Israel carried out air strikes in southern Lebanon Friday, rattling an already fragile truce that largely ended more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah.

It was the second time rockets had been fired from Lebanon since the November ceasefire, and the second time the Iran-backed Hezbollah denied involvement.

Lebanon’s state news agency said an Israeli drone strike in the country’s south hit a car, killing two people on Thursday afternoon in the village of Baraasheet.

The National News Agency gave no further details and it was not immediately clear if the two killed were members of Lebanon’s Hezbollah.

Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatthas accused Israel of exploiting followers of his minority faith in Syria as part of a broader plan to divide the Middle East along sectarian lines.

The head of Hezbollah’s Loyalty to Resistance parliamentary bloc, MP Mohammad Raad, noted Thursday that Hezbollah “has firmly committed to the ceasefire” agreement with Israel, “although it knew that the enemy will not abide by it, and despite the Israeli violations that have persisted since the first days.”

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam announced Thursday that he did not support the appointment of Karim Souaid as central bank chief for “a host of reasons,” including “keenness on protecting depositors’ rights and preserving the state’s assets.”

President Joseph Aoun has announced that Hezbollah’s arms will not be removed by force and that normalization with Israel is not currently on the table.

President Joseph Aoun visits France on Friday, his first trip to a European country since his January election and as Paris pushes Beirut for long-demanded political and economic reforms.

Asset manager Karim Souaid was named as Lebanon's new central bank governor on Thursday, receiving 17 out of 24 votes in Cabinet, after Prime Minister Nawaf Salam's opposition to his appointment prevented consensus over the move.

According to Al-Jadeed TV, Souaid received the votes of the ministers of the Lebanese Forces, Hezbollah, the Amal Movement, the Progressive Socialist Party and the Kataeb Party, in addition to the ministers who are close to President Joseph Aoun.

The Lebanese and Syrian defense ministers are to meet Thursday in Saudi Arabia to discuss issues including border tensions, a Lebanese official with knowledge of the matter told AFP.

Instead of a visit to Damascus that has been postponed, Lebanese Defense Minister Michel Menassa is set to meet with his Syrian counterpart Murhaf Abu Qasra "in Jeddah, under the patronage of Saudi Arabia," the official said on condition of anonymity.

Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem said in a speech broadcast in the evening that Hezbollah "will not accept the continued (Israeli) occupation," referring to the ongoing presence of Israeli troops in south Lebanon after a recent war.

The Lebanese group initiated cross-border fire with the Israeli military in support of Hamas on October 8, 2023. Hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah dramatically spiraled into all-out conflict last September, and the group remains a target of Israeli air strikes despite a November 27 ceasefire.