal outlines that Hezbollah and Israel will have 60 days to remove its fighters and weapons from the region and the Blue Line - the unofficial border between Lebanon and Israel - and the Litani river, about 30km (20 miles) to the north
• Lebanese troops to replace Hezbollah: The Lebanese army is expected to deploy 5,000 troops to the south under the agreement, according to a US official. But there are questions about whether the country's military can or would confront Hezbollah forces in the area if needed
• How the ceasefire will be monitored: The US and France are joining the existing tripartite mechanism that was charged with monitoring violations of previous conflicts, which involves Unifil, Lebanon and Israel. Both Israel and Hezbollah have claimed the other violated previous ceasefire agreements
• Israel claims right to respond to violations: Prime Minister Netanyahu said that Israel would “maintain full freedom of military action” in Lebanon “with the United States' full understanding”. Netanyahu cited moves like the group attempting to arm itself, rebuilding infrastructure or using rockets as reasons to attack

Read more on what we know about the deal here.

Iran's foreign ministry has welcomed what it calls the end of Israel's "aggression" in Lebanon, according to Iranian state media.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei reiterated Iran's "firm support for the Lebanese government, nation and resistance", in a statement issued after the ceasefire between Israel and the Iranian-backed Lebanese militia Hezbollah.

Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cited the "Iranian threat" as one of the main reasons for implementing the ceasefire deal, although he did not elaborate further.

Image source, Reuters

Cars carrying people displaced from southern Lebanon by Israeli strikes in recent months were seen heading south after the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah began, Reuters news agency reports.

It happened despite a warning from the Israeli military to residents in south Lebanon that it's not safe to return home yet.

Dozens of vehicles were seen leaving the port city of Sidon, located south of Beirut, while photos taken in Zahrani show some cars stacked with mattresses and other belongings.

Image source, Reuters

Carine Torbey
BBC Arabic correspondent, in Beirut

Image source, Reuters

An hour after the ceasefire began, the distinctive buzzing of Israeli surveillance drones can still be heard in many areas in the country.

Israeli media first said that the ceasefire would start at 10:00 local time, before President Biden set the time at 04:00 in the morning (02:00 GMT).

This appeared to be one minor disagreement over the details of the implementation. Many more are expected to surface in the coming days.

For now, the persistence of the drones could be seen as another Israeli show of power about who has the last word.

That being said, there’s a concern in the country that even if the Israeli drones get out of sight, it doesn’t necessarily mean they will stop flying completely.

The Israeli military (IDF) has warned residents in south Lebanon not to approach IDF positions, minutes after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah began.

In a post on X, the IDF's Arabic spokesman Avichay Adraee tells the Lebanese residents that they are "prohibited from heading towards the villages that the IDF has ordered to be evacuated or towards IDF forces in the area".

He says the IDF remains deployed in its positions inside southern Lebanon.

"For your safety and the safety of your family members, refrain from moving to the area. We will inform you when it is safe to return home," he adds.

Celebrations in the street. Cautious optimism. Hopes that it could lead to a broader deal ending the war in Gaza.

Here is how some people across Israel and Lebanon reacted to the news of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah:

Frank Gardner
Security correspondent in Jerusalem

The deal is approved, the ceasefire has begun.

But will it hold?

The key test will be in its implementation. Over the next 60 days Israel is due to pull its army out of Lebanon and Hezbollah must withdraw to north of the Litani River.

At the same time, supposedly filling the vacuum, will be Lebanon’s national army and the UN peacekeepers known as Unifil, all monitored by a committee of five nations, overseen by the deal’s sponsor, the United States.

But the Lebanese Army has always been much weaker than Hezbollah and Unifil has failed to prevent Hezbollah from firing rockets into Israel.

The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel reserved the right to intervene again in Lebanon, militarily, if it thought the deal was being broken.

But many Israelis living in the north of Lebanon close to the border have their doubts.

And now the focus will return to Gaza, where some Palestinians hope this will hasten a ceasefire there too. Others fear it will now free up the Israeli army to redouble its assault on Hamas, with yet more civilian casualties to follow.

It's just gone 04:00 in Lebanon (02:00 GMT), which means the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire announced on Tuesday evening should now be in effect.

If the deal holds, it will end more than a year of war between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group.

The fighting escalated significantly in September, when Israel intensified bombardments and launched a limited ground invasion.

As a reminder, under the terms of the ceasefire, Israeli forces will withdraw from Lebanon within 60 days, while Hezbollah forces will be replaced by Lebanese army forces in the south of the country over the same period.

As we reported a few hours ago, Israel ordered the evacuation of two areas of Beirut.

Air strikes have now been reported in Beirut just a few minutes before the ceasefire is due to begin at 04:00 local time (02:00 GMT).

Frank Gardner
Security correspondent in Jerusalem

Image source, re

The Israeli prime minister has given three reasons why he favours a ceasefire with Hezbollah at this juncture, contrary to the views of its detractors.

1. Focussing on the threat from Iran. While saying he is not going to expand on that, he did state elsewhere that Israel had destroyed major parts of Iran’s air defence system and a significant component of its nuclear programme. Hezbollah was always seen as Iran’s first line of defence. With much of Hezbollah’s missile arsenal now destroyed the military balance between Israel and Iran has tilted in Israel’s favour.

