PERSONAL STORY: 'A lot of destruction but thank God we are holding on,' returning Lebanese villager says

 Scenes of destruction and rubble were visible on Friday (June 19) in the southern Lebanese villages of Qlailieh and Zebqine, as a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah began that ultimately wouldn't survive into the next day.

 "We were displaced and now we are back, there is a lot of destruction, and thank God we are holding on, and we will never be defeated", said displaced Lebanese man Ali Amer returning to his hometown.

 Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire beginning at 4 p.m. (1300 GMT) on Friday, a U.S. official said, after an escalation in hostilities in Lebanon sorely tested the U.S.-Iranian interim deal to end the wider Middle East conflict. A senior Israeli official and two Hezbollah sources confirmed the ceasefire to Reuters.

But just hours after the truce took effect, Israeli air strikes and drone attacks killed at least five people in the south on Saturday, Lebanese state media said.

 A halt to the fighting in Lebanon is a condition for starting 60 days of U.S.-Iranian talks to resolve disputes over Iran’s nuclear program and other thorny issues needed to forge a more durable deal critical to reopening the Strait of Hormuz and stabilizing global oil supplies.

 The Iran deal requires the United States, Iran, and their allies to declare an immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon. Violence has picked up over the course of the week after initially abating when the agreement was first announced.

Lebanon's health ministry has recorded 3,912 people killed in Lebanon as a result of Israeli attacks since March 2, including 746 medics, women and children. Israel's death toll from this round of hostilities with Hezbollah includes at least 32 soldiers and four Israeli civilians.

-Production: Jihed Abidellaoui/Reuters