2. Exhaustion. Although he doesn’t use that word he did say that the Israeli military needed a break and to rearm. Israeli commentators say that the country’s military was neither ready nor equipped to fight two wars on two fronts over an extended period of time. Ending the conflict in Lebanon potentially frees up more Israeli forces to serve in Gaza, a conflict which shows no sign of ending.

3. Isolating Hamas. Taking Hezbollah out of the war does increase the pressure on Hamas, which had always hoped it would not be the only member of Iran’s "Axis of Resistance" attacking Israel. Whether that will, as Netanyah says, "help us in our sacred mission of releasing our hostages" is debatable. Families and relatives of the remaining Israeli hostages still held in Gaza have been deeply critical of Netanyahu, accusing him of prolonging the conflict in Gaza at the expense of a deal that released those hostages.

Image source, Reuters

An official from US President-elect Donald Trump's campaign has said the peace deal reached under the outging administration of Joe Biden was spurred by Trump's election victory this month.

"President Trump rightfully predicted that actors in the region would make moves toward peace because of his historic victory - and that's exactly what we are seeing take place," the official says.

Trump, the official adds, "has been crystal clear that his support for Israel" is steadfast, as is his "commitment to peace in the Middle East".

He adds that "Iran-backed proxies clearly see the clock ticking" as Trump will return to power in January "with a strong national security team".

Hugo Bachega
Middle East correspondent, in Beirut

Questions remain about the ceasefire.

Under the deal, thousands of Lebanese soldiers will be deployed to the south, after the withdrawal of Israeli forces and Hezbollah fighters. How they will be deployed remains unclear.

The military has complained that they do not have the resources – money, manpower and equipment – to fulfil their obligations.

But it is not only about funding, which will probably come from some of Lebanon’s international allies. Will the Lebanese military confront Hezbollah if needed?

That would set Lebanese against Lebanese, which is always a risk in a country where sectarian divisions run deep.

Lebanese authorities seem to have accepted that things must change, a diplomat told me. It appears there is the political will to do so.

Read Hugo's full piece

The Syrian Red Crescent , externalsays one of its volunteers has been killed and others have been injured in an apparent military strike near the Lebanon border early Wednesday morning local time.

The humanitarian organisation says the volunteers were "rescuing the wounded" when the "aggression" happened. Several ambulances were also damaged in the blast, which occurred near the Al-Dabousyeh and Al-Arida crossings between Syria and Lebanon, the Syrian Red Crescent says.

The organisation called on "all sides to respect international humanitarian law" and "protect" workers.

We have a bit more detail on how this ceasefire deal could play out, thanks to information from a senior US official.

Here's what we know:

• The plan sets out a "phased withdrawal" of Israeli troops from Lebanon over the course of the next 60 days
• The Lebanese military will help patrol the area around the Blue Line as the Israeli military moves south and Hezbollah moves north
• The United States and France will join the existing Tripartite mechanism - which currently includes the Lebanese military, the Israeli military and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) - to help enforce the agreement in this area
• All complaints of potential violations of the ceasefire agreement will be directed to the United States
• There won't be any US troops on the ground in Lebanon, but US and French forces will support the Lebanese military through training and helping with communications
• The US, France and other countries will also provide technical and financial support to the Lebanese military via a Military Technical Committee, or MTC
• The plan calls for the international community to support economic and infrastructure growth in southern Lebanon in an effort to establish conditions that can lead to a "durable ceasefire"

Gabriela Pomeroy
Live reporter

I've been talking to Vardit, who lives in the town of Nahariya in northern Israel.

She says she hopes a ceasefire will stop the regular Hezbollah rocket attacks from Lebanon.

“We have rockets from Hezbollah every day and a few times a day,” she says.

On MondayIsrael said 250 rockets were fired by Hezbollah into Israel.

"I’m afraid to go the bathroom or take a shower in case the rockets land when I’m in there,” Vardit says.

“When there is a rocket attack I go to the bomb shelter, when the attacks happen when I’m driving I stop the car and find somewhere to take cover.

“I hope that with a ceasefire my life can go back to normal, and the 60,000 Israelis evacuated from the north will be able to return to their homes.”

Hezbollah says it launched drones towards Israel on Tuesday night, shortly before a ceasefire was due to come into effect.

The IDF confirms it intercepted several drones targeting the country.

"In response to the targeting of the capital Beirut and the massacres committed by the Israeli enemy against civilians," Hezbollah launched "drones at a group of sensitive military targets in the city of Tel Aviv and its suburbs," the Iran-backed group says, according to the AFP news agency.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says he hopes the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon "can put an end to the violence, destruction and suffering".

Guterres "urges the parties to fully respect and swiftly implement all of their commitments made under this agreement," his spokesman Stephane Dujarric adds.

UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert also welcomes the deal, saying it "marks the starting point of a critical process ... to restore the safety and security that civilians on both sides of the Blue Line deserve".

But "considerable work lies ahead", she cautions, requiring "nothing less than.. full and unwavering commitment".

With just hours to go until the ceasefire is due to go into effect, the IDF has issued evacuation orders for areas of Beirut.

The IDF's Arabic spokesman, Avichay Adraee, writes on X, external that residents of two small areas of Beirut should evacuate "immediately and stay at a distance of no less than 500m [1,640ft]".

"You are located near Hezbollah facilities and interests, against which the IDF will operate in the near future," Adraee tells residents.

The post was published just after midnight local time (22:00 GMT), some four hours before the ceasefire is due to go into effect.